With the current situation of things in the aftermath of the #EndSARS protest, one may think Nigeria is back to the military era. Not only have many young Nigerians been reportedly arrested for demanding good governance and an end to police brutality, some others have had to flee the country due to several death threats they have had for calling out the government.

According to recent reports, Obianuju Catherine Udeh, popularly known as DJ Switch, has fled the country due to several threats to her life. But what was her crime? The event from 20 October 2020 explains it all. Switch had posted a video – an eyewitness account of the Lekki shooting on that fateful night when security operatives opened fire at some #EndSARS protesters at the Lekki Toll-gate. She also did a follow-up video where she revealed more shocking details about the incident and how she narrowly missed a bullet that night. 

And ever since then, she has talked about how she kept receiving death threats for speaking her truth. It is rather unfortunate that young Nigerians can become endangered species in their own country for demanding good governance and accountability from their elected representatives. 

Not only does this portray the government in a bad light, but it also shows that the government has misplaced its priorities by trying to get rid of harmless citizens while the real threat to national security (Boko-Haram, banditry, armed robbery, kidnapping etc.) are left unaddressed.

Several Nigerians have lost their lives and property due to the activities of the insurgents, bandits, kidnappers, robbers etc. leaving many to live in fear as a result of the threats to national security. As an institution whose responsibility is to protect the lives and property of the citizens, the government ought to proffer solutions to ensure the safety of Nigerians as their paramount responsibility. But what we see today is the opposite – harmless citizens are now seen as a threat while the real threats to national security are allowed to thrive.

This is an anomaly, and it shouldn’t be so. Threatening citizens and causing them to flee their father-land will only serve to aggravate the many problems already plaguing the country, including the challenges that have aggrieved the youths.

A much better way to handle the issue would be for the government to actively listen to the youth to understand what ails them and come up with workable solutions to address their grievances.

Uroupa Kiakubu