The Planned Protest for End bad Governance in Nigeria, What is the Imminent ex-post Facto -By Odebola Taiwo James

In actual fact, except concrete measures are implemented, I do not see any near solution to the issues on ground in Nigeria, ab initio, the suffering rose from two basic factors which are removal of subsidy and devalued Naira. Adversely, the incumbent government is acting insensitive to these two issues and despite the suffering prevalent, the presidency was talking about refusal to renege on subsidy removal without any all-encompassing cushion measures amid acute anguish but planning on buying another presidential jet to be added to existing presidential fleet. Prices of goods have gone up almost four times in less than two years, this can trigger inflation if not managed as inflation is the prices of food basket relative to the money available in the economy, m, supply of money, hence money in circulation. What is worrisome is that the federal government is not taking any concrete or generic step to abate this suffering. We students abroad are suffering to pay school fees, our families back home are complaining bitterly, we cannot keep track of price parity (PPP)as prices of commodities are skyrocketing and naira value is nose diving daily.

The painful part is the government seem not ready to find lasting solution to this economic debacle, yet the officeholders are clamouring they just assumed posts that Nigerians should endure, but the presidency is not enduring, the office of the president was planning to amass a yacht worth millions of dollars (N5B) stipulating it was the Nigerian Navy that requested for it, and also planning on buying another presidential jet to the existing presidential fleet of 3 executive jets. These show a high level of insensitivity and lackadaisical attitude in modern democracy, that a sitting government will act non-concerned about acute languish eminent in the polity. Every government should know that policies are for the citizenry, no president will queue for fuel or go to the market to shop for groceries, hence, the actions and policies of a government is either to better or worsen the living conditions of the citizenry, if an administration acts in a manner that the agony of the populace is not its concern, then there exist problem with such tenure.

Inadvertently, this is a protest that has been scheduled many times and considered illegitimate by the federal court, which debarred people from carrying out protests as envisaged and sensitized severally by Nigerian Labour congress (NLC). Yet, when the situation is not improving, the protest has to hold. Surprisingly, the 2024 budget saw a lot of paraphernalia of office and accessories not necessarily important for governance earmarked for acquisition for the president cum the vice, and these are in million dollars, consequently, many billion-naira, money that can be used for subsidy or generic cushion approaches. Someone said the northerners refused to protest during the arduous administration of the past tenure riddled with insecurity, however, the fact remains that this dispensation gave them the opportunity to protest because of continuous suffering of the masses. Another said, the president posited that we should give his one-year-old tenure more time, but the president did not give the national purse more time for his personal office benefits and allowances.

From the 1^st of august of the planned protest which is supposedly to last till 10^th August, all banks and some organizations cum shops might close indefinitely to prevent looting and risk of assets and lives by unruly protest hijackers. This can escalate because of the interests of unscrupulous oppositions that may want to use protest as their tools, and these are the imminent protest hijackers. This is what could have been avoided had it been the presidency has shown consideration to peoples’ grievances and relax its adamant action of subsidy removal or institute concrete but generic cushion policies rather than selective and partial consolatory benefits. Of my few decades in Nigerian polity, I have never witnessed a rising cost of living and goods as this, we have witnessed Abacha stove when there was no fuel and people had to resort to using saw dust for cooking, and the saw dust that was a waste product was being sold to people, but that did not last for months and was not continuous, more so, that was in the autocratic military era prior to the millennium.

If the presidency is saying there are some oil cabals and mafias that are gaining from subsidy, is it not better for the oil cabals to gain and the Nigerian populace are happy than punishing the polity while the presidency is enjoying every necessary paraphernalia amid acute citizenry’s anguish and they kept kicking against protest, even though they are fully aware that protest is a tool and a factor in democratic setting. It seems like the present administration is not taking a cue from past administrations. The last administration via the CBN employed the approach of injecting dollars in the system, they used buyout method to make dollars available in the system to ease possible suffering from exchange rate hike and volatility, but this administration is doing none of that. I have suggested many exchange rate hike-curbing approaches via my twitter tagging the federal government and the CBN yet nothing has been done. It would seem as if the Naira were gaining strength all for it to nosedive and then deeper which has been the case since 2022.

