Actor-turned-politician, Desmond Elliot has apologised for referring to Nigerians who reacted to the Lekki shootings on social media as “children”.

A video had earlier surfaced where the46 year old actor spoke about the violent aftermath of the #EndSARS protests in the country. While expressing his views, he had described Nigerians reacting hysterically to the October 20 Lekki shooting as “children”.

Amid claims that he had pushed for a bill to regulate social media, Elliot, who represents the Surulere constituency at the Lagos assembly, told his colleagues that there’ll be no Nigeria in five years if the vices of social media weren’t addressed.

His comments, however, provoked some Nigerians on Twitter, including prominent entertainers, who poured their annoyance at the politician.

In a swift response, Elliot issued a statement where he apologised to those whose toes he stepped on with his comments.
“I have read your honest feedback & suggestions& I sincerely apologize for addressing the youth as ‘Children’. I did not mean to be insensitive with this,” the Nollywood actor wrote.

“It was borne out of the magnitude of destruction & looting of businesses I witnessed when I went on a tour of my constituency. I saw women crying and my constituent members distraught as a result of the damages inflicted on their source of livelihood. I was moved by this while giving my submission on the floor of the House.

“I allowed my emotions to get the better of me. For this, I apologize to everyone my statements may have hurt. Please, understand that even the best of us make mistakes. This is why, moving forward, I ask that we all try to engage constructively on the issues that affect all of us. I promise to do the same.

“The pain that I feel for my constituents, the calls for assistance that I continue to get, and the need to mitigate against further destruction and violence will continue to drive my engagements and my work. I thank you all for expressing your views, and in the future, I promise to be more conscious and aware. Together, we will build a better Nigeria.”

A few weeks ago, Elliot had similarly provoked outrage on social media after he defended and described his own political career as being a product of godfatherism, an attribute of Nigeria’s political space many had decried.\