From Scholastica Hir Makurdi
Less than 48 hours to the planned nationwide protest, kinsmen of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, (SGF) Sen. George Akume, have appealed to Nigerians to exercise a little more patience with the government of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and shelve their plans.
The kinsmen who spoke under the auspices of Jemgbagh Development Association, (JEMDA), the group unanimously took the decision to lead the Jemgbagh geo-political axis of Benue state to back out of the proposed protest as well as an appeal to the rest of the Nigerian citizenry to consider giving the President a little more time to fix things.
In a statement signed by the President of the Jemgbagh Development Association, Dr Yandev Amaabai, JEMDA acknowledged the hardship currently bedeviling the country like the toll of the removal of oil subsidy on the people, skyrocketed cost of living, inflation at its peak among others.
They however cautioned that there is still room for discussion and other options could still be explored rather than mass protests which could be hijacked by “fifth columnists” to cause mayhem.
Amaabai pointed out that the position of the Jemgbagh people tallies with that of the Benue state government which has also called on the people of Benue not to join in the protests due to commence on August 1, 2024.
Recall that the Benue state Governor, Rev Fr Hyacinth Alia, in a statement in Makurdi on Sunday urged Nigerians not to embark on protests.
He had appealed on unions, groups and individuals intending to join the planned August 1st protest across the country, to “shelve the idea, bring forth their demands and give the government a chance to look into them”.
JEMDA president said the protests was a bit too hasty and therefore suspicious for an administration that was only one year in office
He urged the sponsors of the proposed protests not to sway public sentiments away from the positive impact of the Tinubu-led Federal Government like the local government autonomy, student loan and other people oriented policies.
They said “We have no doubts in our minds given the crop of experienced human capital in the current administration manning sensitive positions such as our own Senator George Akume, Secretary to the Government of The Federation and leader of the good people of Jemgbagh and entire north-central Nigeria. We strongly believe that they will certainly bring succour to the common man in no distant time.”