There seems to be a change of plan by the rival protest group in Lagos, #DefendLagos, as the convener, Alabi Oladimeji made an announcement of the group’s withdrawal from the protest scheduled to hold 7 am on Saturday (today) morning.
Oladimeji made this known at a press conference hosted on his Facebook page, noting that the suspension was necessitated by the assurances of the federal and state governments that no protest would be allowed to hold.
TheNewsGuru.com, TNG reports that some Nigerians had earlier during the week formed #OccupyLekkiTollGate to protest the planned reopening of the toll gate. However, in no time, a rival group, #DefendLagos was formed to counter the protest ‘against further destruction’ of government properties. Both had fixed their protest for Saturday morning at the Lekki Toll Gate.
However, the Federal and State Governments have sternly warned against such protests, saying government will resist it.
TNG reports that the Lagos State Police Command also on Friday deployed its heavily armed operatives in a show of force to the Lekki Toll Gate signalling to both groups that the planned protests would not be allowed.
Announcing the suspension of the protest, Oladimeji said: “No protest from #DefendLagos on Saturday (today). We are simultaneously respecting the state and federal governments.
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“I am proud to announce that for the main time, we will be pending this protest due to the law of the Federal and state governments. We are law-abiding and good citizens, definitely, we should not be the ones seen disobeying any law.
“In respect of the President, Muhammadu Buhari, and Lagos Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu. I am now announcing that anyone involved in #DefendLagos initiated by me should with immediate effect pend the protest. We are not going to hold any protest again on Saturday (today).
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“If Lagos and FG fail us, we will come out huge and protest on Monday.”
He explained that though depressing, the plan to protest was never for personal benefits but to ensure that no destruction occurred in Lagos State.
“It is depressing news for me because we have invested personal resources to produce banners, posters among others on this. But this is not an avenue for us to make money like those in the OccupyLagos,” he added.
The DefendLagos campaigner also urged the governments to arrest anyone that contravened the directives stopping protests in the state.
“If they come out to protest and the government allows that, it means that we can also protest. We trust the governments. The state and FG have banned any protests in Lagos. If they come out and the government did not arrest them, it means that the government has failed us,” he said.
