Femi Falana (SAN), a human rights lawyer, has attributed the recurring instances of coups in Africa to the pervasive poverty that exists across the continent. He conveyed this perspective while addressing a Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) national symposium held in Abuja on a Thursday.
Falana directed criticism at the ruling class in Nigeria, accusing them of underestimating the populace. Despite the prevalent poverty in the country, he highlighted the fact that the National Assembly allocated significant sums of money to itself.
The symposium was themed “Nigerian Economy and the Crisis of Survival, Robbing the Poor to Pay the Rich.”
Falana’s remarks come in the wake of recent coup events in Africa, the most recent of which occurred in Gabon, where soldiers took control, putting an end to the Bongo dynasty’s decades-long rule. This trend of coups has prompted both local and international condemnation.
President Bola Tinubu also characterized the wave of coups in Africa as a form of “contagious autocracy.”