Northern group withdraws from protest

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Northern Agenda for Good Governance & Allied Groups, one of the leading CSOs at the forefront of the ongoing nationwide protest against bad governance, has called out its members to withdraw from the protest with immediate effect.

Announcing the decision to withdraw its members from the protest, Comrade Hashim Bala Pali, Deputy National Coordinator, stated that hoodlums, irate youths, and disgruntled elements have hijacked the peaceful protest, turning it into a violent and looting spree.

Briefing journalists on Thursday at the NUJ Press Centre, he stressed that the decision to cancel the peaceful protest in Bauchi State became necessary in order to save the lives and properties of citizens.

He then declared that, “At this juncture, we deeply appreciate the support from our members and fellow citizens across all divides for the initially planned civil protest. We decided to call it off in the greater interest of peace and stability in Bauchi State and Nigeria as a whole, as we realised that it is better to send the message through this medium than to allow some unknown and perhaps irresponsible elements to hijack the whole thing with good intentions into something we all will not like.”

He added, “Even at that, however, we assure you all that the struggle has not ended. In fact., it has just started. Our country and its people must be free and enjoy the available divisions of democracy that will make life meaningful.”

Hashim Bala Pali stated that, “It is with a heavy heart and as a matter of responsibility that I, Malam Comrade Hashim B. Pali, the coordinator of the Northern Agenda for Good Governance and other allied groups, hereby address you this afternoon on a very important matter.”

“As you are aware, we are one of the leading civil society organisations that, along with other groups of like interest, have engaged relevant stakeholders and security agencies towards holding a nationwide peaceful protest over the hard living conditions of Nigerians. These protests are scheduled to take place from today, August 1, to August 10, 2024.”

He added that these protests, which are an exercise of our fundamental right to peaceful assembly guaranteed under the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, are aimed at drawing the attention of the government towards addressing the serious challenges that have made life unbearable to the common man.”

According to him, “For the avoidance of doubt and being citizens of Bauchi State and from the north-eastern part of Nigeria, the issues we feel very strongly about are as follows: Oil exploration in the Kolmani area. It is recalled that following the commissioning of oil exploration in the Kolmani area by former President Muhammadu Buhari, at which occasion President Bola Tinubu was present about two years ago, the site was abandoned and work stopped on this very important project of significant socio-economic and developmental interest to not only the North East but the entire country as a whole.”

“The issue is even more worrisome considering that during his campaign visit to the North East, President Tinubu promised to continue with work in this regard, but that is not happening. As such, we demand an explanation for what is happening and the resumption of work at the site without further delay,” he added.

He added, “The politics of subsidy removal and the imperative of policy reversal. In this regard, we observe that, like most Nigerians, the root cause of hunger, starvation, and other difficulties faced by our people is the removal of subsidy in PMS, as announced by the President in his inaugural address.”

According to him, since then, life has become meaningless to the majority of our citizens; hence, we join the popular call by compatriots for the return of the subsidy regime with immediate effect. The survival of our people is better than policy cosmetics and window dressing, which are not achieving any result So let’s go back to subsidy.”

Hashimu Bala Pali added a hike to the electricity tariff. We observe that it was insensitive of the federal government to introduce a high electricity tariff at a time when most Nigerians are struggling to have a square meal a day. The policy is, as such, without human face and not in the best interest of the country. It has to be reversed, as other alternatives to providing electricity at affordable prices should be explored rather than a sheer increase in the tariff.”

On addressing issues of hikes in fees and other matters in the education sector, he stressed that this issue, it is our position that the student loan fund introduced to cushion the effect of the hike in fees paid by students in tertiary institutions of learning across the country will not address the problems of access to quality education for the average Nigerian in both the short and long run.”

“As such, we suggest that economic policies that improve the purchasing capacity of average citizens, add value to our currency and what have you are preferred. This will make it possible for most citizens to afford tertiary education without much ado,” he added.

He continued the review of Forex and other macro- and micro economic policies of the government, saying,So far, most of the economic policies of the President Tinubu administration do not seem to be working, as their direct consequence is increase in the suffering of the citizens. To this end, we demand that rising rate inflation be checked while our land borders are reopened.”

“Filling the trust deficit and engaging in constant interaction with citizens. We observe that most of our leaders are taking the people for granted. This is why it is only during national emergencies like this time that some leaders remember to engage citizens in what the government is doing about these problems,” he added.

The Deputy National Coordinator added, It shouldn’t be so. for example, we learned that none of our Ministers in President Tinubu’s cabinet and other appointees have returned home to discuss the issues and the way forward with the people. Equally, among our representatives in the National Assembly, only a handful are here at this crucial time.”

“As the voice of the electorate, we will no longer tolerate this kind of situation. Leaders at all levels must maintain regular touch with the people for trust, accountability, and development sake,” he stressed.

“Pending our next notice or circular, we enjoin fellow citizens to return home, resume their normal legitimate activities and continue to work with us in lawful ways until the issues addressed in this conference are properly sorted. Let me repeat that the struggle has just started and God bless you all,” he concluded

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