Buhari meets sports minister on #EndSARS protests, charges campaigners to be peaceful

The Minister of Youths and Social Development, Sunday Dare, on Monday held a closed-door meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari on the ongoing #ENDSARS campaigns across the country.

The minister told State House correspondents after the meeting held at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, that President Buhari told him that he has nothing against the protesting youths.

The president, however, advised the #ENDSARS campaigners to ensure that their actions were peaceful.

He also expressed concerns about cases of violence in some parts of the country since the protests began last week.

Dare said: “First, Mr. President said as far as he was concerned, it is important to allow the younger generation to exercise the freedom to protest, but he did say that such protests must be in a peaceful manner.

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“Of course, he is worried about some of the exceptions to the peaceful nature of the protests.

“For him, it is important that these protests are properly guided. He said part of the demands that were made was to ensure those protesting are protected and any police officer that has in one way or the other attacked any protester be brought to book.

“So, Mr. President thinks it is a fundamental human right, so long as the protest is peaceful and focused. He said he has been responsive to demands put forward by the protesters.

“He believes the youth to a very large extent are law-abiding, they are young people with dreams and expectations of the government and the society and that they have a right to demand for certain things, which is why he has a very attentive ear to their demands.”

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