Tinubu Passionate Plea to Protesters: The economy is recovering; Please, don’t shut out its oxygen

By Damola Emmanuel

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, on Sunday, pleaded with the organisers of the #ENDBADGOVERNANCE nationwide protests to sheathe their sword and end the demonstrations.

In a nationwide broadcast, the President said that his administration had done a lot to return the country to winning ways after years of profligacy and waste. And that very soon, Nigerians would begin to see and enjoy the dividends of those concerted efforts to make Nigeria great.

He highlighted the specific strategic interventions that his administration had made in the 14 months he has been in the saddle, and noted with satisfaction that all indicators are positive that there will be a brilliant glow at the end of the present dark tunnel.

President Tinubu underscored his administration’s efforts at delivering on his administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda.  He gave the scorecard in several areas, including economic reconstruction, infrastructure, education, health, food production, the Compressed Natural Gas Initiative (CNG) to power the transportation economy, the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway and Sokoto-Badagry Highway projects which, he said, will open up 16 connecting states, create thousands of jobs, as well as boost economic activities in the benefiting states, among others.

On the vexed issue of removal of fuel subsidy and the abolition of multiple foreign exchange systems, the President said the painful decisions became expedient because the duo had both tightened the noose around the economic jugular of Nigeria and impeded the country’s economic development and progress.

“These actions blocked the greed and the profits that smugglers and rent-seekers made,” Tinubu said. “They also blocked the undue subsidies we had extended to our neighbouring countries to the detriment of our people, rendering our economy prostrate. These decisions I made were necessary if we must reverse the decades of economic mismanagement that didn’t serve us well. But I can assure you that I am focused fully on delivering the governance to the people – good governance for that matter.”

The President lamented the loss of lives and destruction of properties in several parts of the North. He commiserated with the families of the bereaved and reiterated that as President and Commander-in-Chief, he would not fold his arms and “allow a few with a clear political agenda to tear this nation apart”.

He then called on the protesters and the organisers to sheathe their swords, end the demonstrations immediately, and create room for dialogue.

“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,” he said. “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.”