“Debating it or even stopping it is like giving the planned protest un-necessary muscle and relevance in a situation we all know its genesis. So this thing is very simple n clear! Tu face as a Nigerian under a democratic setting has the right to express self,- but with a clause! That is, since he is bringing people into his expression/protest, then the simple thing is for him to put pen to paper to be counted responsible for any untoward situation that may arise as a result of the “party” he organised, government on its own part should only provide the necessary logistic to forestall the untoward in case of any overzealousness, ….. so on both end,- it’s a case of being fore-warned!” Mr. Frank Taylor, an interlocutor on a Facebook discourse on the TuFace planned protest, said.
The Lagos State Commissioner of Police (CP), Mr. Fatai Owoseni, has disclosed that popular hip-hop star, Innocent Idibia, also known as Tuface, would not be allowed to embark on any protest in the metropolis.
The artiste recently announced his plan on his Instagram page, stating that he intends to lead a nationwide protest on February 5. Tuface said he would lead the protest against the Federal Government’s handling of the economy among other issues.
Owoseni said the police command was not ready for that kind of demonstration. He stated that the police have received an intelligence report that criminals were planning to hijack the process to wreak havoc on Lagos.
According to him, no matter how good an intention is, hoodlums would always find a way to harass, rob and attack innocent members of the public who may wish to go about their lawful duties.
“We know that Tuface does not have the capacity to contain such a crowd and we will not fold our hands and watch while things go out of hand,” he stressed.
However, apparently comfortable by the support he is getting from Enough-Is-Enough Nigeria (EiE), a civil society organisation, Innocent Idibia, The DEFENDER gathered, had said that he would go on with the February 6 protest as planned despite the Lagos State Police’s ban.
The civil society organisation, EiE, said to be backing Idibia and helping organise the protest for him, reportedly disclosed this to an online media (not The DEFENDER) on Thursday.
But Mr. Frank Taylor, an interlocutor in a Facebook discourse on the matter, said much as TuFace had the constitutional right to organise a protest that he should put pen on paper that he should be held responsible for whatever happened during and afterward as a result of the protest.
He said, “Debating it or even stopping it is like giving the planned protest un-necessary muscle and relevance in a situation we all know its genesis. So this thing is very simple n clear! Tu face as a Nigerian under a democratic setting has the right to express self,- but with a clause!
“That is, since he is bringing people into his expression/protest, then the simple thing is for him to put pen to paper to be counted responsible for any untoward situation that may arise as a result of the “party” he organised, government on its own part should only provide the necessary logistic to forestall the untoward in case of any overzealousness, ….. so on both end,- it’s a case of being fore-warned!” He said.
Mr. Luaretta Onochie, SA to President Buhari on Social Media, had reportedly challenged Tuface to appear in a LIVE TV program and specifically tell Nigerians the particular policies of Buhari that he was protesting against and suggest alternative policies that could move things forward and that he should also proffer solution to the hardship he was talking about.
Corroborating Onochie, Lawrence Tope, in his own submission, said, “My take is that I think it is better for Tuface to appear like that rather than protest of what he doesn’t have knowledge of. The moment hoodlums like Fayose has taken over the protest, the purpose is dead on arrival.”
In the meantime, Tuface, some have said, may be overstepping his bounds by his defiance to the Police ban as, according to some commentators, much as he has the right to protest, he does not have the right to be defiant to the foremost security agency that has provided reasons he should not go ahead with it bothering on national security.
“To be foretold is to be forewarned because, a government that you don’t have evidence that has corruptly embezzled money but is only being hampered by challenges that everybody even any layman can see why they are happening and is doing something about it should not be plotted against.
“The antecedents of Idibia and his continuous hobnobbing with violent opposition like Governor Ayodele Fayose as it is obvious and Godswill Akpabio whose activities against the government as Senator in the country rub on credibility of his planned protest putting it on the line and he is only advised to be reasonable,” one of them warned.
