#EndSARS Promoters Must Be Prosecuted – Presidency

The presidency has maintained that promoters of #EndSARS campaign must be be punished for their role in violence and unrest that characterised the aftermath of the demonstration.

In October, thousands of citizens, especially youths trooped to the street to protest against police brutality and also demand for reform of the security outfit. .

But speaking when he featured on Politics Today, a Channels Television programme, on Sunday,  presidential spokesman, Garba Shehu, said those who promoted the #EndSARS protest and allowed it degenerate into chaos must be made to face the law.

Ekohotblog had reported how a federal high court in Abuja granted the Central Bank of Nigeria’s request to freeze the bank accounts of 19 individuals and a public affairs company linked to the #EndSARS protests.

Modupe Odele, an #EndSARS advocate, had also narrated how she was stopped from travelling out of the country by officers of the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) and her passport seized.

Asked if President Muhammadu Buhari is aware of the developments, Shehu said the president is responsible for decisions made by his administration, saying “the buck stops on his table”.

He said despite being entitled to the right to protest in a peaceful way, there is also a law that sanctions violent demonstrations.

He added that the country had been seriously harmed by the #EndSARS protests and culprits must be made to face the consequences.

“This country has only one president and has only one constitution. President Muhammadu Buhari is responsible for his government. The buck stops on his table,” Shehu said.

“We are a country governed by law. There is a constitution that states clearly, under section 33, that clearly defines the rights of citizens to freely protest in a peaceful way but where a peaceful protest turns into riot, violence and looting, there is a law and order duty to be performed.

“Everyone witnessed the massive looting of public and private properties particularly in Lagos, Calabar, Plateau, Taraba and some other states, even the FCT.

“Now, the laws of the country must be allowed to decide, to rule on wrongdoing on the part of just anybody. I am not particular about any celebrity or promoter but this country has been harmed enormously and people should be prepared to account for what they did.

“I think that it will be of interest to the 200 million Nigerians if some of these leading politicians who had promoted the #EndSARS to the time when it was seized by looters to come out with the same force as they did support …to also denounce the destructions.

“We are watching. Some of them have said nothing so far. This country has to be saved from looters. The interest of the country is above politics; PDP, they should come out and denounce these things.”