‘General Goodluck Ebele Jonathan’- The Photoshopped image of Nigeria’s president is the most common blackberry Avatar and an indication of how Nigerians feel about their ‘civilian’ dictator president.
January 16th, 2011
NewsRescue- Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation is now under the siege of its presidency and ruling body. The democratically elected president of Nigeria, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan is holding the nation to total ransom in what can be viewed as a brutal dictatorship.
The Goodluck Jonathan administration has ordered that those daring to call for regime change and engaged in any kind of street protests in Nigeria will be arrested and charged with treason. The Nigerian police, Monday warned:
“For the avoidance of doubt, any person henceforth found on the streets, roads or pathways in this country continuing with the protests or marches shall be arrested and be charged to court immediately,” a statement said.
It also said “any person or group of persons calling for a regime change before the expiration of the mandate period of the current government is committing treason and will be so arrested and prosecuted no matter who she or he is.”
Who is behind subsidy removal
The actions of Nigeria’s power-drunk president from Bayelsa state in the Niger-Delta, from his occupying office, including his early spinal banning of the Nigeria National soccer team till this attracted the threat of a 5 year suspension from FIFA, to his present unilateral decisions on fuel subsidy removal and fuel prices, are frightfully dictatorial and non democratic in nature.
On Monday, the president of Nigeria, unilaterally decided to reduce the cost of fuel from his prior, January 1st 110% hike from N65 to N141, to a 50% price increase, now fixed at N97. He did this with preparedness to use marshal law to enforce his personal too-proud-to-backdown wish and choice.
The Nigerian Labour organizations maturely stepped down from their strike stance to give peace a chance. In their suspension speech they begged Nigerians to give the president a chance to do all the things he promised he will do with the increased funds, as well as to make good on his promises on investigating government and petroleum sector ‘cabal’ and ‘cartel’ corruption, as well as decreasing allowances and salaries of his ruling executives, some of whom earn as much as $600,000 per month, a world highest.
President unleashes the army on peaceful protest
Meanwhile the president immediately Monday morning, ordered the army to occupy all streets in Nigeria, to prevent freedom of speech and peaceful protest. This in continuation of his bullying practices toward the citizenry.
The Lagos state governor, Babatunde Raji Fashola in address to state citizens, complained strongly about the actions of the presidency and the unnecessary and overzealous show and use of force on what were completely peaceful demonstrations.
Governor Babatunde Fashola:
Lagos Governor Raji Fashola {PMNews}
I have decided to address you today in view of the very disquieting developments that occurred overnight especially the deployment of soldiers across Lagos.
I have the highest respect for members of our military, especially because they have made a contract with all of us that they will willingly lay down their lives whenever it becomes necessary to do so, in order to protect us.
This covenant is instructive, because soldiers did not sign up to stop us from expressing our grievance about things that we are displeased about.
It is not disputable that the citizens who have gathered in several parts of Lagos like Falomo, Ikorodu and Ojota to mention a few have largely conducted themselves peacefully, singing and dancing while they expressed their displeasure at the way that we have taken decisions that affect them.
Nigeria Under Siege {img: NVS}
That in my view should not offend those of us in Government. The majority of these people who represent diverse interests have not broken any law. If they have, it is my opinion that in a constitutional democracy, it is the police that has the responsibility for restoring law and order if civil protests threatens the breach of the peace.
This is not justification for sending out soldiers to a gathering of unarmed citizens. Every one of us, or at least majority of us who hold public office danced and sang before these same people when we were seeking their votes.
Why should we feel irritated when they sing and dance in protest against what we have done?
For me this is not a matter for the military. The sooner we rethink and rescind this decision the better and stronger our democracy will be.
If anything, this is a most welcome transformation of our democracy in the sense that it provokes a discussion of economic policies and this inevitably may result in political debate.
I therefore urge the reconsideration of the decision to deploy soldiers and implore the President and Commander-in-Chief to direct their withdrawal from our streets, I must also emphasize that the rights of free speech and protest is not absolute. They impose the duty not to break the law, breach the peace, endanger human life or destroy property whether public or private.
They also impose the duty to respect the rights of others not to support our protest and indeed to support what we oppose. At the end of the day, it is a contest of ideas in which the most persuasive will get the endorsement of the majority of the people we serve.
I am convinced that our democracy is mature enough to accommodate this. We must do our best to ensure that it does.
Southern terrorist leader threatens Nigeria on presidents behalf
Intimidation is now the way of Nigeria’s ruling dispensation. It will be recalled that anytime there is chaos in Nigeria, the presidents right hand terrorist leaders from his native Ijaw tribe, the MEND group, openly threaten Nigerians.
President and MEND leader, Asari Dokubo, who continues to threaten and terrorize Nigerians {img: TheWill}
Dokubo Asari threatens Nigeria
“Asari Dokubo told our leaders that oil platforms will be occupied by Niger Delta militants if PENGASSAN decides to shut down production in solidarity with the ongoing labor strike,” said one source.
One source in the Presidency disclosed that President Jonathan had funneled funds to Asari Dokubo and a few Niger Delta militants in a bid to use them to harass striking unions.
“Nigerians and the world need to know that President Jonathan is personally authorizing and funding militants with a history of violence to intimidate labor leaders whose only offense is that they are pursuing legitimate demands through time-honored means,” said a lawyer who said he had been made aware of the threats.
Goodluck security agents invade CNN, BBC offices
Nigerian state security officers visited CNN’s office in Lagos on Monday, asking for proof that all CNN staffers working in the country were legally registered.The three plainclothes officers left after a CNN staffer agreed to bring documentation to the local state security office later in the day. Nothing was taken from the bureau and no CNN staffers were detained.After a later meeting with state security representatives, CNN received assurances that all documentation was in order.The visit occurred as CNN was reporting extensively on unrest in Nigeria over the government’s decision to adjust fuel subsidies. CNN’s reporting efforts were not interrupted.
According to the DailyTrust, army officers were also said to have assaulted the former Minister of the FCT, Nasir el-Rufai for taking pictures of their activities against protesters in the Federal Capital Territory of Nigeria, Monday.
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Nigerians can only wait and hope that the worst of Jonathan is passed, though there is growing speculation that the president has an ulterior plan to sabotage Nigeria and utilize his Southern army of ready militants in a South-south secession attempt.
