The Lagos state house of assembly has asked Babajide
Sanwo-Olu, the governor, to look at the listed sites (Prevention) law, 2015,
with a view to removing all vestiges of slave trade and colonialism.
Noheem Adams, deputy majority leader, moved the motion at plenary.
In the motion, the lawmaker recalled the gruesome killing of
George Floyd in the US by a white police officer, Derek Chauvin.
“The brutal and callous murder of Floyd triggered worldwide
condemnations, demonstrations, and protests against the continue police
violence and racism of blacks in US and Europe without provocation,” he said.
“This house is further aware that the demonstration brought
about the pulling down of status of Edward Colston, a notable slave trader into
a river in Bristol, London, while the British authorities removed from her
museum status of another prominent slave master and promised a review of
history pertaining to slave trade monument and sites.”
Commenting, Mudashiru Obasa, the speaker, said the motion was not about history, and
that history could not be changed.
Obasa added that statues are not history and that Africans
all over the world should give backing to blacks fighting for the rights of
fellow blacks.
“South Africa got her independence much later than the rest
African countries and they are not talking about ‘Black Lives Matters’
campaign,” he said.
“We must protect the interest of our people all over the
world. So many statues in London and other places are being brought down. We
should change the names of some of these buildings. We cannot bring down the
buildings because they were once used by colonial masters.
“We can change the names of some of these buildings and
streets. Some of the names remind us of these people that enslaved our people.
“We need to change the names, but it does not affect our
history. We should look at the history.”
The speaker also asked why anybody would ascribe the
discovery of River Niger to Mungo Park and Richard Landers brothers.
“Does that mean people were not living there before the
arrivals of the foreigners?”
The speaker said even the name Nigeria was given by the
colonial masters.
“It is what you believe that says who and what you are. It
is about what you believe and what you can do on your own.
“You need to exhibit your own beliefs and culture. Most
times, we speak like foreigners and some of our children cannot speak our
mother tongues.
“We are saying that our own language is inferior to their
own language. We should let our children know that we are superior.
“The motion is about us, about Africans. We have to tell the
world about our own civilization. The resolve is not broad enough. It is not
about Lagos State alone. We have to tell African Union about reparation which
was started by the late Chief M.K.O Abiola.
“The President can issue an Executive Order that all over
Nigeria we should change the names of streets named after beneficiaries of
slave trade.
“Those who dehumanized Africans should not be celebrated.
Our people who collaborated with the colonial masters should be made to
apologise to us.”
The motion was passed unanimously and the house asked the
clerk to make the resolution known to the governor.
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