Group to Tinubu: Don’t let Nigeria slip into anarchy… address critical issues

The Nigerian Working Group on Peace Building and Conflict Prevention says President Bola Tinubu must urgently act to prevent the country from slipping into widespread violence.

In a statement on Friday, the group said economic and social crises in the country are pushing citizens to the edge with foreseeable consequences for sustainable development.

“While the government tries to deal with the ENDSARs protests, it should also realise that the protests may reoccur again unless authorities meet their obligations to the people,” the statement reads.

“Nigeria faces three major problems at the moment: the national question, which makes the definition of national interest absent; spineless corruption in low and high places; and the complete breakdown of trust in the public and private lives of the citizenry.

“The three underlined challenges are responsible for insecurity, violent ethnic clashes, and armed rebellion in some parts of the country.

“Nigeria faces the crisis of ethnic identity in the context of the primitive scramble for resources and the distribution and ownership of national and indigenous wealth.

“In this vortex lay the intra-ethnic struggle for control by the majority ethnic groups and the cries and agony of ethnic minorities who feel trampled by the political, economic, and social structure that excludes them.

“Why individual ethnic minorities are given appointments does not automatically resolve the contradictions occasioned by the historic injustice they have experienced for decades, which mere creation of states by fiat has not been able to resolve.”

The Working Group said the federal government needs to address the fears and aspirations of ethnic nationalities through “a new, people-driven constitution where ethnic minorities are also real stakeholders”.

‘PALLIATIVES DISTRIBUTION NOT WORKING’

The group asked the governments at all levels to stop the distribution of palliatives to the people.

The group noted that the practice has been creating a scarcity of food items and inflation due to bulk purchases by the government.

“The funds being used for palliatives should be invested in agriculture,” the group said.

“If the government had done this agro-investment eight months ago, by now the results would have been a food glut across the country.

“Palliatives only address the cosmetic needs of a few people without creating the pillars of jobs and real economic growth that the country urgently needs.”

The statement was signed by Adewale Adeoye, national coordinator of the group, and regional coordinators, including Taiwo Adeleye (south-west); Werinipre Digifa (south-south); Abuka Onalo Omobaba (middle-belt); Kudu Abubakar (north-west); and Fred Onijika (south-east) and Lawan Idris (north-east).