Popular rapper, MI Abaga has said there’s no going back on #EndSARS, the ongoing nationwide protest against police brutality in Nigeria.
In his column on Aljazeera, Abaga admitted that the events that followed before and after the #EndSARS protest across the country, especially the shooting at the Lekki toll gate opened his eyes and that of many Nigerians.
The revered lyricist in the piece narrated how years of brutality, highhandedness, and overzealousness of the defunct unit of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), Special Anti Robbery Squad (SARS), sent millions of Nigerian youths, to the streets to protest.
Abaga maintained that the #EndSars protest sent a clear and serious message to the Nigerian government who haven’t been receptive since the movement began.
The column read partly: “The past few weeks, however, have opened my eyes. Thankfully, millions of other young people feel the same. The catalyst may be the pandemic – people have been locked up so long that their anger has finally boiled over.
“Since early October, Nigerians – mostly in their 20s and 30s – have taken to the streets to voice their anger over police brutality, corruption and the incompetence of the ruling elite. The demonstrations were first triggered by anger at the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, better known as SARS. This is a branch of the police notorious for its track record of human rights abuses: kidnappings, extortion, harassment and killings.
“For us protesters, it is clear that we are fighting against a government that is willing to kill you and then blames you for your own death. The authorities are intent on creating chaos as a pretext to intensify their crackdown. One politician has even tried to whip up ethnic hatred – suggesting that the demonstrations are the South trying to plan a coup.
This is a monumental moment in Nigerian history. This is the moment where previous generations of Nigerians were on the cusp of change, but decided to sit back, fearing a violent backlash, or that there were not enough of them. I understand it, but we are ready to push on. At some point, there has to be a generation that takes a stand. A generation that says: “We are not going to stop, even if you kill us.”
You can read the full column Here
