The Minister of Power, Chief Adebayo Adelabu, has cautioned Nigerians, particularly the youths to beware of sponsors of protest who are bent to disrupt the peace being enjoyed by the citizens.
He appealed to Nigerians to exercise patience with the administration of President Bola Tinubu and support the reform the President is introducing to make life easier for them.
Speaking in Ibadan during a stakeholders engagement with the Youth on planned protest which is in collaboration with the office of the Special Assistant to the President on Monitoring and Delivering of Youth Initiatives, the Minister, who was represented by Hon. Bolaji Afeez said right to protest is enshrined in Nigerian constitution but youths must be cautious of faceless and sponsored protest to avoid violence that is capable of moving the country backwards.
He noted that he was aware of some individuals with ulterior motives in the diaspora sponsoring the protest to cause chaos and anarchy in the country for political reasons.
Adelabu urged the youths that there are alternatives available to them to showed their grievances, not just by protest.
In her remarks, the Special Assistant to President Bola Tinubu on Monitoring and Delivering Youth Initiatives, Miss Titilope Gbadamosi, said that youths need to take advantage of job opportunities the present administration is rolling out for their benefits in order to curb youthful restiveness.
She noted that if they apply for the job opportunities, they can be among the beneficiaries.
Gbadamosi added that until youths take advantage of the job initiatives provided by the current administration of President Bola Tinubu, they cannot say that the government has not been doing anything for them.
She urged young people in the state to engage with government processes, be responsible citizens, and establish constructive channels of communication with the government.
Gbadamosi said government is open to dialogue instead of protest and urged them not to allow faceless and unrecognized groups to use them for political motives.
She called on the youths to engage with and register for the various opportunities rolled out by the Federal government to escape joblessness.
In his remarks, the Oyo State All Progressives Congress Youth Leader, Prince John Aremu, said that Nigerians need to give the administration of President Bola Tinubu more time to deliver on its promises.
He appealed to Nigerian youths to utilize the student loan and Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) initiatives introduced by the present administration to escape the shackles of joblessness.
Also, Arewa Youth leader across the 33 local governments of Oyo state, Yasir Ibrahim, who spoke on behalf of other groups present reiterated that there are political motives behind the planned protest to cause chaos and urged the youths to stay away from the protest.
He lauded the giant stride of President Tinubu and the power Minister in alleviating suffering of Nigerians.
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