Residents of the Chadian national capital N’Djamena have been protesting against the total lockdown of the city imposed by presidential decree effective from January 1, 2021.
The lockdown follows a new COVID-19 scare with reports of a new strain of the virus.
The country’s Minister of State, Secretary General at the Presidency of the Republic, Kalzeube Payimi Deubet reiterated the presidential decree on Saturday, January 2 when he insisted the presidential decision for a complete lockdown must be respected.
The first group of citizens of the national capital to voice their opposition to the new measures were artists who declared that such an extreme measure should only have been taken after sensitizing the national community for a certain length of time.
“How can you stop the people from leaving their houses? The state does not have the means to force the population to respect this complete confinement,” declares Mahamat Bouye, a resident of the capital, who added that there wasn’t enough reflection before the decision was taken.
“To copy the example of others is good but one must know how to enforce it. That thing of the whites cannot work in a poor country like ours.”
According to Blaise Hibe, another resident of N’Djamena HumAngle spoke to last evening, “freedom is not a given and must be fought for”.
“If we continue to follow whatever government and its bosses say, we are going to die of hunger,”Hibe adds.
“I call on the population of our national capital to wake up. The time has come, dear Chadians. Stand up for your rights. We the people of Chad are tired of government decisions, we must act now,” declared Adeline Soumta who said the people are tired of being dragged around like goats.
Most citizens of the Chadian capital find it difficult to understand how this new strict lockdown can be enforced without exposing the majority of the dispossessed masses to starvation.
The general opinion in the capital is that the government did not envisage any palliative measures to accompany the strict confinement decision.
“Where is the committee charged with delivering the attestations permitting people to leave their houses?
“The government has to put in place a regulatory disposition”, recommends Janvier Allayenan who called on the government to rescind the decision immediately or risk facing a popular uprising.
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