A frontline aspirant for the office of the Director-General of the Amalgamated APC Support Groups (AASG), Alhaji Salman Akorede, has cautioned the leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, against setting the nation on fire with their planned nationwide protests.
In a statement released in Abuja, Salman urged the labour leaders to consider the survival of Nigeria to be of paramount importance, and opt for other lesser confrontational actions.
He said what was needed at the moment was for all patriotic Nigerians to put the interest of Nigeria first in whatever actions they might wish to take in making demands from the government.
According to him, a more subtle approach and negotiation with the government would have yielded better results for everyone, as against embarking on street protests that could be hijacked by hoodlums to cause mayhem and inflict injuries on the already traumatised Nigerians.
The APC leader appealed to labour to exercise maximum restraints in the manner the protests were handled, if they must proceed with their plans, given the very fragile security situation in the country.
He advised the NLC to toe the line of further negotiations with the FG.
He, however, pleaded with the government to double down on effort in tackling the prevailing economic hardships that were pushing the people to the streets.
According to him, as against continued dolling out of huge resources to the state governors, a more impactful and result-oriented way of ameliorating the pains of the economic reforms on the people should be worked out.
He suggested that one of the most effective ways to reach out to the people with government interventions, was for the government to consider factoring the already existing channels through the support groups for direct delivery of palliatives to the people at the grassroots since these support groups that delivered victory for the Party were in every nook and cranny of the Federation.
He noted that the APC support groups were found in each of the 176,974 polling units in Nigeria, and the structure could be used to reach out to every Nigerian at the polling unit level.
Comrade Akorede also opined that the Federal Government could employ the use of National Identification Number (NIN) or the Bank Verification Number (BVN) to reach out to all Nigerians for the equitable distribution of these palliatives, especially among the most vulnerable Nigerians, because as at the moment, the political functionaries in Nigeria from the Governors to the Honourable Ministers, distinguished Senators, HoR Members, States Houses of Assembly Members had all disappointed Nigerians and Mr. President owing to lack of any effect of all the humonguous interventions running into billions, sent through them to their people on a monthly basis since this administration took office in May 2023.
He then called on Mr. President to stand up for the common man in the country by making sure his interventions reached the targeted beneficiaries who were the most vulnerable Nigerians.
“The distribution mechanisms of those who were given the responsibility to distribute palliatives should be interrogated with a view to finding out where there were possible efforts to sabotage the Government, and whoever is found culpable should be made to face the wrath of the law.
“President Tinubu cannot afford to be doing so much while little or nothing is being felt by the people to which these interventions were meant.
“All Party hierarchies and functionaries should rise to up and support Mr. President in this trying moment of our nation.
“All our traditional and religious leaders also have a critical role to play, and all hands must be on the deck to achieve a prosperous new Nigeria,” Akorede said.
He also urged journalists to use their various media to appeal to the conscience of Nigerians and educate them on the need to be patient with the government for a new Nigeria of our dream
to be birthed, stating that President Tinubu had begun a journey that we could not afford to truncate simply because of what we would want to eat today.
“The task to make the future of Nigeria a great one for our children and children’s children,” Akorede said, “is a task that must be performed and followed up to a logical conclusion.”
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