- * Says Nationwide Protest Against FG Will Worsen Current Hardship
By Chinwendu Agoha (Governance/Civil Society Reporter)
A frontline politician and Chieftain of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Longers Anyanwu (Ebubedike), has appealed to the organisers of the proposed August 1st nationwide mass action against the federal government over the increasing hardship in the country, to shelve their plan and engage the government on how best to resolve the issues.
Longers, as he is popularly known, also appealed to the protesters and their organisers to hacken to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's Appeal for the protest to be shelved as his government has been working round the clock to ensure that the current hardship in the country is ameliorated.
Chief Anyanwu, a public opinion analyst, acknowledged that though the protesters have a lawful right to express their grievances over the prevailing economic difficulties in the country, he however advised them to consider the fact that a nationwide mass action at this time could further precipitate unexpected catastrophe in the entire national economic system which could erode government's efforts to manage the situation and ultimately aggravate the hunger situation in the land.
Longers specifically pleaded with the aggrieved youths in the country, especially those involved in the planned protest activities to suspend further mobilisation of protesters and urgently accept whatever government's overtures towards a peaceful engagement to ensure adequate resolution of the issues.
The APC Chieftain spoke in Abuja on Wednesday, July 25, 2024, while addressing a cross section of some civil society organizations under the leadership of Global Peace Sustainability Network.
He noted that many organized groups are beginning to see the sincerity so far shown by the Tinubu administration in resolving the contending issues. He urged the citizens to rise up for a united Nigeria so as to ensure the overall survival of the country.
Longers however enjoined every Nigerian, in their little space, whether in the families, schools, government, political arena, churches, mosques, clubs, etc, to use their platforms to appeal to the youths of the country and other interested stakeholders in the protest plan to eschew violence and seek peace and dialogue in the resolution of the current impasse between the people and the government.
The APC Chief stated: "I want to use this opportunity to appeal to the youths of our country who are mobilising for a nationwide protest against the government of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to please calm down and call off the protest. They should lay down their arms so to speak.
"The President has been appealing for understanding and for the protest to be shelved. He assured that his government is addressing the situation of things in the country. He too is not happy about the current situation which originated from the collapsed system he inherited from the immediate-past governments. So, Mr President actually needs our collective sympathy. He is doing his best.
"Every decerning Nigerians today can testify that President Tinubu, apart from being a democrat and a renowned activist for good governance, has demonstrated an unprecedented resolve to tackle the existing problems in the country which he inherited, and he is ready to solve them. He has been taking actions that can guranteee the immediate alleviation of the sufferings of the Nigerian people.
"He has embarked on so many good programs in the past one year and three months of his coming to power. For instance, his government has been providing some food items to the citizens just to mediate the hunger situation in the country which is the major reason for the proposed nationwide protest. His administration has provided scholarship board, and has granted educational loans to students in the tertiary institution. This is the first time, if l remember, that any government in Nigeria, since history, is creating such programme to help indigent students get good education.
"Mr President is also stepping up on the security measures to ensure adequate protection for all citizens, especially the farmers and other category of food producers to make our farm lands safe. Mr President, has, just last week, approved the increased minimum wage for Nigerian workers to N70,000 (which is over 100%). He has finally granted autonomy to the Local Government which previous governments have been waffling over.
"In the energy sector, he is doing well. Despite the high cost in fuel purchase which is bitting hard on the purse of the citizens as a result of the subsidy withdrawal, Mr President has achieved a significant breakthrough by reducing fuel importation into the country by 51.4%. He signed the 2023 Electricity Bill into Law to end federal monopoly in the power sector. This will also empower states and the private sector to generate, distribute and transmit power.
"In a bid to give a boost to his economic recovery policy, Mr President's administration has initiated and begun payment of the ₦50,000 Presidential Conditional Grant Scheme to Nano (small) businesses. Not only that, his administration has ensured that every state in Nigeria had been getting a minimum of 45% more than they were getting under former President Muhammadu Buhari administration. For instance, Nasarawa state gets almost 100% more, and Anambra state receives 70% more, whereas their wage bill has not increased. This is an improvement from what obtains in the past.
"Mr President's government facilitated with Meta to enable Nigerian content creators to monetise their content on Facebook beginning in June 2024. His administration has also ended passport scarcity and eliminated the waiting time for passport application, renewal and collection. He shortened it to less than two weeks. In the aviation sector, his government facilitated a Nigerian carrier, Air Peace, to secure daily direct flights to London, which crashed ticket prices on that route.
"Therefore, we should be patient with the government and give Mr President reasonable time to address some of our national challenges. A nationwide protest at this time certainly will not be the best. It will dislocate a lot of things and the existing mass hunger and economic hardship will be worsened". NNL.
