The National Orientation Agency has urged the promoters of the proposed nationwide protests to pursue dialogue rather than violence.
It also revealed that the agency’s nationwide structure has successfully identified the sponsors of the proposed protest and likely flashpoints, saying the government will take measures to forestall any violent occurrences in the identified locations.
The agency’s director general, Mallam Lanre Issa Onilu, who made it clear that the channels of communication to the government and its various arms remain open to dialogue, said it would continue to respect citizens’ right to protest and associate freely in line with democratic principles.
He said: “That the identities of many of the brains behind the protest have been known, along with their collaborators who are safely residing abroad and the government is taking necessary actions to stop their subversive plans.
“That the intentions of the elements behind the planned protest are not about governance or the state of the economy but a decoy to destabilize the country, cause mayhem, and carry out arson, killings, and maiming of innocent citizens for narrow political reasons.
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“That NOA is intensifying efforts in civil intelligence gathering and sensitization of community leaders, parents, and youths across the 774 local governments on the need for vigilance and collective preventive actions.
“That the other objective of the protest is to project to the international community, a picture of an unstable country as part of the grand design to intimidate the government and seek patronage of the bigger sponsors of the planned protest.”