By Ayodele Oni

A former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Babachir Lawal has accused President Bola Tinubu of filling his cabinet with technocrats from Lagos who lack knowledge of how Nigeria works.

He equally advised the President to immediately address the nation, outlining immediate and long-term measures out of the current economic quagmire, as one of the measures to nip the planned nationwide protests against his administration.

Lawal, in a statement on Tuesday, stated that the president should reshuffle the cabinet to include “a mix of technocrats and politicians.”

Calling for a mix of technocrats and politicians in the Cabinet, Lawal pointed out that politicians are more adept at communicating with the people and have more stake in the successes or failures of a government.

“These Lagos technocrats who now fill the MDAs lack knowledge of the workings of Nigeria. Majority of them are rude, inaccessible, clannish.”

The former SGF also told the President to purposefully address the excessive nepotism in this Government, noting that “the South West dominates this Government excessively and obnoxiously.’

He added that the current Senate leadership operates a dictatorship in which no dissent is tolerated.

“This is insidiously building an imperceptible revolt that might soon explode. For example, Senator Ndume was sincerely speaking truth to power when he said the president is unreachable.

“A slavish legislature is neither good for your long-term interests or that of the country at large.

“People are taking exceptions to these ways of handling contrary opinions in the polity.

“In the North, we have taken great exception to how you or people acting on your behalf maltreated, Nasiru, Ningi, Ndume and lately Dangote.

“Your very close associates are also busy meddling in the affairs of Senior traditional institutions in the North West, which we believe has the intended purpose of dismembering Northern political and social harmony and hegemony.

“In the South East, your fixation on Peter Obi and the unfair treatment of Igbo businesses in Lagos is unsettling.

“There is also no denying the fact that political crises in Rivers State would have been long settled had the President shown an inclination to resolve them.

“It is instructive that no individual or institution in the South West has suffered such unjust treatment.

“These kinds of situations are some of the triggers of the current discontents across the nation because they generate dispersed pockets of frustration and malcontents that eventually aggregate into a large whole resulting in bad blood against the person of the president and the government.”

He also declared that the military has blatantly ignored the fact that internal security is wholly the constitutional responsibility of the Nigerian Police Force, wondering why they have been warning against the planned protests.

By Suleiman Anyalewechi

“While our grievances are undoubtedly valid and our demand for effective governance is both justifiable and urgent ,we must contemplate whether prolonged protests alone will lead us to the enduring solutions we desperately seek”

The above were  the fatherly admonitions of the Aare Musulumi of Yoruba in Kano, Dr Surajudeen Adewuyi Muhammad, to the organizers of the August 1 nationwide protest on Tuesday July 30 2024.

In a statement he personally signed, the Aare urged the country’s youths to reconsider their strategy in the light of the looming danger that the planned protest may precipitate.

According to him, Nigeria stands at a critical juncture as the countdown begins towards the nationwide protests.

He noted that there is a swell of frustration among youths, echoing from every corner of the nation, all bearing testimony to their profound dissatisfaction with the current state of governance under President Bola Tinubu’s administration.

“This discontent is further compounded by a relentless economic downturn that has inflicted severe hardship on ordinary Nigerians, driving up the cost of living to unprecedented levels.

“However, while our grievances are undoubtedly valid, and demand for effective governance is both justifiable and urgent, we must contemplate whether prolonged protests alone will lead us to the enduring solutions we desperately seek,” Dr Muhammad stated.

He further emphasized that protests, though an undeniable reflection of public discontent and powerful call for a change, carry inherent risks capable of heightening tensions to even a perilous extremes.

“History bears witness to instances across Africa, where well-intentioned protests, initially peaceful in nature, tragically descended into chaos .

From Egypt’s Tahir Square to recent upheavals in the Sudan, these movements, though born out of noble intentions left in their tails monumental loss of lives and properties.

“Rather than solely relying on protests, we should embrace a strategy of constructive engagement. It is crucial we explore alternative channels towards the quest for substantive and sustainable change”, he pleaded.

The Aare Musulumi of Yoruba in Kano, also, tasked President Tinubu to take all necessary, but legitimate actions  to address the prevailing excruciating economic challenges facing the country.

He noted that “leaders must ensure that the voices of the people, and their aspirations must be the defining templates for governance at all levels in Nigeria”.

