Prof Usman Yusuf is a former Government Secretary of the Nationwide Well being Insurance coverage Scheme (NHIS). On this interview monitored on Come up Tv, he speaks on the arrest of minors concerned within the #EndBadGovernance protest, the brand new Tax Invoice earlier than the Nationwide Meeting, amongst different points. ANAYO EZUGWU writes
What’s your perspective on the implication of prosecuting minors and your views on the legality and ethics of charging these younger protesters for treason?
I received’t provide the authorized angle as a result of I’m not a lawyer, however I’ll speak about ethics and morals. Video clips have been despatched to me from no lesser place than outdoors the nation. I didn’t see them. I bought one despatched from Chicago from an unknown quantity, and the opposite one from as far-off as Brisbane, Australia.
I known as the numbers. These guys have been journalists. That they had seen the clips earlier than I noticed them. They usually have been asking me: Is that this actual? Is that this a part of my college abductions?
I imply, watching this clip, to be trustworthy, was heart-wrenching. The purpose I result in this overseas journalist calling me is we have no idea the harm this factor has finished to us on this nation.
The picture of Nigeria and this authorities is dented by this. For us within the North, that is clearly harking back to the times, while you had mass college abductions by bandits. And we deliver them out on this giant quantity. Thankfully for us, the case we noticed, arraigned by the Minister of Justice to a Federal Court docket, seems to be a lot worse than what we at all times get from bandits.
Even bandits maintain kids higher than our authorities. I imply, fellow Nigerians, these kids, over 2,000 protesters have been arrested throughout this #EndBadGovernance Protest, a protest that’s the respectable proper of each citizen. Many have been stored with out their dad and mom understanding the place they have been.
They have been blindfolded. We’re getting stories from those that have been launched. They have been blindfolded and transported and detained in centres throughout the North.
These kids have been introduced from Kano, Kaduna, Jos and Gombe to Abuja. What have been their alleged crimes; treason, attempting to incite mutiny and alter of presidency by the army, waving Russian flag and inflicting regime change. This authorities is so jumpy and insecure due to what it’s doing to this nation.
I imply, there’s no two methods about it. This authorities is attempting to terrorise us and terrorise probably the most susceptible amongst us, our kids, and decriminalizing respectable protests on this nation. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is a beneficiary of protest and agitation on this nation.
And what his authorities is doing is attempting to stifle any voice and the voices of kids. President Bola Tinubu is just not solely our commander-in-chief however chief of a nation that could be a signatory to treaties all around the world in defending the rights of kids.
He’s additionally the chairman of the Financial Group of West African States (ECOWAS). What’s he going to inform them? This can be a blow and an enormous disgrace to this nation that we’re doing this to our kids by the federal government. Once we gather these kids from bandits, we take them to the hospital and maintain them.
This authorities is attempting to terrorise us and terrorise probably the most susceptible amongst us, our kids and decriminalizing respectable protests on this nation
However what did President Tinubu’s authorities do to those kids that collapsed within the court docket of regulation? They took them again to jail and what did the Legal professional Normal do when he got here out? He mentioned he was going to recall the file.
Excuse me, Mr. Legal professional Normal, there’s no file to recall. What we Nigerians demand is fast and unconditional launch of all of those kids. They should be taken care of within the hospital. They should be higher nourished. All their medical points should be taken care of.
They should be totally compensated for the ache and struggling this authorities has price them. And their dad and mom should be totally compensated. And full investigation should be finished as to who’s accountable. The Inspector General of Police should take full duty for this as a result of this disturbing act was finished on his watch.
We’re listening to stories that the police kidnapped kids from cities within the North – Kano, Kaduna, Jos and Gombe – and illegally transported them for rendition in Abuja to unknown areas. Lots of their dad and mom have no idea the place they’re. Their look in court docket was the primary time they noticed them.
So, President Tinubu by this motion is terrorizing our residents with the total complicity of the safety companies that swore to guard us and the courts that swore to uphold the regulation.
That is unacceptable. It’s not going to be accepted. The regulation is a noble career, and I salute, and each Nigerian ought to salute the efforts of the attorneys of those kids, who doggedly and professional bono defended these kids.
With out them, we might not have identified this. In the identical breath, I’m going to sentence, and each Nigerian ought to condemn the callous actions of the prosecuting lawyer and the prosecuting choose. The regulation, like medication, is frequent sense. The choose ought to have identified that these kids wanted medical care, to not be left mendacity on the ground in a court docket of regulation. The place are they?
What number of have died? What number of are going to die? We have to have a full account of this. These kids should be reunited with their households and totally compensated. The president wants to handle this nation and cease this criminality we’re seeing. It’s not acceptable.
