President Bola Tinubu finally addressed over 200 million Nigerians on Sunday after three consecutive days of protests against economic hardship and high living costs that have reverberated across the country’s 36 states and the nation’s capital, Abuja.
“Fellow Nigerians, I have heard you loud and clear,” the President said during a broadcast on Sunday. “I understand the pain and frustration that drive these protests, and I want to assure you that our government is committed to listening and addressing the concerns of our citizens.
“But we must not let violence and destruction tear our nation apart. We must work together to build a brighter future, where every Nigerian can live with dignity and prosperity.
“I speak to you today with a heavy heart and a sense of responsibility, aware of the turmoil and violent protests unleashed in some of our states,” he added.
He urged the protesters to suspend the nationwide rallies and embrace dialogue.
Prices of food and basic commodities have gone through the roof in the last months, as Nigerians battle one of the country’s worst inflation rates and economic crises sparked by the government’s twin policies of petrol subsidy removal and unification of forex windows.
Propagated on social media, the #EndBadGovernance protests against economic hardship planned for 10 days entered its fourth day on Sunday as resilient youths pushed on, insisting that Tinubu meets their demands.
Some of the protesters’ demands include the restoration of petrol subsidies and the forex regime. They also want the government to address food shortages, unemployment, and the wasteful spending of those in power. Other demands are a reduction of the President’s cabinet and general cost of governance, immediate reforms of the electoral umpire INEC and anti-graft agency EFCC with renewed vigour in the fight against corrupt politicians.
No comments:
Post a Comment