It was a show of lamentation and a pensive declaration of extreme hardship as Nigerians stormed the streets to protest the current state of the nation to mark the June 12 Democracy Day celebration.
WITHIN NIGERIA gathered that aggrieved citizens stormed out en masse in at least four states, namely, Lagos, Oyo, Ondo, Osun, and the Federal Capital Territory, to express their dissatisfaction over the extreme hardships in the country.
In Osun State, WITHIN NIGERIA reporter moved around the streets and public places like markets and garages, among others, to interact with Nigerians as the country marked the June 12 Democracy Day celebration.
Some citizens who spoke to this reporter expressed their worry and concern over the situation of the country, while others were primarily concerned about the plight of Nigerians.
A 37-year-old man identified as Jelili told WITHIN NIGERIA that citizens of the country are still struggling to enjoy the dividends of democracy since the inception of civil rule in 1999.
Jelili, while decrying the current state of the country, expressed his dissatisfaction and lamented the rising prices of food and essential commodities.
The fashion designer, who complained about low patronage due to the harsh economy, disclosed that feeding has been very difficult for his family as a result of inflation.
He told me within Nigeria that he has been finding it extremely hard and difficult to feed his immediate family because his income per month is nothing to write home about when compared to his expenses.
“People just want to eat. Clothing is not a top priority. Poor electricity is really affecting my business. There are times I would buy fuel to power my generator because I wanted to iron customers’ clothes. For 25 years of civil rule, we could not fix the power problem, a sad Jelili told WITHIN NIGERIA.
He disclosed that it is indeed very sad for us in the country.
Risikat, who sells rice grains, is deeply worried about the price of petrol (PMS) and how it has affected her business via transportation.
She complained that the price of transporting rice grains from her supplier to her shop is consuming profits she ought to gain from the business.
According to Risikat, the removal of fuel subsidies, which led to the sudden increase in pump prices, has really affected her business.
Risikat told WITHIN NIGERIA that she is not happy with the kind of democracy Nigeria is running because any system of government that does not make life better for citizens is not worthy of commendation.
Chidera Eze, a legal practitioner, said while conversing with WITHIN NIGERIA that the essence of democracy has been defeated by the political elites.
According to Eze, the basic essence of democracy is captured under Chapter 4 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, and these laws are applicable only to the political elites and not the populace.
Eze, while acknowledging that democracy is worthy of celebration, stated that the question on the lips of every Nigerian is whether political leaders ranging from ward councilors to the presidency have lived up to expectations.
He lamented that Nigerians have suffered a lot under democracy because the corruption of the political elites has denied the masses privileges and benefits to be enjoyed.
Abayomi, a 34-year-old media executive, while expressing his dissatisfaction, described the democracy in Nigeria as a gunboat one.
He said that the gunboat democracy Nigeria is running is actually not working. It is 26 years of motion without any form of movement.
“Democracy will not give us the expected fruits. We will continue running in circles unless we start to tell ourselves the truth”, Abayomi decried.
Seyi Asolo, a young media entrepreneur, while discussing WITHIN NIGERIA, described Nigeria’s democracy as a mirage, stating it is a form of window-dressing government unknown to the core principles of democratic governance.
He further stated that it was adopted in deception to keep active soldiers away from power.
According to Asolo, a peculiar type of civil rule is in variance with what’s obtainable in true democratic settings.
He further disclosed that we are celebrating democracy as a nation, but the poor can only count its age and not the gains.
“The poor don’t have any hope under our own form of democracy. Our own democracy can be classified as a corrupted form of government embedded with authoritarian, dictatorial, oligarchy, and plutocratic forms of government. It’s absolutely the government of the elites, by the elites, and for the elite generations,” Asolo added.
An ex-guber candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Goke Omigbodun, told WITHIN NIGERIA that the country is just celebrating 25 years of civil rule because he does not believe that Nigeria has true democracy yet.
Omigbodun, while defining democracy as the government of the people, by the people, and for the people, stated that even though the nation is not led by military juntas, the government in the country is still not of the people and for the people.
Omigbodun, who expressed hope and possibility for a better Nigeria where true federalism will be practiced, further stated that there will be light at the end of the tunnel and the country shall witness a restructuring of polity, devolution of power, and resource control by states.
He also thanked God that we, Nigerians, are able to survive all of the situations and circumstances we’ve been through. “Nigeria would witness true democracy, and states would be able to decide how to manage their local governments without any interference from the federal government,” he wished.