Nigerians are currently experiencing their worst nightmare since independence, following the ineptitude of the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration, which has shown no signs of improvement since taking over the mantle of leadership in May 2023.
For eight years before the current administration, poor Nigerians thought they had endured a clueless, draconic and devilish administration of all time anchored by a retired army general whose time of leadership subjected the citizens to unprecedented hardship,a situation that has now seemed to be a tip of the iceberg.
Just when the people thought they had seen light at the end of the tunnel, having been cajoled by that political jargon called “Restored Hope” as campaign slogan , the President who was not at tune with the economic realities of our dear country, rushed into taking decisions ie, removal of fuel subsidy and floating of our national currency without recourse to sufficient diligence. This uncommon street approach to tackling economic issues has simply thrown the entire country into far deeper agony. Nearly two years down the line, the country is yet to recover from that blunder.
These early missteps have since continued to haunt the Nigerian nation as things have not been the same again. Prices of petroleum products, mostly petrol, diesel, and cooking gas, have continued on the increase, leading to unprecedented spikes in the prices of foodstuffs, essential commodities, medicines, goods and services.
This has not gone down well with the people as even the wealthy ones are also feeling the crunch. Within the last year, Nigerians have embarked on several protests to vent their resentment to the anti-people polices of the government. Unfortunately, the government has cracked down on persons daring to speak up against the hardship. Scores of participants at the August 1- 10 peaceful protests have been jailed on allegations of treason and attempting to overthrow the government. This is a well-known tactic designed to arm-twist and gag the people.
What the government fails to understand is that there is an extent to which the people can be silenced. The current state of affairs has made voicing out inevitable and there appears to be no end in sight to the number of protests which this administration will see as more and more groups are gearing up for a showdown in the next few weeks.
For instance, the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) issued a notification of a planned massive shutdown of all major cities in Nigeria, effective September 15, 2024. The protest is in response to the recent fuel price hike and the perceived incompetence of the NNPC Director General, Mele Kyari. They are demanding, among other things, the immediate reversal of the fuel price hike and the removal of Mr. Male Kyari, as the NNPC Director General failing which they plan to occupy all major cities on September 15, 2024.
It is left to be seen if the government will succumb to the wishes of the greater majority by restoring the subsidy regime to save the country from degenerating into anarchy.
This is not the time to be stiff-necked. Democracy is defined as ‘government of the people, by the people and for the people’. But when policies do not take into consideration the plight of the citizens, it becomes dictatorial.
As citizens, the power is in our hands to show this administration the exit come 2027. The question is: Are we ready to effect the change?
Thankfully, eminent citizens including Former Vice President of Nigeria, and Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party PDP in the 2023 presidential election, His Excellency, Atiku Abubakar, GCON, Mr Peter Obi, and others are tinkering with the idea to put forward a formidable opposition that would wrestle power from this administration that has gained notoriety as the worst administration since Nigeria’s independence.
It therefore behoves us to support the cause by joining the train to chase them out to give Nigerians a breath of fresh air.
Chief. A.E Onwuka
LLB (Hons) MSc, peace & security studies