The Lagos state governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, has incurred the wrath of women who stormed his office during a peaceful International Women’s Day march in Ikeja, the state capital.
The women in their hundreds were led by Dr Joe Okei-Odumakin, the convener of Women Arise group, and requested to see the governor and deliver their message to him about women’s oppression as the world celebrated Women’s Day.
Joe Okei-Odumakin led several other women to march against molestation, gender inequality on International Women’s Day. Photo: Emmanuel Osodi.
But the security men attached to the governor’s office were quite astute, denying the protesters entry, and a confrontation between the protesters and the security men left one of them injured.
ZENITHBLOG.com’s reporter on ground reports that the people were initially tear gassed when the scene was becoming quite violent, but the people refused to leave the entrance to the state house in Alausa, Ikeja.
The protesters met stiff resistance from the security officials at the front of the State House in Ikeja. Photo: Emmanuel Osodi.
As at the time our crew left the entrance to the governor’s office, no prominent member of the governor’s cabinet addressed the people, and this action further irked the protesters who vowed to remain at the gate until someone came out to address them.
We want to see our governor, the people insisted at the entrance to the State House in Ikeja. Photo: Emmanuel Osodi.
“Ambode has failed us”, “Ambode is a disgrace to Lagos state”, “Ambode is worse than Fashola”, “Ambode has no regard for women in Lagos state”, “No second term for Ambode in Lagos state” were some of the chants by the people as they demanded to see the governor. But the more they tried, the less possible it seemed for them to see the governor in person.
They proceeded to the Lagos State House of Assembly to meet with the Speaker and other members of the House, but were told that he was not around, so the leaders of the procession stood at the entrance to the complex and addressed the women.
On their way to the Assembly complex, however, the protesters prevented the Lagos Chief Judge from moving towards the governor’s office, as they claimed that since she is a woman, she should alight from the vehicle to address the teeming women.
The protesters asked the Chief Judge to alight from her vehicle, else she would not be allowed passage. Photo: Emmanuel Osodi.
Her security details tried to appeal to the protesting women to kindly allow their boss pass, but they insisted that there was no thoroughfare if she does not associate with the women; all of these happened under the rain and the women would not care.
After much hassle, the Judge’s vehicle and her entourage made a detour, and passed through the Assembly complex instead. The people had won!
Even inside the complex of the National Assembly, the people made their voices heard without any violence. Photo: Emmanuel Osodi.
Moremi, daughter of Babafemi Ojudu, special adviser to President Muhammadu Buhari on political matters, was also among the women who stormed the governor’s office in Lagos and she expressed her disappointment with the attitude of the Chief Judge.
“With what I just saw today, I am ashamed of the Nigerian woman. I weep for the Nigerian woman, I hope one day, that things will just get better,” she lamented.
Watch this video below to see what the protesters did to the Chief Judge on Wednesday, March 8 and tell us what you think:
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