Nigeria’s Summer Of Protests Unites Christians And Muslims
A coalition of civil society groups, activists, social media influencers and ordinary citizens launched a protest this summer that they described as #EndBadGovernance to address Nigeria’s rising inflation, unemployment and insecurity.
Their hope for the 10-day protest was aimed to pressure the government into taking immediate and concrete actions to alleviate the suffering of millions of Nigerians, putting the African nation under the global spotlight this summer.
“That kind of unity is rare,” said Younglan Talyoung, a Christian from Plateau state.
READ: Why Gen Z Have Turned On Churches In Kenya During Anti-Government Protests
Talyoung said he was shocked to see Christians and Muslims in one location at the Old Airport in Jos speaking with one voice.
That protest took place on Aug. 1. That morning, Talyoung joined other demonstrators in a protest to express grievances over the rising cost of living, which they blamed on the economic policies of President Bola Tinubu — mainly as a result, they say, of the removal of a fuel subsidy, increase in electricity tariff and devaluation of the country’s currency.
All of this has contributed to the hardships faced by Africa's most populous nation, with the inflation rate rising to 34.19% in June.
The national protests — tagged #EndBadGovernance on social media — were the culmination of a strong online campaign where the protest organizers, inspired by the protest of young Kenyans in June over a bill that sought to raise taxes, called for a national 10-day demonstration to demand a reduction in the cost of food, electricity tariffs and price of fuel, as well as a solution to the insecurity across the country.
‘I felt hope’
Although Nigerians have staged different protests in the past, the #EndBadGovernance movement appears different and is characterized by a sense of solidarity shown by Christians and Muslims in major cities across the country.
Nigeria is almost evenly split between Christians and Muslims. (Graphic via Wikipedia Commons)
The West African nation is deeply divided along religious and ethnic lines. Since Nigeria transitioned to democracy in May 1999, thousands have died in violent conflicts involving Christians and Muslims.
In Plateau State, where Talyoung is based, decades of struggle for land rights, herder-farmer disagreements and political divisions between Indigenous people and settlers have remained major reasons for the violent clashes between Christians and Muslims. Between 2001 and 2004 alone, clashes between Muslims and Christians claimed over 50,000 lives.
In Jos, the situation has remained volatile. Several efforts have been made to restore peace, but the problem persists. So seeing young people from the two religions unite to protest against the government's economic policies was significant, protesters said.
“It is heartwarming to see Muslims and Christians come together to address common problems in a city characterized by bigotry and hatred,” said Yahya Imam, professor of Islamic studies at the University of Ilorin. “[The demonstrations] shows that with sincerity and mutual trust, peace can be built in Jos where mutual distrust has reigned for years.”
Talyoung agreed, arguing that the economic hardship faced by Nigerians united all citizens — irrespective of their religious background.
“Hunger is the common religion now. We are united in it, we are united by it,” he said. “Everyone is tired, [so] no one has the strength to fight.”
On Aug. 2, the second day of the protests, photos of Christian demonstrators who stood guard while their Muslim counterparts observed their Friday Juma’at prayers in cities like Jos went viral on social media.
Talyoung experienced this moment, saying. “I had goosebumps when the time for them [Muslims] to pray came and space was created for them to pray at the protest ground. I felt hope.”
The following Sunday, Muslim demonstrators extended this same act at a church service held at the protest venue, also in Jos.
“Honestly, I was doubtful they would do the same for their Christian counterparts,” said Talyoung, a veterinary medical student at the University of Jos. “But when Sunday came and they turned up and joined the service, I was glad. We are moving forward, we are making progress.”
Salis Abdulsalam, founder of Face of Peace Global, a nongovernmental peace advocacy organization, said the actions of both Christian and Muslim demonstrators were significant and unique because they happened in a conflict-prone environment like Jos.
“What makes it news is because Muslims and Christians don’t get along in Jos,” Abdulsalam said.
Abdulsalam, who introduced a soccer tournament initiative to build peace between Muslims and Christians, added that “the history of Jos hardly sees Muslims and Christians come together.”
Meanwhile, Bashir Garga, one of the Muslim protesters in Jos, blamed the many years of unrest in the city on politicians, who he said often leverage the volatile situation to stoke fear and violence for political gain.
“The coming together of youths has sent a strong message to the political elites that divide and rule tactics will no longer be the order of the day,” he told Religion Unplugged. “[This protest] has shown that despite our divergent beliefs, we can coexist peacefully if we tolerate one another.”
Talyoung agreed.
“We are beginning to understand that religion has only been a tool used to keep us divided by these politicians,” he said. “Now that the two religions are beginning to see eye to eye on the matters of governance, it means that true and lasting peace and tolerance is not far away.”
Usual police response
During the protests, there were instances when police fired tear gas to disperse demonstrators in some cities, including Abuja, the country’s capital. At least 17 people died.
This is not the first time police responded this way to demonstrators. The last time a major protest occurred in Nigeria, security forces opened fire on unarmed #EndSARS protesters who were peacefully demonstrating against alleged police brutality, resulting in deaths and injuries.
But this crackdown further united the protesters. Garga said unity between Christians and Muslims is the only way to achieve the goals of the protest.
“The youths need conscious reawakening. We need to come together, understand ourselves and look into our strength, which is unity in diversity. We must learn to respect, love and tolerate one another,” he said.
Meanwhile, in a bid to stem the protests, the country’s president addressed the nation in a televised speech on Aug. 4, explaining that his administration is working hard to curb inflation and to improve the living standard of the people.
Respect and tolerance
Imam acknowledged that there has been an effort to permanently solve the problem in Jos — but that the recent protest marked the beginning of real peaceful coexistence in the city.
He added that the secret to sustaining this effort is to tolerate other religion’s differences.
“[Muslim and Christian faithful should] adhere to Islamic and Christian teachings on peaceful coexistence [and] disallow manipulation of all sorts by people with sinister motives,” Imam said.
For Bashir, the aim is to foster “respect [for] each other’s belief systems, embrace the philosophy of Ubuntu (“I am because we are”) and be our brothers’ keepers.”
“We must fish out the bad eggs amongst us so they don't defeat the aim of the gathering,” he said. “With these steps, we are sure of a violence-free gathering.”
Ekpali Saint is a freelance journalist based in Nigeria and regular contributor to Religion Unplugged.