The protests, which commenced on Thursday, have claimed many lives and also resulted in the destruction of properties worth billions of naira.
This led to calls from different quarters for President Tinubu to address Nigerians in order to douse the concerns raised by the protesters and other citizens including the cost of living crisis in the country.
The president heeded the calls, and made a broadcast yesterday, in which he reeled out the reasons for removal of fuel subsidy and the floating of the naira, stating that these were part of necessary reforms for the growth of Nigeria.
Tinubu also itemised some of the interventions his government had made to cushion the effects of those policies, saying Nigerians stand to benefit more in the future.
But soon after the speech, leaders of thought and other keen observers said the president’s speech was “uninspiring,” while the protesters said he did not show any sign that he is in touch with the reality in the country. They said besides not making serious policy statements on fuel subsidy and a plan at redeeming the value of the naira, the 38-paragraph speech was completely silent on a fundamental issue – insecurity – especially in northern Nigeria, where millions of farmers have been chased away from their farms and homes.
The ongoing protest has been much more audible in the North, with protesters in Kano, Katsina, Jigawa, Sokoto, Kebbi, Zamfara, Kaduna, Yobe, Borno, Nasarawa, Adamawa, Plateau and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), showcasing placards with messages around the need to address hunger and insecurity. The protest also took place in the South West, with the exception of Ekiti State; the South South, but people in the South East have not taken to the streets.
Many of those interviewed in the course of the protest in some states of the North like Katsina, Zamfara and Sokoto, said though they are farmers, they have been reduced to beggars because they no longer have access to their farmlands due to banditry and kidnappings.
In his reaction to Tinubu’s broadcast on the protest, Soyinka, in a statement yesterday, expressed concern over the president’s omission of the shooting and killing of protesters who are demanding for good governance.
He said the state cannot serve bullets where bread is pleaded.
The Nigerian playwright condemned the use of live bullets and teargas by security agents to manage civic protests, saying that such actions would lead to violence.
He said: “His (Tinubu) outline of the government’s remedial action since inception, aimed at warding off just such an outbreak, will undoubtedly receive expert and sustained attention both for effectiveness and in content analysis.
“My primary concern, quite predictably, is the continuing deterioration of the state’s seizure of protest management, an area in which the presidential address fell conspicuously short.
“Such short-changing of civic deserving, regrettably, goes to arm the security forces in the exercise of impunity and condemns the nation to a seemingly unbreakable cycle of resentment and reprisals.
“Live bullets as state response to civic protest – that becomes the core issue. Even teargas remains questionable in most circumstances, certainly an abuse in situations of clearly peaceful protest. Hunger marches constitute a universal S.O.S, not peculiar to the Nigerian nation. They belong indeed in a class of their own, never mind the collateral claims emblazoned on posters.
“They serve as summons to governance that a breaking point has been reached and thus, a testing ground for governance awareness of public desperation. The tragic response to the ongoing hunger marches in parts of the nation, and for which notice was served, constitutes a retrogression that takes the nation even further back than the deadly culmination of the watershed EndSARS protests.”
On his part, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar described Tinubu’s speech as hollow because it failed to address the demands of protesters on pressing economic hardship.
In a statement issued by his media adviser, Paul Ibe, Atiku said: “President Bola Tinubu’s broadcast this morning, intended to quell the fervour of public protests against his administration’s poor governance, utterly misses the mark.
“His speech neglects the pressing economic hardships that have besieged Nigerian families since the very beginning of his tenure.
“This address lacks credibility and fails to offer any immediate, tangible solutions to the Nigerian people. Given the extensive publicity surrounding the protests and the threats issued by government officials against demonstrators, one would have expected President Tinubu to present ground-breaking reforms, particularly those aimed at reducing the exorbitant costs of governance.
“But alas, no such announcements were made. The president ignored the protesters’ demands, such as suspending the purchase of aircraft for the president, downsizing his bloated cabinet, or even eliminating the costly and burdensome office of the First Lady, who has been indulging in extravagant trips at the nation’s expense.
“In his lacklustre recorded speech, President Tinubu offered a superficial account of his so-called reforms, revealing his own tenuous grasp of policy as he failed to convince his audience. While the president has spoken, it is unfortunate that his words lack substance and respect for the protesters’ sentiments, leaving Nigerians with little faith in his reform agenda – if one exists at all.
“We urge the president and his team to own up to their failures over the past 14 months and abandon the absurd theory that the protests are orchestrated by the opposition. This administration has failed on all fronts, even in the simple task of keeping a presidential speech confidential.”
On his part, Falana, SAN, called on Tinubu to address the demands of the protesters.
In a statement issued yesterday, he said: “If the government takes the fight against corruption to oil dealers and crude oil is processed in government-owned refineries, there will be no basis for fuel subsidy, which is induced by the importation of petroleum products.
“A positive response to the key demands of the youths could make them review their actions. Insensitivity to their demands can only provoke continued action,” he said. Falana also applauded the protesters for forcing politicians to listen, who he said “are eating in Abuja to the plight of millions of Nigerians who are hungry.”
He also called for the “immediate and unconditional release of all protesters that were arrested and detained,” saying they had not committed any criminal offence.
Falana also condemned the repression of the peaceful protesters. “We commiserate with the families of the patriots’ peaceful protesters that were killed and call on the federal and state governments to set up commissions of inquiry, which should include representatives of credible human rights organisations and the NBA to investigate the killings with a view to bringing to justice the reckless murderers in police uniform and ensuring that.
“The family members of the deceased should be adequately compensated by the federal government. The victims of the barbarous police killings should be identified and celebrated as heroes and heroines of the struggle for the emancipation of the downtrodden Nigerian people. Participation in peaceful protests should never be criminalised in Nigeria,” he said.