The nationwide hardship protest: A timely warning, By Femi Fani-Kayode

The way forward is to put off the protest, exercise patience, enter dialogue with the Federal Government and express our collective concerns in a lawful, restrained, responsible and legitimate manner. Anything outside of that will be dangerous and counter-productive.

There is nothing wrong with a peaceful demonstration and a lawful legitimate protest. What is unacceptable is a premeditated attempt by a group of faceless individuals who are on the payroll of subversive elements to destabilise the country and incite people to violence and carnage.

That is what this so-called #nationwidestrike that they have labelled as the #endbadgovernanceprotest is all about. Worse still, there is a covert and subterranean attempt to provoke the security forces to open mutiny and rebellion against constituted authority and thereby truncate our democracy.

Those who are behind it are attempting to take advantage of the undoubtedly enormous economic challenges in the land to create panic, fear, chaos and mass unrest, with a view to provoking anarchy, mayhem and armed insurrection.

This is unacceptable and no responsible government will sit back and allow it to happen. I urge those who are behind this surreptitious, subterranean and sinister subterfuge to have a rethink and not spark off a reaction from the security forces that they will later regret.

We do not want or need a nationwide #EndSARS-like round of protests and neither can we afford the attendant violence, strife, division, damage to property and bloodshed that comes with it.

The way forward is to put off the protest, exercise patience, enter dialogue with the Federal Government and express our collective concerns in a lawful, restrained, responsible and legitimate manner. Anything outside of that will be dangerous and counter-productive.

Femi Fani-Kayode, the Sadaukin Shinkafi and Wakilin Doka Potiskum, is a lawyer, former minister of Culture and Tourism, and of Aviation.