The Northern Elders Forum (NEF) has asked President Bola Tinubu to hasten its palliatives to cushion the effects of the petrol subsidy removal, stating that the citizens are suffering.
NEF also asked the government to explain to the citizens why they are suffering and why they find it difficult to feed their families.
This is contained in a statement signed by the Director, Publicity and Advocacy of NEF, Dr Hakeem Baba-Ahmed.
NEF said the first few weeks of President Tinubu will be recorded by history as the act of leadership that made bad situations considerably worse and fails to explain why.
The Elders said the most important at this stage is to communicate with Nigerians in a manner that makes them understand why it has become necessary that they should go through major pains, including whether they are inevitable or avoidable.
“The citizen is entitled to know why it is now impossible for millions of families to feed, why his child may soon be out of school, and why his life has no timeline for recovery.
“Nigerians want to know how we got here, who and what was responsible for the prices we are paying for their actions, and what the administration plans to do to bring the past to book.
“Nigerians know that the virtual civil war going on between anti-corruption and security agencies is related to attempts to bury the past or create its seamless entry into more of our lives.
“The administration must take a firm grip over efforts to interrogate the past and make it account for its abuse of our trust and our commonwealth.
“Nigerians will be more amenable to tolerating hardship if they see a genuine effort by the administration not to draw boundaries around what can be asked of those who were responsible for our current state,” the statement said.
NEF, therefore, called on the government to hasten actions that will cushion the prevailing hardship the citizens are passing through.
“Next, the administration must hasten to provide relief to millions of Nigerians who are facing imminent starvation and total loss of any means to earn an honest living.
“Time and informed targeting with a good chance of massive impact are of the essence here.
“It is important to mention here that amounts being handed over to State Governors to design palliatives are unlikely to make the type of impact that should keep hungry and desperate populations patiently waiting.
“The administration must, at all costs, avoid considering its vision and plans of our future as a country as a done deal. A population convinced that its fate has been designed and sealed by an all-knowing leadership is very difficult to govern.
“We advise this administration to cultivate the values of respect for the citizen, humility of the leader, and a willingness to build flexibility into policies as great virtues that should serve it and the country well.
“We advise fellow citizens to be patient with the administration, and, at all cost, avoid illegal actions that will merely make our lives poorer and more insecure,” the statement added.
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