The favourable outcome of the protest
Greetings!
Before I got involved in my first ever protest, I used to think that people who join protests are radical, and don't like peace because why not have a peaceful talk instead of shouting and obstructing activities? But something happened, and I found myself angrily shouting on the protest ground and supporting every move.
It was in my first final year in school when we were about to round up the first part of my certificate because it's divided into two. We were to do a compulsory project work, which we knew about, and in the history of the school, students didn't pay money to any lecturer or department as project fees. Students would go about doing the work themselves with their own money, but there was nothing like a project fee. That year, the school management tried to implement the project fee without explaining in details why it was needed.
The school management made it so compulsory that every final year student in my department planning to undertake a project had to pay the project fees, otherwise they wouldn't be allowed to write exams. They took it more seriously than the main school fees because, at that time, most of us had not paid school fees, which we were struggling to meet up with. Imagine bringing the project fee into play when 80% of the students were yet to pay their school fees....school fees is more important.
I remember skipping classes to do menial work to sort out money for school fees because my parents weren't responding urgently, and I didn't want to miss writing the exam. Missing the exam would mean an extra year because we were in our final year.
Three days before the exam, we summoned the courage and gathered everyone in the class to go and meet the Rector (the head of the school). When we got to the Rector's block, we weren't allowed to see him, and that was when hell was let loose. In anger, we started shouting, demanding to meet the Rector, but none of the lecturers and staff in the block were ready to listen to us. Before we knew it, the shouts of 70 students gained attention, and our numbers increased to around 300. The people who joined us were final year students from other departments without project work, but they heard our frustrating story and decided to join us to make our voices heard.
Just like a play, the supposed peaceful cries and protest turned destructive. It was as if more anger was injected into the air like tear gas; people started to destroy things, and that's how the school got scattered that day. Police and soldiers trooped in with a convoy and managed to escort the Rector out of the school with gunshots in the air and tear gas, which scared us. Halls, laboratories, and ATM machines were destroyed that day.
The next day, the school was shut down until further notice. Our exams were postponed, and when we returned, the school management scrapped the project fees.
You see, if we had not protested, the project fees would have stayed.
Another way it favored me was that the exam was postponed, giving me enough time to sort out my school fees by working and pressuring my parents more.
Thank you for reading.
This is my entry to Day 7 of #julyinleo
Posted Using InLeo Alpha
With the history of protestbin the countryx I can say many of the peaceful protest doesn't work out well. Though, I do not support destruction of buildings and properties but a little touch of violence is needed to get better response.
I just wish Nigerians (not just youths) would react like this. Maybe a lot of things would change. I mean look at Kenyans. They took matters into their own hands for fucks sake. Giant of Africa citizens no send anything again.
You know one thing I love about this? Is the way other students joined the protest even though they were not part of the project fee. That's how it should be, if we have one voice in Nigeria today just like you guys did in the protest. We will get a better Nigeria. But if you start now, the other person will be like "It's your cross, carry it"
Wao
But sha una get luck say the no tell una to pay vandalization fee, hehe
Nice protest
My brother, sometimes protest is the key to a solution
It was a favorable protest indeed as the crux of the matter was scraped and you were able to sort your school fees out. The rector is also considerate, some other ones would have imposed both the fee and that of vandalization on the students.