Group defies police order, stages protest against attack on free speech in Osun
By Richard Akintade, Osogbo
A group of Nigerians under the aegis of the “Take It Back Movement” on Monday in Osogbo the capital of Osun State took to the streets in protest against what they described as bad governance and the shrinking space for free speech in the nation.
The protesters, who took off from Oja-Oba and matched through Station road and Ola-Iya junction in the morning with their solidarity songs, “We are hungry, What are we saying! they echoed in unison, drawing attention from passersby”.
According to the Coordinator of the Movement, Lijofi Victor, while speaking at the peaceful rally said the demonstration was aimed at demanding accountability from leaders and resisting the continuous clampdown on citizens’ rights to express dissent.
“We are out today not to foment trouble but because of the resent cybercrime act, we are against it because we want our freedom of speech.
“Many people have been imprisoned because they are speaking up which we are saying no to.
“Mr. President himself has led series of protests and has talked and criticised certain things, but right now they want to silence us, which we are saying no to.
“We are not going to accept that until when they are ready to comply with us.
“Help us to remove the cyber act and give us the freedoms of speech that we want.
“We want to speak out we don’t want anybody to imprison us, we want to have the autonomy of our speech.
“A whole lot of journalists, security agents and civilians have been arrested across the country because they are speaking up, now they are bringing a act that will back it up so you can jail us? We are saying no to it.
“We shall continue the protest as long as they are ready to listen to us.
“We want President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to urgently attend to us, he is our father and we believe baba will dance to our tune for the benefit of all and sundry”.
