Ahead of the planned nationwide protests by some Nigerians, particularly the youth, a pro-Lagos State Government X handle @lagospedia has announced two weeks observation of Oro Festival in various communities in Lagos.
According to Lagospedia, the festival will be observed from August 1 – 15, calling the attention of residents and visitors to the upcoming festival.
The post read: “Attention Residents and Visitors of Lagos. Please be informed that the Oro Festival will be observed in various communities across Lagos from 1st of August to August 15.
“This traditional Yoruba cultural event involves significant rituals.”
The planned nationwide protest tagged “End Bad Government in Nigeria”, is scheduled to hold from August 1-10,2024.
The organisers of the protest in flyers circulating on social media are demanding judicial reform, a declaration of a state of emergency on inflation, reopening of the national borders, among others.
Reacting, an X user Akintola with the handle @Opemeepor accused the All Progressives Congress (APC) of trying to use the observation of Oro Festival to stop the planned protest.
Akintola said: “APC used Oro festival to do rubbish during the elections…now they want to use it to stop the protests… These are the people some of you defend night and day.. Has to be madness.”
Another X user, Rotimi Ebenezer with the handle @roebonline said: “Oro Festival can only be observed when Nigeria is about to be liberated. During the election and now during nationwide protest. All I know is just that, all days are for the thieves while a day is for the owner. Nigeria will surely and definitely be liberated one day.”
Akin Malaolu, also an X user, expressed optimism that the Oro Festival instead of discouraging people from protesting will even boost support for protesters.
“Oro festival will help in the protest. Workers won’t go out to work and markets will not open anywhere,” Malaolu stated.
“At the end, the Lagos State government would blame itself for helping out in the protest due to economic shutdown in the State. They just gave us a “Bullet”.
Lawrence Okoro, with the handle @LawrenceOkoroPG, posited that the Oro Festival is one of the pushbacks the government wants to use to counter the planned protest.
“When you give wicked Politicians too much time to think, this is what you get in return,” Okoro claimed.
“You’re dealing with the wickedest (sic) politicians in the world, but you’re putting out 2 weeks invitation like it’s a wedding ceremony.
“The Oro Festival is one of the pushbacks they’ve come up with to counter the Protest.
“These wicked Politicians were given too much time to strategize before anyone hit the street.
“They’ve developed different mechanisms to frustrate the Protest, this is just one of them and I’m sure they will keep rolling them out one after the other, on and before August 1st. I pray for the safety of everyone that’s going out for the Protest.”
On his part, the Publisher of Sahara Reporters, Omoyele Sowore, said: “The “Oro Festival” is about witnessing a revolutionary transformation; it is about seeing a real Festival – the festival of the oppressed!”
Although there is no statement from the Lagos State Government confirming or denying the Oro Festival announcement made by Lagospedia, there were 14.9k posts on the subject as at 11:45pm on Wednesday.
Out of concern for the potential dangers the proposed protest poses, so many appeals have been made by some influential Nigerians to the youth to call off the protest in the interest of the nation, and seek dialogue with the government.
President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday pleaded with Nigerians to shelve the protest.
“On the issue of the planned protest, Mr. President does not see any need for that. He asked them to shelve that plan and he has asked them to await government’s response to all their pleas.
“So, there is no need for strike. The young people out there should listen to the President and allow the President more time to see to the realisation of all the goodies he has for them,” said the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, after meeting with the president at the Aso Rock Villa.