Stakeholders Outline Priorities For FG As Protesters Regroup

…Call For Policy Review, Roll-Out Of Hunger Eradication Measures

…Canvass Elimination Of Lavish Lifestyle By Public Servants, Leakages

After the respite oc­casioned by a heavy presence of security operatives in Abu­ja, the #EndBadGovernance protest resumed in Abuja on Saturday.

The protesters, who gath­ered at Apo Roundabout in the FCT as early as 7am, carried out their demonstration before the police and other security personnel could be drafted to the area.

The #EndBadGovernance protest, which started on Thurs­day, August 1, is expected to end today, Saturday with a

A one million-man march across the country was planned to crown the 10-day protest against growing angst in the country.

The protest has been marked by violence, destruction and loss of life in some states of the federation.

Appeals by leaders and oth­er stakeholders to youths in the country to end the unsettling protest couldn’t assuage the anger of the youths, and even President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s speech in which he pleaded for an end to the protest sparked further acts of violence by youths who argued that the de­mands presented to the govern­ment had not been addressed.

Efforts, however, to occupy the Eagle Square, the melting pot of Abuja by the protesters, met a serious huddle in the past few day, as security agencies blocked all entries to the area, a development that caused serious traffic issue in Abuja which, by extension, stopped civil servants from going to work at the federal secretariat and other areas.

Even the stadium, which was originally given to the protesters to use, has been oc­cupied by security agents. The protesters were not allowed to converge and even journalists were not allowed to cover the protest, as police and others dispersed them anytime they tried to converge.

The protesters, who took to the streets in the early hours of Saturday, displaying vari­ous placards, were chanting, “we are hungry.”

The organizers planned to conduct a one-million-man protest across all 36 states and the nation’s capital to signify the grand finale of the protest against high cost of living.

Speaking on the matter with Sunday Independent in Lagos, Komolafe, a veteran activist and trade union leader, expressed disappointment over the refus­al of the government to address the demands made by the pro­testers.

He said: “We expect the government to show empathy over the killings we had on the course of protests, ensuring sanctions against overzealous security agents and compen­sation to the families of those killed.

“We expect a drastic and no­ticeable decrease in the number of ministers, an appreciable cut in the bogus remuneration of government officials, including lawmakers.

“More fundamentally, the economic policies of the gov­ernment need urgent revision, especially the rot in the oil and gas sector; the tragedy of de­pendence on imports of refined petroleum products, while local refineries remain comatose.

“The dance of shame over the functioning of Dangote refinery should be urgently addressed.

“Of course, I must empha­sise that it is time for govern­ment to look at the extant de­mands of those working in the informal economy; the need for universal health coverage for vulnerable Nigerians especial­ly, old people, young children, pregnant women and the dis­abled, contributory pension for informal sector workers as a ba­sic minimum to defeat poverty and desperation in the long run.

“Unfortunately, the presi­dent’s address is a rehash of the same tokenistic approach that has failed in the last 24 years.”

Bishop Herbert Ekechukwu, a cleric and economist, stated: “The nationwide #Endbad­Governance protest should be a lesson for all.

“When people are pushed to the wall, you cannot estimate the limit of what they can do. The protest is not about hatred of President Tinubu or a tribal, religious or sectional bias.

“It is simply that we Nige­rians are tired of corruption, nepotism, irresponsibility and recklessness in government. Simply put, we want good gov­ernance.

“Therefore, I proffer that the following should be the response of the government at federal, state and local governments.

“The Federal Government should identify areas of imme­diate attention to the demand of protesters. There should be a paradigm shift in areas of pol­icy reforms and implications.

“The Federal Government should, as a matter of urgency, initiate a national dialogue to address the raised issues.

“There should be a Federal Government’s palliative, espe­cially in areas that had violent protests.

“The state government, on the other hand, should make efforts on community reconcil­iation, healing wounds afflicted during the protest.

“States should operate local reforms to address specific state level grievances.

“States should make provi­sions for the resuscitation of micro and small businesses so that the poor should breathe.

“There is a need for gover­nors to make state broadcasts to soften the minds of citizens.

“At the local government lev­el, there should be focus on com­munity healing and rebuilding of trust.

“There should be support for local residents affected by the protest.

“Local leaders should be harmonised to address raised issues from the protest concern­ing the communities.

“Across all levels of govern­ment, we are to enter a new era of transparency, accountability and inclusiveness in decision making.”

Dr Kalu Ofon Emmanuel, a human rights promoter, said the Tinubu’s administration, if it still has a listening ear, can grant the request of the protest­ers.

Ambassador Emmanuel, Lagos State Chapter President, lnternational Human Rights Protection Service, Naples, Flor­ida, USA, said: “The protesters want hunger to be eradicated and extinguished.

“There is no justifiable rea­son that the country should be in gross lack of food, which should be the commonest af­fordable thing.

“They, the protesters, want job creation and a country where everyone should be treated equally. The govern­ment should invest in people, capacity building, and human development.

“Government should rise up to its responsibilities by putting human beings into consider­ation, as top priority in gover­nance.

“When there are no people to govern, governance becomes useless. Government with rul­ership is more catastrophic than a government with lead­ership ability, which the present administration lacks.

“The protesters want a coun­try we all can call our own, with equal opportunities and afford­ability of food and access to life amenities.”
(Independent)