It's amusing to see a lot of pro-government misters trying to spread the disinformation that the #EndSARS protests of October 2020 were "hijacked" and turned into some sort of orgy of violence.

The facts, as recorded in this world of digital media where it is now difficult to hide, is that @NigeriaGov, unable to find "leaders" to either bribe, intimidate or otherwise coerce, cynically turned to thugs to disrupt (not hijack) the protests.

The govt's strategy succeeded to some extent, but the jury is still out, and it is increasingly looking like a case where they won a battle in order to lose a war.

This is where my column in today's @BusinessDayNg comes in: https://businessday.ng/columnist/article/endsars-and-what-could-have-been/

#Nigeria has had a lot of opportunities to set itself on the path to progress.

The aftermath of 1966 was a chance to create some space so the regions could evolve to a point where they could put aside their distrust to work together.

But we wasted the Aburi Conference.

There were many other chances, but the fortuitous way in which the Abacha situation was resolved in 1998 gave #Nigeria yet another chance to sort out its issues.

Rather than use that, we ended up with Decree 24 of 1998, called it #CFRN99, and well, the results are in.

Unfortunately in 2015, #Nigeria (myself included) decided that the best way to solve the perceived problem of corruption was by voting for the living embodiment of everything that was wrong with Nigeria.

Muhammadu Buhari's track record was well-documented and it eloquently showed his thoughts (or lack thereof) on education, civil rights, religious freedom, economic policy, ethnic unity, and all that ought to be important if we are to successfully build a nation.

The signs were there, but as #Nigeria typically does, we chose to argue with life rather than learning its lessons.

So Mr Buhari became president and went back to the same policies that failed woefully in the middle of the 1980s.

As expected, his ill-thought policies have produced relentless rises in poverty, insecurity, and unemployment.

Coupled with police brutality, these culminated in the #EndSARS protests.

Buhari's reaction only surprised those who don't believe in using a person's history as a guide to predicting future behaviour.

We literally saw actions ranging from peaceful protesters being shot down in Lekki to hoodlums being ferried around Abuja in black government SUVs.

These responses were typical of how #Nigeria handles opportunities to do the right thing. It is baffling really.

This is Buhari's final term.

One would think that he would see this as an opportunity to start repairing his reputation in the eyes of the people.

Buhari could have endeared himself to the people by using the #EndSARS wave to commit to security and political reforms to ensure that the next elections produce a peaceful election that reflects the will of the people.

He could also have kept communicating with the people especially the younger portion of the populace by addressing the economic issues that have impoverished roughly a hundred million Nigerians and left them unable to see a positive future for themselves.

Most Nigerians would have happily accepted these overtures and forgiven him for past wrongs.

Our standards are that low.

What we got, instead, was bluster, the #LekkiMassacre, and a @lshaofficial accusing young people of being drug addicts who were ungrateful enough to not appreciate that #Covid19 palliatives meant for them were better off hidden or used as birthday party-packs by politicians.

#EndSARS is an opportunity thrown away by our government, which we will rue as food inflation continues to hit the pockets of Nigerians, leading to the next uprising, which will possibly be uncontrolled.