OUR GOVERNMENT IS A CRIMINAL; WE NEED RIGHTS EDUCATION. Written by KEMKA S. IBEJI

The level of institutional crimes in Nigeria is too high. Unfortunately, the government and her law enforcement agencies are into crimes as well. Of course, failure to do your job is corruption and when it has to do with going against the law, that is clearly criminal.

How on earth do you explain why petrol stations shut down and do not sell fuel on the pretence that they do not have products but touts and illegal people are selling fuel around. We normalise the abnormal in Nigeria and we give them names to accept them. Please, what is black market fuel directly being sold in front of the petrol filling station that has closed shop for lack of stock?

If only our so called anti-corruption agencies are working, these should be the first call to curb crimes and criminalities. But what do we see? These folks have no licenses, they lack knowledge of the risks involved in the trade, they have no safety measures and indeed are engaging in purely illegal activities. Our government looks elsewhere but will pursue things that are afar off. These negligence of the government puts our people in serious sufferings and sorts.

Do we not see the same thing now in the banking industry? One thing that Nigerians are good at is replication of business models and exercising them where they have not been used. Just as it has worked in the petroleum sector, the banking sector has immediately copied it. You now go to the ATM and won't get cash but beside the ATM you will see a POS agent gladly sitting and waiting for your patronage. Of course, they are cohort with the banks. The banks will frustrate the customers and indirectly force you to patronise the unlawful dealers.

Clearly the POS operators are not licensed and we now have all manner of crimes being perpetuated by them. Indeed, there is no regulation and no special control. No protection to consumers and citizens by the government. Here, everything goes and nobody cares.

Our telecommunications industry is not left out and the security agencies are the worst. Our government has empowered the agencies of law towards crime. Instead of protecting the citizens, the government and security agencies of the country are anti-citizens. Our policing system puts the citizens as enemies to their own security apparatuses. Where they are supposed to protect you, they endanger your life the more. Where they are supposed to correct you, they extort you. Where they are expected to help you, they capitalise on your weakness. These are all crimes but who cares?

We live in fears and awe but the government still has the guts to come for tax. For everything and every action you take, the government takes money from you.

The most annoying thing is the silence of the masses. And I understand clearly what it all means. Ignorance has taken the center stage and the criminal government is enjoying it. When people do not know heir their rights, such rights are violated and trampled upon without any slightest fear or regard.

These folks in government do not care for anyone and any citizen. They destroy our education system but send their children overseas. They do not just send their children to school abroad, they do so with the tax and revenues collected, most times forcefully and unlawfully, from the poor citizens. In most cases they turn back and use their loot to build schools while still in public service. They also place such deadly fees to further reduce the poor masses who will pay through their noses.

The doctors in public health centers and facilities own and run private hospitals. When you come to the public hospital, they treat you with all degree of levity and frustrate you. They indirectly also tickle your attention to their private health centers where they will extort hell out of you.

Do we now talk about the Federal Road Safety, Immigration, Correctional Service (Prisons), Civil Defence (NSCDC), Customs, etc. Which one do you talk about?

It has therefore become very important for our citizens to take up the education of themselves very seriously and especially so on trying to know and understand their rights. The government from all its arms are working against the people who elected them to hold our commonwealth in trust. This is what people mean when they call for revolution but I am not interested in any revolution right now. My interest is in the rights of the people. The citizens who willingly gave out their common will to the sovereign for administration and proper management deserve good returns. It indeed very costly to remain in ignorance. We therefore request and require civic education where people will be taught what their rights are and how to press for it. This ignorance is weighing heavily on our country and the stop time lives in the shelf of knowledge. If we get the knowledge, most of our sufferings will be minimised and the government will be put on their toes as they are meant to serve and not to be served.