THE CABLE
Some civil society organisations (CSOs) under the aegis of #EndBadGovernance Movement, have declared October 1, 2024 as a ‘National Day of Survival’, to protest the prevailing economic hardship sweeping through the country.
In a statement issued during a press conference at the International Press Centre in Lagos on Thursday, Hassan Soweto, national coordinator of the Education Rights Campaign (ERC), called on Nigerians to engage in peaceful protests nationwide against “anti-poor policies”.
The statement was jointly signed by the Education Rights Campaign (ERC), Movement for Fundamental Change (MFC), Youth Rights Campaign (YRC), Joint Action Front (JAF), and Pan-African Consciousness Renaissance (PACOR-Nigeria).
The movement cited the lack of action from the federal government despite the #EndBadGovernance protests of August.
They said the protest aims to address grievances surrounding the fuel price hike, rising food costs, and the impact of inflation on the livelihoods of ordinary Nigerians.
They criticised President Bola Tinubu’s government for “exacerbating poverty and hardship”.
The movement accused the administration of pursuing policies that disproportionately affect the poor, resulting in mass unemployment, inflation, and food insecurity.
‘ANOTHER JOURNEY’
“We invite you on another journey to redeem our nation as we continue to stand against the anti-poor policies of this regime,” the statement reads.
“As is obvious to everyone, none of the demands of our ten days of rage in August has been met.
“Rather, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu simply went ahead to use our national treasury to procure luxury cars, aircraft, and other luxuries for himself and the first family without caring a hoot about the plea of hungry Nigerians.
“To show the absolute disdain that the Federal Government holds for the people, Tinubu has gone ahead to now unleash on the Nigerian another round of hike in fuel price earlier this month.
“As we speak, the price of fuel hovers between N900 per litre to N1900 per litre depending on which parts of the country you are.
“Meanwhile, less than two years ago, a liter of fuel did not cost more than N200 per litre. This is outrageous. This is intolerable. As a direct consequence of this increment, life has become unbearable for many Nigerian people.
“Many are starving as the increase in fuel price has also impacted food prices. Inflation has rendered the N70,000 new National Minimum Wage irrelevant and incapable of bringing any relief to Nigerian workers.
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