Sinach
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, this morning has vowed that his government would not stand idly by and allow a few people with a clear political agenda to tear this nation apart.
Tinubu, in a nationwide broadcast on the ongoing national hunger protest, said as president of the nation, he must ensure public order.
“In line with my constitutional oath to protect the lives and property of every citizen, our government will not stand idly by and allow a few with a clear political agenda to tear this nation apart.
“Under the circumstances, I hereby enjoin protesters and the organisers to suspend any further protest and create room for dialogue, which I have always acceded to at the slightest opportunity. Nigeria requires all hands on deck and needs us all – regardless of age, party, tribe, religion or other divides, to work together in reshaping our destiny as a nation.
“To those who have taken undue advantage of this situation to threaten any section of this country, be warned: The law will catch up with you. There is no place for ethnic bigotry or such threats in the Nigeria we seek to build,” he said.
As he addressed the nation, Tinubu said he was doing it with a heavy heart and a sense of responsibility, aware of the turmoil and violent protests unleashed in some of the states.
“I am especially pained by the loss of lives in Borno, Jigawa, Kano, Kaduna and other states, the destruction of public facilities in some states, and the wanton looting of supermarkets and shops, contrary to the promise of protest organisers that the protest would be peaceful across the country.
“The destruction of properties sets us back as a nation, as scarce resources will be again used to restore them. I commiserate with the families and relations of those who have died in the protests. We must stop further bloodshed, violence and destruction,” he stated.
Tinubu lamented that for decades, the nation’s economy had remained anaemic and taken a dip because of many misalignments that had stunted its growth.
“Just over a year ago, our dear country, Nigeria, reached a point where we couldn’t afford to continue the use of temporary solutions to solve long-term problems for the sake of now and our unborn generations. I therefore took the painful yet necessary decision to remove fuel subsidies and abolish multiple foreign exchange systems which had constituted a noose around the economic jugular of our Nation and impeded our economic development and progress.
“These decisions I made were necessary if we must reverse the decades of economic mismanagement that didn’t serve us well. Yes, I agree, the buck stops on my table. But I can assure you that I am focused fully on delivering governance to the people – good governance for that matter,” he stated.
Tinubu told Nigerians, especially the youths that he had heard them loud and clear, understood the pain and frustration that drove these protests, saying “I want to assure you that our government is committed to listening and addressing the concerns of our citizens.
“But we must not let violence and destruction tear our nation apart. We must work together to build a brighter future, where every Nigerian can live with dignity and prosperity.”
He said the task before his government was a collective one, and that he was leading the charge as President as a lot of work had gone into stabilizing the economy, as he must stay focused on ensuring that the benefits reach every single Nigerian as promised.
“My administration is working very hard to improve and expand our national infrastructure and create more opportunities for our young people.
" I encourage more of our vibrant youth population to take advantage of this opportunity. We established the Consumer Credit Corporation with over N200billion to help Nigerians to acquire essential products without the need for immediate cash payments, making life easier for millions of households. This will consequently reduce corruption and eliminate cash and opaque transactions. This week, I ordered the release of an additional N50billion Naira each for NELFUND - the student loan, and Credit Corporation from the proceeds of crime recovered by the.
“Let nobody misinform and mis-educate you about your country or tell you that your government does not care about you. Although there have been many dashed hopes in the past, we are in a new era of Renewed Hope. We are working hard for you, and the results will soon be visible and concrete for everyone to see, feel and enjoy, he added.
