Implement policies that will stimulate economic growth, Afenifere tasks Tinubu

Pan-Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere, has expressed strong disappointment and concern over what it termed “the steady destructuring of our federation’s foundations,” manifesting in insecurity, economic hardship, and suppressed freedoms, calling on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to show more than lips service by implementing policies that stimulate economic growth, create jobs, and reduce poverty, thereby improving the quality of life for all Nigerians.

Afenifere made the call on Wednesday in a statement, jointly signed by its Leader, HRH Oba Oladipo Olaitan and spokesperson, Prince Justice Faloye, copy of which was made available to newsmen, sadly noting that President Tinubu, rather than restructuring towards a prosperous egalitarian federation, was destructuring the country with his autocratic attack on the fundamental pillars of democratic federalism.

This was just as the pan- Yoruba group warned that with the blatant usurpation of the federating units, the judiciary and the legislative arm, spiralling insecurity, and destruction of the nation’s economic fabric, the abuse of basic rights of freedom of speech and association, having to do with the recent banning of “Tell Your Papa” song by Eedris Abdulkareem, among others, one “can’t but wonder how much more can the federation take before imploding, and the wheels come off our manifest destiny.”

According to Afenifere, the ban, which it described as autocratic, “signals a leadership tendency that is disconnected from citizens’ realities, essentially inclined to maintaining autocratic control than fostering a milieu of freedom and creativity,” saying that the move, which destructs the principles of democracy, is evidence of the increasing disregard for dissenting voices in Nigeria, “potentially silencing artists and stifling creativity and the progress we need to move forward as a society.”

On economy, the socio- political group said its structure and viability were being shattered by the ultra liberal policies of currency floating and fuel subsidy removal, manifesting in rising inflation, unemployment, and increasingly eroding purchasing powers, sadly noting that this had continued to take their toll, as Nigerians struggled to make ends meet.

“The promise of economic prosperity and growth remains unfulfilled, marooning the majority of hapless citizens in a state of economic hardship. In the face of these unprecedentedly insufferable deprivation and traumatic experiences, it is sad that rather than offer succour, the government of the day is only further suffocating the democratic space and dismantling the channels for cathartic expressions-the only mechanisms available for common people as viable coping and resilience means.

“As Nigerians continue to grapple with worsening quality of life, and struggling under the weight of poverty imposed by dissociative policies, dreadful human tragedies have increasingly become the signature of our national life,” the group lamented.

Speaking further, Afenifere strongly condemned the recent attacks by bandits and Fulani herdsmen in Ondo, Benue, Edo, and Nasarawa states, occasioning widespread killings, saying that the renewed unrestrained violence “highlight the need for the government to address the root cause of these conflicts-open grazing- and outrightly ban it, while enforcing and promoting the more sustainable and safe alternative- ranching.”

Afenifere, therefore, restated its call for the establishment of State Police to complement existing internal security architecture to enable Nigerians live without fear of violence or attack.

The group, while making the call, posited that politics aside, all management principles and best practices pointed to the fact that a single police hierarchy was not sufficient to provide the security required by a nation of Nigeria’s size and diversity.

“Specifically, we call on the government to deploy effective security strategies to protect lives and property, ensuring Nigerians can live without fear of violence or attack. We, again, call for the establishment of state police to complement existing internal security architecture.

“Politics aside, all management principles and best practices inform us that a single police hierarchy is not sufficient to provide the security required by a nation of our size and diversity. Yet due to personal political consideration, the Tinubu government has refused to create State Police as killings and kidnapping rise, threatening our national cohesiveness.

“Based on the foregoing, Afenifere stands in solidarity with all Nigerians suffering under the weight of insecurity, economic hardship, and suppressed freedoms.

“We call on the government of Nigeria to show more than lips service to the envisioning and actualisation of pragmatic plans that are geared towards collective safety, equitable development, and freedom for all.

“The government of the day is enjoined to implement policies that stimulate economic growth, create jobs, and reduce poverty, thereby improving the quality of life for all Nigerians. Moreover, there is the need to safeguard the rights to free speech, assembly, and creativity, and essentially recognizing them as critical anchors of good governance and democracy.”