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05-08-2024
ABUJA: Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu called on Sunday for a suspension of protests against a cost of living crisis, saying this would create an opportunity for dialogue, his first public comments since frustrated citizens took to the streets last week.
Amnesty International has said at least 13 people were killed in clashes with security forces on the first day of protests on Thursday. Police denied using excessive force and said seven people had died as of Saturday – four from an explosive device during a march in northeast Borno state, two who were hit by a car and another who was shot by a guard when protesters looted a shop.
In a televised broadcast, Tinubu called for an end to violence in several states since the protests started, saying he was always open for dialogue.
“My dear Nigerians, especially our youth, I have heard you loud and clear. I understand the pain and frustration that drive these protests, and I want to assure you that our government is committed to listening and addressing the concerns of our citizens,” he said.
Nigerians have been mobilizing online to organize protests against economic hardship and bad governance and have called for a cut in petrol prices and electricity tariffs, among several demands.
Tinubu, in office since May 2023, defended his economic reforms, which have included a partial end to petrol and electricity subsidies and devaluation of the naira, as necessary to reverse years of economic mismanagement.
He government revenues had more than doubled to 9.1 trillion naira ($5.65 billion) in the first half of this year while 68% of revenue now went to debt servicing, down from 97% before he took office in May last year.
The government was also ramping up spending on infrastructure projects, started a loan scheme for university students and was building thousands of housing units across Nigeria’s 36 states, the president said but “we must not let violence and destruction tear our nation apart,” said Tinubu.
Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu said on Wednesday economic reforms would continue despite increasing hardships that have fueled public anger, and promised to send an executive bill to parliament soon to set a new minimum wage.
Tinubu, who came to power a year ago, removed a decades-old petrol subsidy that kept prices artificially low and devalued the currency, sending inflation soaring to 33.69% in April, its highest level in nearly three decades and eroding incomes.
In a television broadcast to mark Democracy Day, Tinubu acknowledged hardships caused by the reforms, which also include higher interest rates and the partial removal of electricity subsidies, but he said this would create a stronger foundation for future growth. “Our economy has been in desperate need of reform for decades. It has been unbalanced because it was built on the flawed foundation of over-reliance on revenues from the exploitation of oil,” Tinubu said.
“As we continue to reform the economy, I shall always listen to the people and will never turn my back on you.”
Nigeria is grappling with the worst cost-of-living crisis in decades and labour unions last week suspended a strike called to pressure the government to agree a new monthly minimum wage.
The government has offered to double the minimum wage to 62,000 naira ($41.89) a month against labor demands of 250,000 naira, and Tinubu said his government had negotiated in good faith. The last minimum wage was set in 2019.
“We shall soon send an executive bill to the National Assembly to enshrine what has been agreed upon as part of our law for the next five years or less,” Tinubu said. (Int’l News Desk)
