Freed minors
The illegal incarceration of 76 minors for participating in #EndBadGovernance protests has been widely condemned as violation of their rights. Their subsequent arraignments which led to widespread condemnation and global outrage eventually forced the authorities to release them.
It’s a sad commentary that these minors whose ages range between 13 to 17 have given harrowing account of their incarceration besides hardened criminals subjecting them to acute starvation.
It’s heartening to observe that the Tinubu administration finally hearkened to public outcry and ordered their release.
It’s the considered view of NATIONAL WAVES that the administration should learn from this mistake and allow freedoms of speech and association as long as public order is not breached.
Now that the nation is gradually moving on, the authorities as a form of tokenism and compensation should give the minors scholarship to continue their education to the university level.
An enlightened mind is the surest antidote against being an agent of trouble and destabilization. Education will make them to know the import of such action as calling for military coup or holding a foreign flag.
It’s heartwarming that the Kaduna State governor has set the ball rolling by providing some measures of assistance to the released minors.
Early in the week, Kaduna State government provided N100,000 in cash, new smartphones, and other forms of support to 39 #EndBadGovernance protesters recently released from detention.
This was as the government reunited them with their families on Wednesday, after being released from detention.
The reunion ceremony took place at the Children Homes along Kauru Road in Kaduna, where Governor Uba Sani pledged support for the protesters, promising to help them reintegrate into society.
He assured them of empowerment opportunities, provided they committed to lawful and responsible conduct.
Speaking to journalists after the protesters were released, the Secretary to Kaduna State Government, Abdulkadir Meyere, who spoke on behalf of the governor, disclosed that Sani had directed him to collect the credentials of those who have completed their tertiary education.
‘’The governor promised that some of them will be given start-up capitals to commence trading, others will be taught skills and some will be given employment,’’ he added.
However, the SSG noted that they would be tracking the activities and conduct of all the released protesters, to ensure they are of good behaviour “before these benefits will be extended to them.”
Meyere noted that the state government has taken the details of the released detainees including contact addresses, telephone numbers and names of their Next of Kins, for easy tracking and monitoring.
According to him, the released #Endbadgovernance protesters were all medically examined and given psycho-social counselling on the need to change for the better and to be useful to themselves and society at large.
“Both Islamic and Christian religious leaders preached to them to embrace the teachings of their faiths and to avoid bad company, so as to benefit from God’s blessings here and in the hereafter,” he said.
According to him, the detainees were given a telephone each because they lost theirs during detention and ‘’the Governor has graciously given each of them N100,000 as a measure of goodwill.”
The Kaduna exemplary example should be followed by federal government as a way of putting the unfortunate saga behind us.
