A man who identified as Reverend Dominic said the government of President Muhammadu Buhari has lost control of citizens to separatist groups in the country.

Dominic spoke over the phone during the Monday edition of “This Morning”, a TVC programme, which featured Lai Mohammed, the Minister of Information and Culture.

“Honourable minister, by now you will know that I’m a strong supporter of yourself and Buhari, and I’m making this statement from my heart; that concerns me and many of us that support this government,” he said.

“Honourable minister, have you found out that this government has lost the people? Or would I say have lost the people in this sense: I mean, if this government makes a statement and this IPOB or Igboho or another person makes a statement, Nigerians tend to listen to Igboho more than the federal government.

“For example, as we are talking here now, you said you have taken a decisive action in the southeast, but Imo is in lockdown today. Enugu state is locked down today. All the states are… My sister called me today that they are going to stay at home from Monday to Thursday.

“She said, ‘Our IPOB said it and that is the final’. Now, what is the government doing that made them lose the interest and conscience of the people? The separatists now say something and the people take it more seriously than the government.”

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Responding, Mohammed said people should remember that Nigeria is a federal state and the federal government has limited powers, adding that the leaders of the affected southeast states have a big role to play.

“In the case of what is happening in Anambra state, whether people should go out or not, I would want to appeal to the leaders and politicians in Anambra State that they also have a big role to play in this,” he said.

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“All the federal government can do is maintain law and order when it breaks down. The federal government cannot go to your house and ask you to come to the market. But if you are at the market, the federal government will protect you.”