……Says FG addressing current hardship
BY EZEOCHA NZEH and MYKE UZENDU
President Bola Tinubu has pleaded with aggrieved Nigerians, to dropp the planned August 1 nationwide protest over the current hardship in the country
Tinubu in his message to Nigerian youths, which was conveyed on Tuesday by the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, urged them to shelve the planned protest, stressing that he has heard their grievances and is currently working hard to address all their concerns, saying there was no need for the planned action.
The Minister made known the President’s plea while speaking with State House correspondents after he had a meeting with Tinubu at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The Minister who said that the meeting with President Tinubu was on general issues in the country, said Tinubu is working assiduously to ensure that the country’s economy returns to a good position.
He said, ‘We discussed the issue of the country in general and Mr President has asked me to again inform Nigerians that he listens to them, especially the young people that are trying to protest.
“Mr President said he listens to them and takes what they say seriously and he is working assiduously to ensure that this country is good not just for today but also for the future.
“The issue of the planned protest, Mr President does not see any need for that he asked them to shelve that plan and he has asked them to await the government’s response to all their pleas, he has listened to them.
Recall that several Nigerians had while reacting to the planned nationwide protest, urged the president to address and dialogue with the aggrieved Nigerians, who have no doubt been affected by the current hardship in the country
Leading in the call for dialogue with the youths to avert the protest, President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Joe Ajaero, urged President Bola Tinubu should invite the leaders of the planned protest for a dialogue.
Ajaero, in a statement on Monday, said millions of Nigerians have had it tough since Tinubu was sworn into office on May 29, 2023, stressing that most families now eat “miserable meals,” while many Nigerians are unsure of their next meal.
He noted that Nigerians have their right to protest, as it is guaranteed by the constitution, adding that the federal government cannot deny Nigerians their fundamental human rights.
“As the date for the widely reported national protest looms, the Nigeria Labour Congress urges President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to invite the leadership of the protest movement for discussions on their grievances,” the statement reads.
“A situation where most Nigerian families are forced to eat one miserable meal a day and eating from the dustbin is now seen as a luxury beckons for serious intervention by the government.
“Corroborating a recent country living standards index assessment by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), which established that about 133 million Nigerians live below extreme poverty lines, the International Rescue Committee (IRC) posits that in the first three quarters of 2024, about 32 million Nigerians will have been exposed to acute hunger.
“All that the hurting citizens demand from their government is a listening ear and an empathetic heart.
“Maybe that is what the organisers of the protest are looking for, given their continued notices on different social media platforms.”
Ajaero said it would be hard to prevent Nigerians from expressing their dissatisfaction with the government’s policies.
“It is very difficult to tell a Nigerian who has lost his or her job due to the current economic downturn to maintain their cool,” he said.
“It is very tough to advise a nursing mother who is unsure where the next meal for her suckling child to be at ease.
“It is a herculean task to demand patience from a youth who has been out of school for the past six years without a job and is burdened with aged parents to cater for.
“During this very difficult times, the right of Nigerians to complain must be fully respected
“It is the well-considered position of the Congress that bellicosity and hostility towards the protesters and other aggrieved Nigerians do not offer any tangible remedy either to the pain endured by the populace or the frustrations of having so little in a country where a few privileged persons are living in obscene luxury, especially at the expense of the majority. These are dire times. Nigerians are angry.
“The times require the government to “jaw jaw” and not “war war” with Nigerians. The truth is that you cannot smack a child and at the same time ask the child not to cry.”
Joining in the call for President Tinubu to address the youths, Borno Senator, Ali Ndume, expressed concerns that the planned August 1 nationwide protest could “get out of hand” if not properly handled.
Senator Ndume, while speaking in a television interview on Monday, said the protest could prove tricky because the government cannot identify its leaders.
He therefore advised that federal government should address the youths, so as to dissuade them from embarking on the planned protest
“My fear is, looking at what happened during the EndSARS. I hope it does not get out of hand, especially when you cannot identify the leadership, that makes it more difficult,” Ndume said.
“I second the motion of the NLC president that Tinubu should listen to Nigerians. The president should talk to the youth.”
This is even as former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has thrown his weight behind the nationwide #EndBadGovernment protest scheduled to commence from August 1st.
Some civil society organizations have announced that Nigerians are planning a nationwide protest to express their dissatisfaction with the current state of affairs in the country.
They described the exercise as a 10days total shut down of the economy and have been mobilizing support for the exercise through the social media.
Despite all entreaties by state actors, government officials and security agencies to discourage Nigerian Youths from embarking on the exercise, the Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 general election said that the right to protest is enshrined in the constitution.
In a statement on Tuesday in his official handle, he wrote,
“For the avoidance of doubt, the rights of citizens to protest are enshrined in the Nigerian Constitution and affirmed by our courts. Section 40 of the 1999 Constitution (as altered) unequivocally guarantees the right to peaceful assembly and association.
“Chasing shadows and contriving purported persons behind the planned protests is an exercise in futility when it is obvious that Nigerians, including supporters of Tinubu and the ruling APC, are caught up in the hunger, anger, and hopelessness brought about by the incompetence and cluelessness of this government.
“It is deeply ironic that those who now seek to stifle these rights were themselves leading protests in 2012. A responsible government must ensure a SAFE and SECURE environment for citizens to exercise their constitutionally guaranteed rights to PEACEFUL PROTEST. Any attempt to suppress these rights is not only unconstitutional but a direct affront to our democracy”.