…Jonathan isn’t a father, he should be born again, says Dino Melaye
Over 500 protesters under the aegis of Citizens Arise Movement of Nigeria (CAMON) on Wednesday staged a protest at the Eagle Square in Abuja to register their displeasure over the alleged insensitivity of the Federal Government to the plight of the more than 200 missing Chibok girls.
The protesters numbering about 200 moved around the federal secretariat chanting various anti-government songs to denounce the state of affairs in the country.
Coordinator of the group, Otunba DIno Melaye condemned President Goodluck Jonathan’s speech on the occasion of the nation’s 54th independence, stressing that apart from the fact that it was not inspiring, his reluctance to speak on the fate of the girls abducted by insurgents about six months ago, was unacceptable.
He said the Constitution of the country conferred on the president the status of a “father and as such, he should be concern about the plight and welfare of the people in line with the section 14 of the constitution.
The forner House of Representatives member also castigated the president for not doing enough to fight corruption, alleging that almost all his minister are neck deep in corruption.
“I want to say that the president speech this morning is not different from the one he has been giving before. It has become a normal tradition,” Melaye said.
“Unfortunately, the president addressed the nation this morning, the 54th birthday of Nigeria and he did not say anything about the missing Chibok girls. This is calamitous and , painful.”
Melaye added that Jonathan is not the father of the nation because no father will have more than 200 missing children and would carry on as if nothing is amiss.
“We are here to tell the president he needs to be born again. He needs to respect his oath of office,” Melaye said.
“He swore to protect the lives and security of Nigerians on the 29th of May, 2011. He held the bible and the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Section 14 of that constitution is very clear, that the security and welfare of the people will be the primary objective of government.
“But the President has forgotten the welfare of the Chibok girls, he has forgotten the welfare of the missing Nigerians. We are not happy;we are calling on the president to demonstrate capacity.”
Melaye called on the president to speedily bring an end to insurgency in the country, stressing that there could not be any meaningful development without security of lives and property of the citizenry.
“Insurgency must stop now, killings must stop now, unemployment must stop now, insecurity must stop now, corruption must stop now,” he stated.
When asked why the group chose to mark independent day with protest, he said: “We are here today as Citizens Arise of Nigeria to demonstrate and protest against maladministration, protest against corruption, insurgency and ineptitude in government.
“We are here to say that Nigerians are disenchanted and disillusioned about the state of affairs in the country. Nigerians are yearning for good governance. Nigerians are demanding government with capacity. Nigerians are asking for a president that will behave like a true Commander of the Armed Forces.”
