- Title: NIGERIA: Mixed response from Nigerians to Muammar Gaddafi death
- Date: 22nd October 2011
- Summary: LAGOS, NIGERIA (OCTOBER 21, 2011) (REUTERS) PEOPLE ON STREET PEOPLE READING NEWSPAPERS AT NEWSPAPER STALL
- Embargoed: 6th November 2011 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Nigeria, Nigeria
- Country: Nigeria
- Topics: Conflict,International Relations,Politics
- Reuters ID: LVABGW4HUPOAEVTFHATHHKOEYOZH
- Story Text: While Libyans celebrated the death of former leader Muammar Gaddafi, Nigerians had mixed feelings about his demise.
In Nigeria's sprawling commercial city of Lagos, people gathered at newspaper stands on Friday (October 21) morning to read the headlines and discuss the end of the man once known to many as "brother leader."
Peter Banjo, a church clerk in Lagos, said he believed Gaddafi had paid for his sins to the people of Libya and it should be a lesson to African despots who hung on to power for too long.
"Gaddafi believed he had the whole world in Libya, and I believe it is God who came to Libya and come and judge Gaddafi," he said.
Lagos stockbroker Osegbemi Johnson said Gaddafi's death was a victory for the people of Libya and that they should now work together as a unit to rebuild everything that had been destroyed by the war.
"I think it is a victory for them because the struggle has been on for quite a while now, and you can imagine the number of souls that have lost in that place, even including Nigerians. Nigerians died in Libya, and what people are fighting for I think is change," he said.
But others like Babatunde Lazeem said they were shocked at Gadaffi's treatment in his final moments and questioned whether his death would solve Libya's problems.
"Is that the end to the problem of Libya? I don't think it is the solution for the Libyans, so the international community and Libya as well, made a mistake of killing Gaddafi," he said.
So far, there has not been any official reaction to Gaddafi's death. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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