Governors and ministers from the region attended the meeting, hosted by the Lagos State Government. Monarchs in the South West of Nigeria have blamed politicians for the recent #EndSARS protest and unrest in the region that led to the destruction of properties in Lagos and other parts.
They also
called for the urgent restructuring of the country to give more powers to the
states.
The kings
spoke at a post mortem meeting at the weekend in Lagos on the protests.
A
Presidential delegation, led by the Chief of Staff, Prof. Ibrahim Gambari, the
Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Adamu was also in attendance.
The monarchs
expressed disappointment at the manner politicians had turned politics into
money making venture at the expense of the interest of the youth.
They said
that the high rate of unemployment among youths caused the agitation in the
EndSARS protest.
“The
governors have taken the right steps with this meeting. However, they have been
far away from we monarchs. You should not wait till election days before you
reach out to us. This type of meeting should come regularly.
“We know the
good and the bad in our communities but we are under-utilised,´´ Ooni of Ife,
Oba Enitan Ogunwusi, said.
The Alaafin
of Oyo, Oba Lamidi Adeyemi, said the destruction had put the region in a
complex situation.
“It is a
complex and complicated matter. Our children are jobless and many are hungry. The
problems are too much for the states.
“The states
are not independent. The structure we run in Nigeria cannot allow state
governors to do much for their states,´´ he said.
The Oluigbo
of Ugbo, Oba Akinruntan Obateru, urged the Inspector General of Police to
conduct detailed investigation into the incident and fish out those behind the
protest.
The Oba of
Lagos, Oba Rilwan Akiolu said that “truth is very bitter,´´ noting that
majority of the problems were caused by politicians.
“The power
with the federal government is too much. The security architecture of the country
needs to be restructured.
“The problem
we have in Lagos is security and unemployment. The youths have to be looked
after. What happened is pure case of security breach. The entire system needs
reformation,´´ Akiolu said.
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