Nigeria’s Deteriorating Economic Conditions: Protests May Not Be the SolutionNigeria’s Deteriorating Economic Conditions: Protests May Not Be the Solution Amb. Ibrahim Waiya, Executive Director of Citizens for Development and Education (CDE), has raised concerns over the worsening economic situation in Nigeria, but has cautioned against street protests as a means to address it. Waiya emphasized that the economic challenges facing the country are severe enough to warrant public outcry, but the nation’s “low level of civilization and exposure, as well as the conflicting sentiments around religion and ethnicity,” may hinder the effectiveness of coordinated protests. He pointed to the ENDSARS protests as an example of how peaceful demonstrations can escalate into chaos and bloodshed, leading to the imprisonment of innocent individuals. Waiya also criticized the government’s “insensitivity” towards the plight of citizens struggling to meet basic needs, despite evidence of widespread poverty. He urged the federal government to implement measures to mitigate the economic downturn, including addressing the ineffective and inadequate measures taken after the abolition of the fuel subsidy. While supporting peaceful protests as a legitimate form of expressing anger, Waiya expressed skepticism about their potential outcomes. He suggested that greedy politicians may exploit societal divisions to hijack the process and incite chaos through paid thugs. Waiya cautioned that protests could disrupt the daily lives of the country’s poor and exacerbate their suffering, rather than provide relief. He highlighted the importance of handling protests carefully to avoid bloodshed and chaos.
July 15 (THEWILL) – The Executive Director of Citizens for Development and Education (CDE), Amb. Ibrahim Waiya, on Monday decried the alarming deteriorating economic condition of Nigerians.
However, Waiya said street protests are not the best option to address the situation.
Waiya spoke in Kano against the backdrop of plans by a yet-to-be-identified group to stage a protest against the country’s current economic woes.
“In summary, the economic challenges in Nigeria are enough to motivate citizens to take to the streets and show their anger. However, the low level of our civilisation and exposure, as well as the conflicting sentiments around religion and ethnicity, may not allow us to have well-coordinated protests that can result in something positive,” he said.
Speaking further, Amb. Waiya, who is also the Chairman of the Conference of Northern States Civil Society Networks, said: “We support the peaceful protest to show our anger. However, we are skeptical of what the outcome could be as many greedy and selfish politicians may take advantage of our divisions to hijack the process through their paid thugs to cause chaos.
“Peaceful protests are legal in Nigeria, but we fear that protests could disrupt the daily lives of the country’s poor and exacerbate their suffering rather than providing relief.
“Protests, if not handled carefully, usually degenerate into chaos and bloodshed, usually resulting in the loss of innocent lives.”
He called the ENDSARS protest one of the most recent events in the socio-political history of Nigeria. According to him, “many young men and women are still rotting in prison.”
The Executive Director condemned “the insensitivity of the Federal Government to realize the climax of the difficulties in the country, with over 85 percent of citizens struggling to eat, while the government has in no way shown empathy for the plight of the suffering citizens.
“In 2022, the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics reported that about 130 million Nigerian citizens were living in multidimensional poverty. Unfortunately, neither Buhari nor Tinubu have taken practical measures to address the issue as a national crisis,” he said.
Waiya stressed the need for the federal government to take measures to mitigate the effects of the economic downturn. According to him, the measures taken after the abolition of the fuel subsidy scheme were ineffective, temporary and inadequate.
Abdullahi Yusuf is a seasoned journalist, communicator and was previously the Deputy Editor and Zone Manager of the News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, Jos from where he retired on December 15, 2021.