Regardless of the condemnation that this has rightly generated what about those that usually are not minors; are you additionally saying that the crimes they dedicated needs to be ignored? The second half is concerning the minors; don’t you suppose that this speaks to a bigger concern, notably within the North, about out-of-school kids?
You might be preaching to the choir however you aren’t going to provide any excuse, any excuse to anyone for this nonsense we’re seeing. No person, no authorities needs to be answerable for what we’re seeing. So out-of-school, in-school isn’t any excuse for this.
There are those who we elected, in states and federal, which might be alleged to maintain these kids, and they’re those you need to deliver to this chair and ask these questions of. I’m right here to protest towards what the Federal Authorities has finished to our kids.
Whether or not you’re a child or a 90-year-old, you might have the best to protest, and no one ought to criminalize protest, and that’s what this authorities is doing. Give no one any excuse for this. If you wish to speak about out-of-school kids we’ll make it one other day and we are going to name the governors of all of the states. However don’t make that as an excuse.
I’m not holding forth for any authorities, however no authorities ought to give us any excuse for what we’re seeing. I’m not speaking the authorized; there are attorneys to do this, I’m right here to speak concerning the basic human rights of those kids which have been violated. I’m right here to speak about kids who shouldn’t have been there.
I’m right here to speak about if there are issues in Kano, Katsina or Kaduna, they need to be prosecuted there, not kids blindfolded and transported in the midst of the evening in black Maria by Gestapo police to Abuja. It’s not acceptable, and the world ought to know that. We should all increase our voices.
These kids are being accused of treason for elevating the Russian flag however some Nigerians are questioning if these malnourished kids are those pushing for regime change?
Why the youngsters are there may be the failure of presidency in any respect ranges, native, federal and state, and the failure of communities. All of us went to high school.
Our dad and mom weren’t rich. From the commonwealth of our folks, our schooling was paid for. We went into the world and competed favourably as a result of leaders of that point invested in us.
That’s the reason in the present day, every time we increase our palms, we pray for 3 folks, our dad and mom who departed, our lecturers who taught us nicely, and our leaders who invested in us. You’ll be able to’t say the identical of leaders of in the present day. It’s the failure of presidency, it’s the failure of management that we now have these kids throughout.
The final Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, mentioned has been the longest-serving Minister of Education and he’s not happy with it as a result of throughout his time, we now have over 20 million Nigerian kids out of faculty. So it’s the failure of presidency, and that’s what we’ve been speaking about. Corruption and unhealthy governance, that is what we now have because the arrival of democracy on this nation.
What’s your tackle the pushback from Northern governors on the Reformed VAT Tax Invoice earlier than the Nationwide Meeting?
Northern governors met in Kaduna to speak about VAT and so they need to accrue extra money. Let me say that they weren’t there for us and the nation or the area. They have been there as a result of they weren’t going to get extra money. However that is the reality about VAT; VAT is a consumption tax.
If Dangote has a cement manufacturing unit in Obajana, Kogi State, he doesn’t pay VAT in Kogi; he pays VAT in Lagos as a result of Lagos is his headquarters. Lots of the oil firms are within the Niger Delta area. That’s the place they’ve their operations, however their headquarters are in Lagos. So, they pay VAT in Lagos. What has Lagos finished to earn that?
Lagos is getting all of that cash and now you say that cash is yours. No, it isn’t. Lagos is what it’s in the present day due to Nigeria’s commonwealth. All of the infrastructures have been constructed by the Nigerian commonwealth, the ports, the bridges and all the pieces. If anyone asks you, you have to pay.
So folks should be smart. There’s this factor they name the outdated Zulu adage, Ubuntu, ‘You might be who you might be due to me.’ It’s frequent humanity. However there may be this selfishness of ‘it’s me’ and the President is following that. It’s elevating an antenna alarm within the North.
What the President primarily is doing is attempting to pool all of the sources to the South-West, notably Lagos. It doesn’t matter whether or not it’s true or not, however the President wants to listen to the heartbeat of the North, the heartbeat of our folks. Dangote is paying VAT in Lagos along with his factories within the North.
Sure, the President has despatched a invoice to the Nationwide Meeting about his tax reform and that’s his proper as the manager. However it’s the proper of our representatives to reject the invoice and we’re watching them very carefully. It’s the proper of our representatives to battle for us and kill that invoice if it doesn’t do nicely for the folks they’re representing.
Finish of story. There isn’t a argument. That is what democracy is all about. President Tinubu, on his personal, can not do issues with out reverting to the Nationwide Meeting and we now have our representatives there that we’ll maintain accountable. That’s how a lot I’ll say about this.
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