Shelve planned hardship protest, Tinubu appeals to Nigerians

President Bola Tinubu has appealed to Nigerians to shelve a planned ‘EndBadGovernance’ protest slated for next month.

Information Minister Mohammed Idris, who briefed selected State House correspondents after a meeting with the President on Tuesday, said Tinubu urged the protest organisers to shelve the plan and await the President’s response to their complaints.

“The issue of the planned protest, Mr President does not see any need for that. He’s asked them to shelve that plan. He’s asked them to await the government’s response to all their pleas,” the minister said.

The protest against economic hardship, which is gaining traction on social media, has been scheduled to be held across all states of the Federation as well as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, in August. The organisers of the protest have been faceless.

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 and economic crisis sparked by the government’s twin policies of petrol subsidy removal and unification of forex windows.

The Federal Government, through the National Orientation Agency (NOA), and the Nigeria Police Force as well as the House of Representatives have warned against the planned demonstration.

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and embattled Senator Ali Ndume asked the President to address the demands of the displeased persons, who are mostly youths.

Meanwhile, presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga on Saturday warned that the planned protest, if staged, could degenerate into the destruction of assets that trailed the EndSARS protest against police brutality and extrajudicial killings in October 2020.