In anticipation of the upcoming nationwide protest focused on addressing hardship, poverty, and the high cost of living, the Minority Caucus of the House of Representatives has called on the Federal Government to engage in discussions with the protesters.
The protest, named ‘EndBadGovernance,’ has gained traction on social media and is set to take place across all states of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, in August. The organizers of the protest have remained anonymous.
Concerned about the potential economic impact, the lawmakers have urged President Bola Tinubu’s administration to address the protesters’ concerns.
This call was part of the Caucus’ resolution made during their end-of-session dinner in Abuja.
Following the dinner, the Chairman of the Caucus, Hon Kingsley Chinda, advised against the protest, particularly considering the current security issues in various parts of the country.
“We also appealed to the government to dialogue with the planned protesters and also look at some of the messages they are raising, the critical areas that need government intervention. Government should intervene and ensure that issues are resolved amicably,” he said.
“We are not going to encourage any protesters because in the past we have observed in most cases that even peaceful protests have been overtaken by hoodlums and with the insecurity situation in some parts of the country, you may not have control of the gathering of people. So some unscrupulous people may use the opportunity to create chaos.
“So we are discouraging any protest but we appeal to the government to dialogue and also look at critical areas that are necessary and address them amicably.”
Chinda also advised the government to adopt the carrot-and-stick method in addressing the problem of insecurity in the country.
“We acknowledge and observe the insecurity situation in the country and we call on the government to use carrot and stick by ensuring that let the result be seen. Let all the security chiefs do what is right to ensure that Nigerians are protected,” he said.
The Caucus also urged the government to establish measures that would enable citizens to become self-reliant as a strategy to address the country’s economic downturn.