Also, when the Obasanjo administration saw fuel increase due to part-subsidy removal, the government attempted a very generic cushion effect by canceling toll gate. We know this mitigated to a certain level the hike in fuel price by reducing transportation cost which is germane to cost of food and production cost. But an outright subsidy removal with no concrete encompassing cushion measures will amount to languish in a polity. So, the economy is faced with removal of subsidy and poor exchange rate which are key parameters in cost of living, and these can be requisite to inflation, fuel as the name implies powers virtually all human activities, one of the many reasons why the technology and science world are seriously looking for alternatives to crude oil and approaching use of batteries and fossil fuels, but in a country like Nigeria where petroleum is still the main source of energy for most human activities, while individual, households and organizations still pivot their activities on its importance. And then federal government is employing a non-generic welfare program to households which is non-encompassing and cannot serve a core purpose of cushion effect for the suffering for the agitated and aggrieved citizenry.

The federal government is attempting prevention of protests to avoid hijack by opponents so that the protest will not get out of hands as perceived by people in administration against their political rivals. Some people are using traditional threats against protesters, while some are employing thugs to scare the supposed protesters away and dissuade them from the planned protest. However, the public administrators are implementing some crash programs which they should have done ex ante cum ab initio the situation before it got to this state of economic debacle and fiasco. The presidency is also harnessing quick measures like positing subsidy on rice, a suspension of tariffs on food items and other essential commodities. They have also submitted that petroleum products should be sold at lower prices and in Nigerian currency to reduce the price of crude oil and increase supply as the status quo ante is that there is hike in fuel prices and supply is low making prices to skyrocket and causing shortage of demand.

The above measures can work better and can be all-encompassing than increasing minimum wage which is an approach that will not be generic to the betterment of the citizenry. Passing a minimum wage bill has little effect on an economy where there is massive unemployment and most of the working age are underemployed or working in informal sector that cannot afford minimum wage. The minimum wage policy will only work for those who are civil servants working in public sectors and those in corporate organizations which can conveniently afford the minimum payment of N70,000 stipulated in the new bill. Despite the planned protest was scheduled for August 1^st-10^th 2024 with interval of prior few weeks’ notice from the date of the commencement to give government the opportunity to wade in with measures to ease the distress in the polity, but the office holders were more into dissuading people than looking for possible solutions that can prevent people from taking to the streets.

Why did Nigeria government have to wait till the status quo ante has to degenerate to this level, and the Presidency continues to portray a form of insensitivity to the agony in the polity by keeping mute and with adamant plans to acquire another presidential jet amid suffering and high cost of living. Few days to planned protest is when those at helm of powers are putting measures to ease the economic fiasco that is deeply rooted in the polity. You cannot say people should not protest when they are acutely languishing from scarcity due to high cost of living as opposed to the status quo ante ab initio. Though the economic debacle rose from subsidy removal and exchange rate issue, as we speak the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is yet to find concrete solution to exchange rate daily devaluation. However, I do not support protest being hijacked by unruly individuals and I hope Nigerian Police will continue to do the needful.

As much as I do not support protest hijackers and confrontation with security agencies, the fact remains that the citizenry is inundated with suffering. If protest is what will change the situation ex ante and bring the Nigerian government to realization of the ex post facto effect of their policies, the federal court and police should allow them. Inadvertently, I am strongly against hijackers and any ulterior motive from opponents that is different from protesters showcasing their true grievances and agitating for solutions to the rising cost of living, The protest has commenced, as it is unfolding, we wait to see the ex post facto of the situation.

Possible titles/topics

The planned protest for End bad Governance in Nigeria, what is the imminent ex-post facto.

The planned protest for End bad Governance in Nigeria, what to expect ex-post facto.

The planned protest for End bad Governance in Nigeria, what imminent ex-post facto to.