Protest in London today over Obasanjo's lecture
By Rafiu Ajakaye, Senior Reporter, Lagos (With Agency Reports)

* African Students Show Solidarity

* Police Grant Protesters Permit



Discontent against former President Olusegun Obasanjo surfaces today in London where Nigerians plan to protest his invitation to deliver a lecture at the London School of Economics (LSE) on the unrest in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).








Other African students, from the Maghreb down the Sahara, and beyond, are lining behind Nigerians who are aggrieved that Obasanjo's eight-year rule in Africa's most populous country did more harm to Black solidarity once solidified in the 1960s by Nigeria's shining examples.

The LSE Students' Union has asked the school's Governing Council to cancel the lecture scheduled for today because there is a threat to public order.

Both the African Students Union (ASU) and the Nigerian Students Union (NSU) are bent on pouring cold water on the event.

The London police on Tuesday granted a permit to the protesters who want to lay bare the much-covered ills of the Obasanjo administration, especially rights abuses and alleged corruption.

Police are mobilising between 300 and 400 officers because they anticipate trouble.

Obasanjo plans to address students and faculty members on the situation in the DRC, for which he is a Special Representative of the Secretary General of the United Nations (UN), Ban Ki-moon.

Some Nigerians feel the UN honour should not be extended to Obasanjo, whose reign was characterised by ethno-religious conflicts, state-induced insurgency in the Deep South, arbitrary killings by security agencies, and alleged state-sponsored assassinations.

His administration was equally blemished on one hand by poor human rights records - at the height of which was the wiping out by soldiers of two communities in Zaki Biam (Benue State) and Odi (Bayelsa) - and on the other by harsh economic policies that made poverty worse.

Gary Smith, a London police officer, wrote in an email to the Nigeria Liberty Forum (NLF) that its application to protest has been granted; thereby setting the stage for a showdown between the NLF and the LSE.

The LSE authorities have withdrawn press passes previously granted Nigerian journalists to cover the event.

One of the emails cited by Saharareporters, an online publications, says: "Unfortunately the LSE has restricted the entry requirements for this event so that entry is open only to the LSE staff and students. Therefore, we can no longer issue any media tickets for this event.

"Subject to no technical problems with the recording, a podcast will be available for anyone to listen to two-three working days after the event."

That is the second time in the past week the LSE has tried to prevent the public from participating in the event, which has generated a lot of controversy.

The LSE, according to the protest organisers, had invited them for a meeting last week to request that they present a "letter of complaint" to Obasanjo on the high table and thereafter walk out of the venue without disrupting the event.

But Kayode Ogundamisi, who leads the group, said the NLF rejected the proposal the LSE made "just because a cruel African dictator happens to be in the good books of hypocritical British elite colleges, politicians, and intellectuals."

Ogundamisi assured that the protest would hold as planned, and asked the West to stop its "double standards" towards African dictators, as the hypocrisy is known to ordinary Africans.

He urged the LSE to withdraw Obasanjo's invitation or face a showdown that includes LSE students who may confront Obasanjo at the venue.

Two groups from the DRC joined the NLF in denouncing Obasanjo's reception by the LSE.

Congolese Resistance Council and the Mbongwana Group both urged their members to protest the presence of Obasanjo at the LSE.

*African Students Show Solidarity

*Police Grant Protesters Permit

By Rafiu Ajakaye, Senior Reporter, Lagos (With Agency Reports)

Discontent against former President Olusegun Obasanjo surfaces today in London where Nigerians plan to protest his invitation to deliver a lecture at the London School of Economics (LSE) on the unrest in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Other African students, from the Maghreb down the Sahara, and beyond, are lining behind Nigerians who are aggrieved that Obasanjo's eight-year rule in Africa's most populous country did more harm to Black solidarity once solidified in the 1960s by Nigeria's shining examples.

The LSE Students' Union has asked the school's Governing Council to cancel the lecture scheduled for today because there is a threat to public order.

Both the African Students Union (ASU) and the Nigerian Students Union (NSU) are bent on pouring cold water on the event.

The London police on Tuesday granted a permit to the protesters who want to lay bare the much-covered ills of the Obasanjo administration, especially rights abuses and alleged corruption.

Police are mobilising between 300 and 400 officers because they anticipate trouble.

Obasanjo plans to address students and faculty members on the situation in the DRC, for which he is a Special Representative of the Secretary General of the United Nations (UN), Ban Ki-moon.

Some Nigerians feel the UN honour should not be extended to Obasanjo, whose reign was characterised by ethno-religious conflicts, state-induced insurgency in the Deep South, arbitrary killings by security agencies, and alleged state-sponsored assassinations.

His administration was equally blemished on one hand by poor human rights records - at the height of which was the wiping out by soldiers of two communities in Zaki Biam (Benue State) and Odi (Bayelsa) - and on the other by harsh economic policies that made poverty worse.

