THE Obidient Movement, a pan-Nigerian socio-political group driven by passionate young Nigerians who embody the aspirations of a generation determined to reclaim Nigeria’s future and build a better nation for all its citizens has rejected what it described as “baseless and revisionist” claim by former Osun State governor, Chief Bisi Akande, that the movement was behind the historic #EndSARS protests allegedly orchestrated to stop Bola Ahmed Tinubu from becoming President.
In a recent podcast anchored by a popular broadcaster, Edmund Obilo, Chief Akande claimed that the #EndSARS protest was orchestrated by Obidients to stop Tinubu’s presidential ambition.
According to him, the movement was well funded with foreign donations.
“The Obidients were behind the #EndSARS. It was manufactured in America and brought in just to stop him (Tinubu). I said the Obidients, I didn’t say Obi.
“They came from America to do the #EndSARS and later became a movement to form a party. They couldn’t form a party. It was well planned and organised with a lot of money from America,” the octogenarian asserted
However, while further describing the remark as “false narrative”, the Movement emphasized that it is not only an insult to the memory of the young Nigerians who lost their lives in the fight against police brutality but also a desperate attempt to rewrite history and shift blame for the government’s failures.
“#EndSARS was a decentralised, youth-led movement demanding an end to police brutality, extrajudicial killings, and systemic oppression in Nigeria. It was not about politics, nor was it about any single individual’s presidential ambition. Nigerians, especially young people, took to the streets in 2020 because they were tired of injustice, unchecked police violence, and a government that refused to listen to its people.
“To now suggest that the Obidient Movement, a movement that emerged years later as a symbol of hope, accountability, and good governance, was responsible for #EndSARS is not only false but also a deliberate attempt to discredit our cause.
“We are a movement of patriotic Nigerians united by the desire for a better country, not agents of chaos as Akande and his allies would like to paint us”, the Movement in a statement signed by its National Coordinator Worldwide, Dr Tanko Yunusa read.
It further remonstrates that rather than engaging in revisionist propaganda, Chief Akande and his associates should focus on addressing the real issues facing Nigerians today including economic hardship, insecurity, unemployment, and bad governance.
“The people are suffering, and no amount of misinformation or historical distortion will change that reality.
“We stand firm in our mission to restore integrity, transparency, and good governance in Nigeria. No amount of false accusations will deter us from advocating for a better future for our nation”, the. Movement stressed.
Eighteen-Eleven Media