A citizen-led movement, FixPolitics has urged President Bola Tinubu to go back to the drawing board to initiate new people-centred policies capable of ameliorating the pain and anger across Nigeria.
The advice came on the heels of the commencement of the nationwide hunger protest tagged ##EndBadGovernanceInNigeria
In a statement on Thursday entitled “August 1, 2024 Citizens Peaceful Protest: Time to Change Course,” the group indicated that governing Nigeria is no longer business as usual, as citizens now demand accountability from leaders.
In the statement signed by the Executive Director, FixPolitics Africa, Anthony Ubani, the group faulted government’s reactionary and ill-advised actions to give the protest and the protesters themselves a bad name.
Ubani stated that the Federal Government’s reactions to the #EndBadGovernmentinNigeria peaceful protest showed a disconnect with the reality and the hardship people are going through.
President of Nigeria, Bola Tinubu
He said: “Even worse than the disconnection is the attempt to demonise the valid demands of the hungry populace and brand it as the work of opposition parties.
“Resorting to frenzied and alarmist actions including looking for ways to demonise and discredit the protest, and searching for imaginary sponsors of the protests have only bolstered the courage of the people who fear the loss of their voices and dignity in an oligarchy posing as a democracy.
“Sponsoring individuals, groups, traditional rulers and religious leaders to speak strongly against the protests; getting the Lagos traditional institution to announce a ‘curious Oro’ festival coinciding with the period of the protests; the Attorney General of the Federation going to a ‘Captured Judiciary’ to secure an order of court restricting the protest in Lagos to Gani Fawehinmi Freedom Park in Ojota and the Peace Park in Ketu; making doomsday scenario references to Venezuela; promising to slash salaries of the national representatives by half for six months, allowing thugs to threaten citizens not to come out for any protest and sundry other clandestine actions underscore a complete lack sensitivity and understanding of the nation’s predicament and the people’s disaffection.”
Noting that the “Office of the Citizen” is the highest in a democracy, Ubani stressed that “To make it impossible for citizens to express themselves, or criminalise their right to free assembly in peaceful protest is an unacceptable descent into dictatorship.”
He insisted that peaceful protests are a constitutionally protected right of citizens and the rational response from a democratic and well-meaning government would have been a call for national dialogue, and more importantly, a commitment to definite actions to be implemented in the next few weeks.
He continued: “It is not too late for the Tinubu administration to allow citizens to freely express their disagreement with government policies and programs through peaceful protests.
Crowd of #EndBadGovernanceInNigeria protesters in Abuja on Thursday.
“The determination of citizens to execute the protests peacefully from August 1 to August 10, 2024, reflects the failure of the government’s underhanded and patronizing tactics to placate the people. It is now the responsibility of the government to ensure the security of the protesters, stop criminal elements from hijacking the protest, and importantly, create opportunities to listen to the citizens.
“To act otherwise will be tragic. Painful memories of #EndSars still linger. The world is watching and citizens are no longer docile. The mistakes of the past should not be repeated, especially in light of ongoing agitations in other African countries. We, therefore, make bold to state in precise terms that the authoritarian and intolerant reflex that has characterized the government’s statements and actions in the build-up to the protest has no place in a democratic country.”
According to the group, these protests planned from August 1, 2024, provide the impetus and the opportunity for the government to rethink its actions of the past 14 months and make the needed changes.
FixPolitics maintained that the pain, suffering and hardship in Nigeria are real and cannot be politicised.
“The government should eat the humble pie and urgently go back to the drawing board to initiate new people-centred policies to ameliorate the pain and anger across Nigeria,” Ubani stated.
