‘On 17 December 2010, a young man in Tunisia called Mohamed Bouazizi set himself on fire. He was protesting at the government’s confiscation of fruit and vegetables he was selling from his street stall, just one of many forms of harassment and frustration Bouazizi experienced at the hands of the Tunisian state. That evening riots and protests erupted throughout the capital city Tunis in outrage that a man should be driven to such an act. The protests quickly took on a deeper significance, transforming into antigovernment protests and no longer specifically focused on the treatment of Bouazizi. On 13 January 2011, Mohsen Bouterfif, in a seemingly copycat act, set himself alight in a small town in Tebessa province in neighbouring Algeria. He was protesting against his inability to find a job and housing (Just like many Nigerian graduates). The previous week four other people in Algeria had attempted to set themselves alight at a time when the country was already experiencing some localised rioting and civil unrest. Just four days later, an Egyptian man set himself alight outside the parliament, again in protest against the economic conditions he was experiencing and his frustration at the government’s lack of responsiveness to his concerns. …Of course, one man setting himself on fire cannot be identified as the sole cause of the possible wave of revolution, but it can be seen as a catalyst that fed a pre-existing desire for change in these states.’ ~ S. Hix and M. Whiting, (2012), Introduction to Political Science, University of London *Dear Nigerian young men and women, should we allow this incompetent government to frustrate us to the point that we resort to setting ourselves alight in protest? We must be proactive. Let’s do the needful. Let’s vote for CHANGE. Let’s vote Buhari/Osinbajo…
Posted on: Tue, 30 Dec 2014 17:25:20 +0000
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