The Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Thursday announced the cancellation of his planned peace walk in the state.
Sanwo-Olu who disclosed this in a statement said the cancellation became necessary to check the spread of Omicron variant of COVID-19 in the state.
“Since my last address to you, the good people of Lagos State on Tuesday 30, November 2021, during which I expressed a desire to lead a Walk for Peace, following the outcome of the work of the Judicial Panel on Restitution for Victims of SARS Related Abuses and Other Matters, I have been inundated with deep expressions of solidarity from various groups and people declaring their readiness to join me on the symbolic walk.
“When the unseen enemy called Covid-19 began to ravage the world and indeed our nation, I assumed the role of the Incident Commander in our quest to protect the lives of our people. We subjected ourselves to the dictates of science. We chose to be guided not by our emotions, but expert opinions rooted in science. Between Tuesday 30, November 2021 that I made my address and now, we have seen a significant rise in cases associated with the Omicron variant of this pandemic.
“Given this development, I am constrained to stand down all preparations for the Walk for Peace. I will not endanger the life of any Lagosian in my sincere search for peace. I am overwhelmed by the outpouring of support the initiative received from far and near. The deluge of support is, however, indicative of one thing: our people know the strategic place of peace to our quest for development,” he said.
Uber Talented Nigerian Artiste, Folarin Falana, popularly known as Falz, had joined other celebrities to reject Sanwo-Olu’s invitation for a peace walk.
“This suggestion of a “walk for peace” sounds like a joke and a very disrespectful one at that. People were murdered in cold blood and absolutely no iota of justice has been served more than a year after. How can there be peace without justice? #EndSARS,” Falz wrote in a series of tweets.