Gary Smith, a London police officer, wrote in an email to the Nigeria Liberty Forum (NLF) that its application to protest has been granted; thereby setting the stage for a showdown between the NLF and the LSE.

The LSE authorities have withdrawn press passes previously granted Nigerian journalists to cover the event.

One of the emails cited by Saharareporters, an online publications, says: "Unfortunately the LSE has restricted the entry requirements for this event so that entry is open only to the LSE staff and students. Therefore, we can no longer issue any media tickets for this event.

"Subject to no technical problems with the recording, a podcast will be available for anyone to listen to two-three working days after the event."

That is the second time in the past week the LSE has tried to prevent the public from participating in the event, which has generated a lot of controversy.

The LSE, according to the protest organisers, had invited them for a meeting last week to request that they present a "letter of complaint" to Obasanjo on the high table and thereafter walk out of the venue without disrupting the event.

But Kayode Ogundamisi, who leads the group, said the NLF rejected the proposal the LSE made "just because a cruel African dictator happens to be in the good books of hypocritical British elite colleges, politicians, and intellectuals."

Ogundamisi assured that the protest would hold as planned, and asked the West to stop its "double standards" towards African dictators, as the hypocrisy is known to ordinary Africans.

He urged the LSE to withdraw Obasanjo's invitation or face a showdown that includes LSE students who may confront Obasanjo at the venue.

Two groups from the DRC joined the NLF in denouncing Obasanjo's reception by the LSE.

Congolese Resistance Council and the Mbongwana Group both urged their members to protest the presence of Obasanjo at the LSE.

http://odili.net/news/source/2009/mar/18/704.html

Why do Nigerians love to humiliate themselves?. Oyibo police gave them permit to protest because they are disgracing themselves the more. What did Obasanjo do they are protesting?. Is he Abacha or IBB or Abdulsalaami or Ibori or Odili?. Nonsense, I know the likes of Sauron and Pataki are at the front line of this mayhem.

Why do Nigerians love to humiliate themselves?. Oyibo police gave them permit to protest because they are disgracing themselves the more. What did Obasanjo do they are protesting?. Is he Abacha or IBB or Abdulsalaami or Ibori or Odili?. Nonsense, I know the likes of Sauron and Pataki are at the front line of this mayhem.

iReport:

Why do Nigerians love to humiliate themselves?. Oyibo police gave them permit to protest because they are disgracing themselves the more. What did Obasanjo do they are protesting?. Is he Abacha or IBB or Abdulsalaami or Ibori or Odili?. Nonsense, I know the likes of Sauron and Pataki are at the front line of this mayhem.

Gracious goodness! So you are the malodorous personality behind that name ''iReport.'' Will you ever change?

@ topic,

Obasanjo truly deserves whatever he gets in London. I wish I coulda make myself available to show the ''aluta continua'' in London.

So Pataki you sef go protest?

Gracious goodness! So you are the malodorous personality behind that name ''iReport.'' Will you ever change?  

@ topic,

Obasanjo truly deserves whatever he gets in London. I wish I coulda make myself available to show the ''aluta continua'' in London

whareva! Obasanjo does not deserve this. Even  GW Bush that people detest so much is preparing to tour the world making speeches. What has Obasanjo done to deserve this form of humiliation?

So Pataki you sef go protest?

Don't mind them. Disgracing us abroad anyhow. UK Naija folks should be ashamed of themselves for allowing this nonsense to come into fruitition.

MrCrackles:

So Pataki you sef go protest?

I no even dey London sef, to see road come follow some student protest. But if I had the opportunity to show and express my disgust at Obasanjo, I would do it.

iReport:

whareva! Obasanjo does not deserve this. Even  GW Bush that people detest so much is preparing to tour the world making speeches. What has Obasanjo done to deserve this form of humiliation?

Obasanjo has humiliated himself more than enough times. His garrulous being when he was President is more than enough for any reasonable person to detest him. This protest was not flagged by any anti-PDP charlatans, but rather students who felt the economic and harsh times in Nigeria before and during Obasanjo's government and had to leave the country.

When you talk of humiliation, is the incest he committed not worthy enough of a humiliation?

iReport:

Don't mind them. Disgracing us abroad anyhow. UK Naija folks should be ashamed of themselves for allowing this nonsense to come into fruitition.

You should be flogged! Every citizen has a right to protest against its leaders. If it cannot be practiced in Nigeria, it does not mean, it cannot be done any else where in developed and more reasonable society.

If it was not be, London Police would not have allowed it.

I am sure, if we had tried this in Nigeria, police brutality would have followed with flooding us all with tear gas. Naija days.

You should be flogged! Every citizen has a right to protest against its leaders. If it cannot be practiced in Nigeria, it does not mean, it cannot be done any else where in developed and more reasonable society.

If it was not be, London Police would not have allowed it.

