An embittered civil rights organization known as Citizens Arise Movement of Nigeria (CAMON) on Wednesday, October 01, 2014 marked the 54th Independence Day Anniversary with a demonstration geared towards expressing their disappointment on the supposed silence of the President of Nigeria over the rescue of more than 200 school girls from Government Secondary School in the Chibok area of Borno state.
It was believed that on April 14, 2014, the men of the Boko Haram sect went to their hostels to abduct them and ever since then, most of them are yet to be rescued except for those who escaped the terrorist’s camp.
Meanwhile, the protesters who were about 300 in number made it known that they chose the Independence Day to do their demonstration because they needed the world to know that the government has failed the citizens of Nigeria.
Part of the statement shared by CAMON at the protest reads, “We are here to say that Nigerians are disenchanted and disillusioned about the state of affairs in the country. Nigerians are yearning for good governance. Nigerians are demanding government with Capacity to perform. Nigerians are for a President that will behave like a true Commander of the Armed Forces”.
Also, during the demonstration, the members of the CAMON group maintained that “the President must be born again” while singing different songs against the government around the Federal Secretariat.
The group was chaired by a former member of the House of Representatives, Dino Melaye, who flawed the 54th Anniversary speech made by President Goodluck Jonathan because of his failuer to say something about the school girls under hostage.
Melaye pointed out that from the dictates of Section 14 of the 1999 Constitution, the fact that Jonathan is Nigeria’s number one citizen, he should be concerned about the affairs of the people under his care which is embedded in the. He alleged that most of the ministers under President Goodluck’s administration are corrupt due to his inability to speak up and fight the canker worm.
Punch reports that, he further said, “I want to say that the President’s speech this (Wednesday) morning was not different from the ones he has been giving before. It has become a normal tradition. Unfortunately, the President addressed the nation this morning, the 54th birthday of Nigeria and he did not say anything about the missing Chibok girls. This is calamitous and painful.
“He is not the father of the nation because no father will have missing children, 219 of them, and would carry on as if nothing is amiss. We are here to tell the President that he needs to be born again. He needs to respect his oath of office.
“He swore to protect the lives and security of Nigerians on May 29, 2011. He held the Bible and the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Section 14 of that constitution is very clear, that the security and welfare of the people will be the primary objective of government.
“But the President has forgotten the welfare of the Chibok girls. He has forgotten the welfare of missing Nigerians. We are not happy and we are calling on the President to demonstrate capacity.”
He also pointed out that the nation will not advance if the citizens are not secured together with their properties while urging the president to do something soon enough in order to end the numerous attacks by the men of the Boko Haram sect in Nigeria.
