July 28, (THEWILL) – For a better part of last week, it looked like the organisers of the end bad government protest scheduled for August 1 to 10, 2024, were winning the mind games until Thursday and Friday when the tide began to turn, courtesy of the ongoing lobbying and mobilisation of relevant stakeholders across the country by the Federal Government.
Following a meeting with state governors, traditional rulers, religious leaders and youth groups, President Bola Tinubu has been able to set the pace in dousing tensions generated by the fear of the upcoming protests. A fortnight ago, members of the House of Representative offered to slash their monthly salaries by 50 per cent for six months as a direct response to the demand of the protesters for good governance, amid the cost of living crisis following the sudden removal of subsidy on petrol and floating of the Naira. President Tinubu contends that Nigeria is working under his administration.
Speaking with traditional rulers led by the Sultan of Sokoto, Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar III and the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, at a meeting held at the Presidential Villa and attended by the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu; the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Wale Edun, the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Mr Abubakar Atiku Bagudu, and the GCEO of NNPCL, Mele Kyari, the President, said, “Yes, I indeed asked for this job and I approached some of you to support me. So, I have no excuse not to do the job with sincerity, purpose and honesty. I have committed myself to it diligently and I will never look backwards.” He said he had been busy working “to take Nigeria forward and bring government nearer to the people through programmes, such as activation of the student loan programme, the consumer credit scheme and the affirmation of fiscal autonomy for local government councils. Others are the reactivation of the Bank of Agriculture to fund agriculture and the construction of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Road to create infrastructure along the route to develop wind energy and generate power and we can expand our irrigation network.
Security, he said, is getting better. President Tinubu urged the royal fathers to reach out to citizens in the genuine intentions of the government to deliver on its promises of Renewed Hope.
By Friday, July 26, 2024, many organisations started pulling out of the planned protest. Foremost among them is the Arewa Integrity Group for Good Governance in the North-Central geo-political zone said to number 60,000 announced that it had pulled out of the planned protest on August 1.
In a statement made available to journalists in Lafia, the Nasarawa State capital, on Friday, the group’s leader, Joseph Maiwada, told journalists in Lafia, the Nasarawa State capital, that the group, “decided to withdraw from the protest to give the government a chance to address the citizens’ needs and sustain the existing peace in the region and country.”
An Enugu Innovative Youth group also announced that it would not participate. The publicity secretary, Jude Aniagu stated that though there was enough justification for the proposed nationwide hunger protest scheduled for August 1–10, 2024, they urge their peers to reconsider participating in the protest.
Also, the luxury bus transport owners and operators, whose buses ply various routes across Nigeria, have dissociated themselves from the ‘Days of Rage’ nationwide protests planned to commence on Thursday, August 1, 2024.
The Association of Luxury Bus Owners of Nigeria (ALBON), described the planned protests as an “ill wind that will blow nobody any good.”
Its President, Mr Nonso Ubajaka, said experience had shown that such protests were usually infiltrated by hoodlums, who use the opportunity to unleash violence.
According to Ubajiaka, members reasoned that if held, the protests could lead to loss of lives and wanton destruction of properties.
He said the resolution of the members of his association had been conveyed to the Minister of Transportation, Senator Said Ahmed Alkali, to whom they made it clear that they would not be a part of the planned protests.
The association acknowledged the economic hardship in the country, with Nigerians feeling the impact of rising food prices and high cost of living.
He however called on the government to dialogue with the protesters ahead of time to avoid unplanned problems that may arise.
He said his members could not afford to risk making their buses the targets of violent protests and called on ALBON members to further disassociate themselves and also disregard the planned action, which he continually referred to as a product of “social media” resolve.
Yet the organisers are not backing down. In response to the warning issued by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, who warned organisers to steer clear of Abuja, the presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC) in the 2023 general election, Omoyele Sowore, has said that the planned nationwide protests, tagged #EndBadGovernance, have gained traction and are scheduled to take place from August 1 to 10, 2024, starting from Abuja.
Sowore, in a post on his X handle on Friday, said the proposed nationwide protests will start in Abuja. He said, “It is starting from Abuja!”
Also, former Minister of Sports under ex-President Muhammadu Buhari, Solomon Dalung has thrown his support behind the protest. He expressed his frustration over the escalating hardship, insecurity, and kidnappings, as well as the perceived lack of effective intervention by the federal government. He said, “hunger and hardship have compelled Nigerians to call for a massive protest.” He urged the Federal Government to slash fuel prices to N100 per litre.
He called on all Nigerians to join the peaceful protest, emphasising that no property would be destroyed. “We will occupy streets to send a message to this blind administration,” he stressed.
Similarly, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN, Ebun Adegboruwa, writing as solicitor to the Take It Back Movement, notified the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) and the Director of the Department of State Services (DSS) that the planned rallies would commence from August 1 to 10, 2024, or any time thereafter.
He said the rallies would be held at the Eagle Square in Abuja and other public spaces in the capital cities of the 36 states and the headquarters of the 774 local government councils.
Adegboruwa, while reiterating the role of the security agencies during such rallies and protests, urged the leadership of the security agencies to make available the details of any of their officers or teams that will be assigned to cover the said meetings/rallies/processions to harmonise plans and strategies for the same.
In the same vein, the Lagos Chapter of the Active Citizens Group Nigeria has notified the state Commissioner of Police of their intention to participate in the planned nationwide protest, from August 1 to 10, 2024.
The group’s state coordinator, Adamma Ukpabi, notified the authorities of the peaceful protest plans in a letter, citing rights to free speech and assembly.
He said the protest is scheduled to take place on two designated routes: mainland route, starting at NAHCO Bus Stop and ending at International Airport, Ikeja, and island route, starting at Marwa Bus Stop, Lekki Phase 1, and ending at Eti-Osa Local Government.
The letter is titled “Subject: Notification of Peaceful Protest and Request for Security Support.”
A human rights lawyer, Inibehe Effiong dismissed the statement by the military that it had uncovered plots by unscrupulous elements to hijack the protest and turn it into a violent one by attacking innocent Nigerians and their businesses.
Effiong, in a post on his X handle on Thursday, said soldiers should stay in their barracks and stay out of politics.
He said: “The Nigerian military has no business issuing such a statement in a civil matter. Nobody will be intimidated by your threats. Soldiers should stay in their barracks and stay out of politics.”
Calling for cooperation with the police to ensure the protest is conducted peacefully, the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun on Friday, said, “We acknowledge the constitutional right of Nigerian citizens to peaceful assembly and protest. However, in the interest of public safety and order, we urge all groups planning to protest to provide necessary details to the Commissioner of Police in the state where the protest is intended to take place.”
Anthony Awunor, is a business correspondent who holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Linguistics (UNILAG). He is also an alumnus of the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology (NCAT), Zaria Kaduna State. He lives in Lagos.
