A professor of international law, Akin Oyebode, says the unchecked spate of killings in Nigeria portrays the country as a failing state before international community.
Oyebode made the assertion on Wednesday, insisting that a government that had so far been unable to stop the killings or brought the killers to justice, had no basis for continued existence.
He spoke with journalists shortly after delivering a lecture at the 2018 Public Lecture/Book Presentation of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Lagos State Information Chapel, in Ikeja, Lagos.
According to Oyebode, “Nigeria is a failing state, although it has not completely failed, but it is failing and we have to quickly address that. Things are getting worse in the country and all hands must be on deck to save Nigeria from total destruction. The statistics are very bad.”
The professor of law, who retired from University of Lagos (UNILAG) in December 2017, expressed concern that the government could no longer safeguard the lives of the people.
“It is an embarrassment for the President Muhammadu Buhari’s government because the whole essence of government is to protect lives and property of the people. The government that cannot protect its citizens definitely has forfeited its reason for existence. Unfortunately, not many people want to say the truth because they are afraid of the power that be, but some few people still have the courage to talk,” he said.
He, however, gave the Lagos State government a pat on the back for a vision to transform the state from a mega city to a smart city, but noted that much needed to be done to actualise the vision.
He called for the support of the people to enable the Akinwunmi Ambode-led government push the vision into a reality, saying, “Ambode has done well and I think his works can speak for him, but more is required to transit to a smart city.”
