The Nigerian Bar Association, NBA,  has appealed to the organisers of the planned #EndBadGovernance nationwide protest slated to start August 1, to rethink and call it off.

The NBA president, Mr Yakubu Maikyau (SAN), in a statement on Monday, urged the government, the organisers and the supporters of the protest to come together and have a heart-to-heart discussion on how to turn the situation around for the benefit of all citizens.

Maikyau noted that a look at the country’s history of mass protest shows that it gets hijacked by unscrupulous criminal elements who seize the opportunity to commit heinous crimes.

While noting that the planned protest may not be any different from previous ones, he feared that the development could lead to civil unrest which will be worse compared to whatever the masses are currently going through.

He said, “I most humbly appeal to Nigerians, particularly those that have decided to embark on the planned street protest to have a rethink and take a second look at what could be the possible outcome of embarking on such exercise to our security, economy, and existence.

“Our past experiences with mass protest are that they are usually hijacked by unscrupulous elements who use the opportunity to commit heinous crimes and thus turn an otherwise peaceful protest into a riot.

“Whatever we are going through right now cannot be compared to the experience of civil unrest and the chaos that could ensue therefrom. Needless to mention nations that are currently going through wars with the attendant carnage and destructions. We do not even want to imagine what the experience would be, and we must forbid it.

“My humble call and appeal, therefore, to both government, the organisers and/or proponents and supporters of the planned protest, is to call off the protest, come together for a frank and sincere discussion on what must be done to immediately begin to turn around the plight of the people for good.”

The outgoing NBA president also suggested that mechanisms should be put in place for government-people engagement on a regular periodic basis.