June 12: “Celebrants Are Not Democratic At All” — Lawyer
NEWS DIGEST – Barrister Caleb Onwe, a Lagos-based lawyer and human rights activist, said on Monday the celebration of June 12 by Nigerians was “undemocratic”, adding rottenness has eaten deep into the fabric of the nation’s democracy.
“However, the question should be whether those who are celebrating it are proponents and enablers of democracy? The answer is a big No!” Mr Onwe told the News Digest.
Nigeria’s official democracy day was changed from May 29 to June 12 to honour the sacrifices of M.K.O Abiola and other statesmen in birthing the first free and fair election in the nation’s history.
According to Mr Onwe, President Buhari has done little for Nigerians to regard him as democratic even though he is credited as being the president who made the much desired change.
He said: “Buhari, from the beginning of his term in office as democratically elected president, has failed every test of a democratically elected leader from brazen disregard to obeying known laws to carrying certain acts which null and void him.
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“In his administration, Nigeria became a lawless country and you can see that every rubric of our national lives has been lowered to the lowest and therefore life has been nasty, brutish and short like Thomas Hobbes started it was in the state of nature.
“June 12 is good to celebrate Abiola for what he stood for but those celebrating it with opposite character and leadership traits are dancing in his grave.”
Mr Onwe said the Nigeria government would need to live up to their duties of protecting lives and properties to truly recognize the relentless efforts of the late philanthropist.
“Obedience to every law must be a policy of trust of the administration and living by example of what they want the citizens to follow,” he said.
“It should not be a selective approach,” he added.
Mr Onwe urged the government to thread the right path in its effort to bridge corruption and amplify efforts to improve the economy, creating jobs that will turn people away from crime.
Barrister Celeb Onwe is a Managing Partner at Penlit and Greyson and also, the Head of Corporate Commercial Law, Intellectual Property and Data Privacy of the firm.
