Ministers and governors convene today to end the hunger protest

The leaders of the August 1–10 countrywide protests are welcome to speak with the federal government.

All federal ministers were instructed to visit their respective states between Wednesday, July 24, and Thursday, August 1, when the protests are set to start, during an emergency meeting held in Abuja on Wednesday.

This is in conjunction with the fact that state governors and select ministers will meet at the 143rd session of the National Economic Council on Thursday (today) in the Council Chamber of the Aso Rock Villa in Abuja.

This was one of the action items from the Wednesday morning emergency meeting in Abuja between all of the ministers and George Akume, the secretary to the government of the federation.

According to a circular seen on Tuesday night, those invited to the meeting called to discuss the "Planned Nationwide Protest" included former Minister of Youth and Sports Sunday Dare, Information and Strategy Bayo Onanuga, and Special Advisor to the President on Policy and Coordination, Ms. Hadiza Bala-Usman.

The letter said, "I am directed to invite you to attend a meeting on the above subject scheduled as follows with the Secretary to the Government of the Federation."

On July 24, 2024, at 10:00 a.m. Venue: Conference Room of the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation; prompt. It is required that you attend. The Secretary to the Government of the Federation sends you his best greetings.

The conference took place in the midst of plans for statewide demonstrations against the difficult living circumstances and growing cost of living from August 1–10, as the most populous country in Africa confronts what have been called its worst economic headwinds in a generation.

The "End Bad Governance" demonstration has garnered popularity on social media and is planned to take place in all 36 states as well as the Federal Capital Territory. Its organisers, however, have been mostly secret because no organisation has come forward to accept accountability.

President Tinubu declared the elimination of petrol subsidies when he took office 14 months ago, claiming that this would free up funds for the government to invest in infrastructure development. In an effort to stop currency arbitrage, he also harmonised the foreign exchange rates.

But these actions caused a collateral decline in value of the Naira as food prices soared. More so, widespread insecurity in many farming communities has displaced farmers, contributing to higher food prices.

Although journalists were not granted access to the SGF Conference Room, the venue of Wednesday’s meeting, sources privy to the discussions told one of our correspondents that a planned nationwide broadcast by President Bola Tinubu was part of the issues discussed.

The source said, “All ministers were present. They suggested that there should be a national address. It was suggested that the President himself should do it. But the suggestion will have to reach the President first.

“They also asked ministers to put together three key achievements they have made in the past year. They will compile these achievements and present them to Nigerians.

“In fact, tomorrow (today), the Minister of Finance will be briefing the media on the state of the economy. But those achievements will be compiled for a separate presentation.”

Our source added, “The government stands for dialogue. They will get the leaders (of the protest) to meet with the government for discussions.

“All the ministers will also go back to their states to engage their people so they won’t be misled into joining the protests. That is between now and the protest date.

“Some have been engaging their people before. But this time, everyone has been asked to go back there.”

Another source privy to Wednesday’s meeting outcome, who also spoke on condition of anonymity, said that some ministers—such as those of Finance and Budget and Economic Planning— who sit on the National Economic Council, will attend its 143rd meeting on Thursday to appeal to state governors to dialogue with their constituents.

NEC, a statutory body mandated to advise the President on the nation’s economic affairs, comprises the Vice President, Governors of the 36 states of the federation, Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Minister of Finance, and other stakeholders.

“There will be a NEC meeting tomorrow (today). So, they will be going there to get the buy-in of the governors. They will use NEC to get the governors’ support for the plan.

“The government is extending the dialogue to NEC to allow governors to join what it is trying to do.
According to the administration, this demonstration is about more than just Tinubu or hardship. The source stated, "Some people want to use it to target a certain class of people and undermine the Nigerian state."

Experts speculate that previous protests in Kenya, from which Nigerians may have taken inspiration, preceded the August 1 protest.

For weeks, young Kenyans organised large-scale demonstrations that compelled President William Ruto's administration to reverse its tax hike plans. Millions of young Kenyans were mobilised for protests by organisers using social media sites like X and Instagram; a similar tactic was utilised on Nigerian social media.

Nigeria saw widespread protests in October 2020 as hundreds of youths staged demonstrations against police brutality.
After being taken over, the protests descended into violence, resulting in bloodshed and property damage valued at billions of naira. The protest organisers blamed the security forces, who denied firing live ammunition, for the violence.

Representatives advocate for communication

In the meantime, the House of Representatives minority caucus on Wednesday recommended that the Federal Government communicate with the planned protestors in order to resolve the issues that they brought up in a long-lasting manner.

At the conclusion of their special meeting/dinner in Abuja on Monday night, the caucus made the demand as part of their resolution.

Kingsley Chinda, the caucus chairman, was quoted in a statement released by the media team on Wednesday as stating, "We urge the government to have a conversation with the scheduled protestors and also take a look at some of the messages they are raising, the critical areas that need government intervention.

“We are not going to encourage the protesters because in the past we observed in most cases that even peaceful protests were overtaken by hoodlums and with the insecurity in some parts of the country, you may not have the control of the gathering of people. So, some unscrupulous people may use the opportunity to create chaos.”

The group also called on the government to create means to ensure citizens were self-reliant in a bid to tackle the economic challenges in the country.

“We acknowledged in our discussion that there is hunger in the land and we appeal to the government not only to be giving palliatives but to create ways and means whereby people can be self-reliant,” Chinda added.

Govs condemn rally

Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun and his Imo State counterpart Hope Uzodimma on Wednesday appealed to the youths to shun the planned nationwide anti-hunger protest.

Abiodun made the appeal during a meeting with a coalition of youth organisations in the state at the Governor’s Office, Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta.

The governor, who recalled the destruction of lives and property occasioned by the EndSARS protests across the country in 2020, said, “And yet again, there are calls for mass protests across the country, and the first thing that agitates one’s mind is, is that the way to present our case to government?

“Young men and women, you have no other country than this country. Let me assure you that I have travelled far and wide. I am sure, like many of you, that there is no country in the world where you can walk like your own, and that country is Nigeria.

“There is a Yoruba proverb that says ‘beheading is not the solution to a headache.’ If there are issues, let us discuss them, let us find a way around them, let us manage and correct them. Let us not cut off the head or attempt to cut off the head because of a headache. That will amount to decapitation.”

On his part, Imo State Governor and Chairman of the Progressives Governors’ Forum, Uzodimma, said the planned nationwide protests were coming at the wrong time.
In addition, Uzodimma highlighted the 2020 EndSARS movement and the scheduled rally that criminals had hijacked.

After meeting with President Bola Tinubu, the governor of Nigeria, in an interview with State House correspondents on Wednesday, encouraged citizens to safeguard national stability and abstain from policies that would exacerbate the country's economic woes.

"I believe that now is not the right moment for anyone to protest because, if caution is not exercised, it might be abused, as was the case with the #EndSARS incident, in which criminals exploited a legitimate movement started by young Nigerians.

Thus, I believe that those behind the protests are being tempted in yet another way because they are unable to publicly admit their involvement; their motivation is still unknown.
"I believe that we will not be supporting the protest; we will not support any protest that lacks a plan, is not