FIJ
General Christopher Musa, Chief of Defence Staff, wants the Nigerian media to limit their coverage of the #EndBadGovernance protests because it is “not an election thing”.
He said this on Friday afternoon while addressing newsmen at the Defence Headquarters in Abuja.
He said some people wanted to draw attention to themselves by using the protest as a springboard by appearing on screen.
“For the media, I want to also appeal. I noticed throughout yesterday that all the stations were hooked up for the occasion,” he started.
“This is not an election thing. Don’t give them that coverage for them to feel; because there are some of them that are looking for moments of being on the screen.
“Together, I can assure you we’re going to win, and we’re winning. Since today, we have seen the level to which it has really gone down. Most state governors that decided on a state of emergency have called it off and are working together as Nigerians for Nigerians.”
He also told newsmen that the protest started out peaceful but degenerated into something else after “a bunch of criminals” took over.
“What we saw yesterday was at the beginning some semblance of a very peaceful demonstration, but which was quickly taken over by a bunch of criminals that don’t mean us well. And if you remember, we have warned that there are individuals that are ready to cause mayhem once this starts,” he said.
“So we want to appeal to Nigerians to understand that the FG is doing the best it can for the country. The present regime is just for less than one year [sic], and it is not possible for them to have solved every financial and economic situation within a year. But I’m sure if we’re truthful to ourselves, efforts have been made and have continued to be made.
“We have seen policies that have been made to address the economic situation on the ground, including the security situation. Things are improving. We are not where we are, but I can assure you, we’re heading there. And if we have the support of everyone together, we can bring total peace.
“Yesterday, we saw the level of destruction that had been carried out. You can imagine if this continues for so long. We want to tell those who are recalcitrant that we will not watch our country burn. We will take action, and anyone who is caught will be taken to court.”
The #EndBadGovernance protests started on August 1 and are expected to last for 10 days.
THIS STORY FIRST APPEARED IN FIJ