Dr Muhammad appealed to the people to give the Government more time to address their concerns,. He warned that rather than solving the problem, protest will aggravate the situation if hijacked by hoodlums.

The Aare insisted that fostering constructive  dialogue and proactive engagement will assist the country to navigate its present challenges.

By Akinwale Kasali

Mike Okiro, a former Inspector General of Police, has urged the organizers of the planned Nationwide Protest commencing on August 1 to shelve the idea.

Okiro, also, a former Chairman of the Police Service Commission, said it is wise and resonable for the organizers to engage the  Federal Government in a dialogue, and navigate the way forward in addressing the economic downturn of the nation which has had  adverse effect on the masses.

Okiro, who was, also, a former  Chairman of the  Police Service Commission, PSC, made this call during

an interview with the News Agency og Nigeria, NAN, on Tuesday in Abuja. He stressed that it was constitutional for  Nigerians to protest against bad governance and leadership, but engaging in a dialogue was the best way to go.

He added that there is no doubt that Nigerians were passing through some challenges but noted that  it is easier to destroy but difficult to rebuild.

“The situation we are in now did not come overnight; it came over a period of time. Can we rebuild in one year what has been destroyed over time?

“The problem with protest is that, no matter how the organisers will go about it, there is bound to be loss of lives, destruction of properties, and hardship.

“My advice to Nigerians, as much as they have the right to protest, is that they should allow the government some time to ameliorate the hardship.

“What we ought to do is to allow the government put structures in place to alleviate the suffering of the masses. Government should come up with policies that will help develop the country,” he said.

He said that the current government inherited some challenges and is working towards solving them.

He said that President Bola Tinubu is an achiever, adding that if given the time, he can turn things around.

“There is a saying that nothing good comes easy. The current government inherited some challenges and needed to take some harsh decisions to solve them.

“Let’s give the government some time to ease this suffering that Nigerians are going through. The protest, if started, may end in violence; it may be hijacked by hoodlums.

“Rather than lead to any positive outcome, the protest may aggravate the living conditions of the people,“ he said.

Okiro said that giving palliative measures to the people was not the solution to the economic challenges in the country.

He urged the government to invest more in the productive sector in order to create employment opportunities for the youth and earn foreign exchange for the country.

He advised the Federal Government to encourage local rice farmers to boost production rather than allow importation of the product.

He said that the continued importation of rice, beans, and wheat would stifle the country`s weak economy.

The Federal Government recently announced plans for duty-free importation of selected food commodities like rice, maize, and wheat.

The initiative aims to increase food supply and replenish the government`s strategic grain reserve.

By Akinwale Kasali

Uche Secondus, a former National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has told President Bola Tinubu to allow Nigerians express their feelings about his government, as they have the right to exercise their rights.

Secondus stated that the President lacks the moral authority to stop the planned #EndBadGovernance in Nigeria protest because he is the biggest beneficiary of protests.

In a statement signed by his Special Adviser (Media), Ike Abonyi, in Abuja, on Tuesday, Secondus stated that he recalled that Tinubu, while in opposition, was a notable arrowhead in anti-government protests and wondered why he should be selfish on it this time.

He noted that citizens have a civic duty to save our dear country from collapse in the face of an unprecedented economic crisis and insecurity occasioned by perennial bad governance by all tiers of successive governments.

He further argued that the state of anomie in which we find ourselves today has incrementally worsened because the citizens failed in their duty to hold governments at all levels to account.

Secondus asserted that this has been the case because political leaders often use partisan, ethnic, and religious sentiments to either discourage protests when they are in government or encourage them when they are in opposition.

According to the former PDP helmsman, the planned #EndBadGovernanceProtest “is a non-partisan pan-Nigerian and altruistic engagement of the citizens aimed at addressing the malaise in our country.

“This protest should not be discouraged. Protests remain the most potent democratic platform through which the consciousness of nations can be aroused, and indeed, the consciousness of the leadership elite can be nudged and compelled to act rightly in the interest of citizens”.

He contended that the injunction in the Holy Bible, which says, “You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” applies to our situation as Nigerians.

“In essence, this is not the time to sweep issues under the carpet; it is the time to speak truth to power and awaken our collective conscience so that we can work together to build a better society.

He, therefore, called on all protesters to be organised and peaceful and shun all acts of violence. Also, governments at all levels and security agencies should provide the necessary security environment to ensure peace and order by international law and the Nigerian Constitution.