I am sure, if we had tried this in Nigeria, police brutality would have followed with flooding us all with tear gas. Naija days.

Yes because it doesn't make any sense to me.

I wouldnt have gone there but if i happened to cross him anywhere, i will rerrange his face, deplete his rotten denture or throw acid on his face!

Muthafucking son of a babboon!

The coward is bloating again. haters.

I will laugh my ass off if someone decides to throw a shoe at his big head. There is no way anyone can miss that target!

iReport:

The coward is bloating again. haters.

Shut the fuc.k up Obasanjo's asswipe!

Shut the fuc.k up Obasanjo's asswipe!

Hate hater hatest. I know you wish Obasanjo was your dad.

This protest was not flagged by any anti-PDP charlatans, but rather students who felt the economic and harsh times in Nigeria before and during Obasanjo's government and had to leave the country.

Why did this 'just' students turn a blind eye on Yaradua especially when he was bullying Ribadu?

When you talk of humiliation, is the incest he committed not worthy enough of a humiliation?

There you go again. Moji is not related to Obasanjo by blood, so hush.

ireport ur like the first person ive seen defending dude . . . any particular reason ? btw hes no better than abacha , IBB , Abdulsalaami , Ibori or Odili

iReport:

Why do Nigerians love to humiliate themselves?. Oyibo police gave them permit to protest because they are disgracing themselves the more. What did Obasanjo do they are protesting?. Is he Abacha or IBB or Abdulsalaami or Ibori or Odili?.

 

Since when did a "protest" turn  into some form of humiliation?

iReport:

Yes because it doesn't make any sense to me.

How would it make sense to you? Stuck-up in Nebraska, so anything that Obasanjo does is golden to you.

iReport:

Why did this 'just' students turn a blind eye on Yaradua especially when he was bullying Ribadu?
There you go again. Moji is not related to Obasanjo by blood, so hush.

Whoever banned you, did a good job but it was not excellent as your IP needed to have been banned as well.

What happens to the biblical quote of two becoming one? Your bigotry to defend Obasanjo is truly awesome. As for the Ribadu case, Ribadu was simply a pawn under Obasanjo's chess piece and his chess games in Nigeria.

blackspade:

I will laugh my ass off if someone decides to throw a shoe at his big head. There is no way anyone can miss that target!

That woulda made my whole week!

blackspade:

I will laugh my ass off if someone decides to throw a shoe at his big head. There is no way anyone can miss that target!

So many comic posts so far, but this one, I made me laugh!

I will laugh my ass off if someone decides to throw a shoe at his big head. There is no way anyone can miss that target!

That tells a lot about the respect this generation have for their elders. Where is the respect?

What happens to the biblical quote of two becoming one? Your bigotry to defend Obasanjo is truly awesome. As for the Ribadu case, Ribadu was simply a pawn under Obasanjo's chess piece and his chess games in Nigeria.

Can you name three big sins Obasanjo committed against Nigerians apart from fixing a country that was a broken record?

ireport ur like the first person ive seen defending dude . . . any particular reason ?

Give honor to whom honor is due.

iReport:

Can you name three big sins Obasanjo committed against Nigerians apart from fixing a country that was a broken record?

Name three outstanding things Obasanjo did for Nigerians? This was a man who when he became President, immediately ordered for a presidential jet, and started gallivanting across the world.

Name three things he has done that makes him the best leader we ever had in Nigeria. Maybe I should help you with one:

1) GSM right?

Name three things he has done that makes him the best leader we ever had in Nigeria. Maybe I should help you with one:

1) GSM

2) paid our foreign debt

3) recreated the long gone middle class in Nigeria.

In fact his general performance on economy was avantgarde.

people get power to protest.

blackspade:

I will laugh my ass off if someone decides to throw a shoe at his big head. There is no way anyone can miss that target!

AAARGGHH!!!!! roflmao!!!!

blackspade:

I will laugh my ass off if someone decides to throw a shoe at his big head. There is no way anyone can miss that target!

hahhahahah!!!! ROTFLMAO!!!!!

iReport:

1) GSM

GSM ma ass. . . . . .
Did OBJ also invent the internet??
Did IBB initiate Digital TV (DSTV)??
Did Shagari invent VCR machines??

Nigerians and their asinine comments. . . . .
OBJ was just lucky to be ruling when GSM became a global phenomenom.
Any idiot in power coulda done that so y'all should stop saying OBJ performed a miracle.

Obj totally deserves whats coming to him ( and thats a shoe in his face),


My dear Ireport

What is it about OBJ that makes you suck his balls this bad. Please stop sounding like you are from the shallow end of the gene pool.

Lest not forget, Obasanjo pave way for the Financial Institution Consolidation process that is now helping our dear country withstand the financial crisis.

Courage are you being serious or are you taking the piss Withstand what With the exchange rate currently the way it is now? oh wake up.