Amidst excruciating economic hardship in the country, the Coalition of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) in Edo State on Tuesday took to the streets of Benin to demand from President Bola Tinubu, the restoration of fuel subsidy, improved security, return to unicameral legislature, among others.
The group, which included African Network for Environment and Economic Justice (ANEEJ), Talakawa Republic, Take-it-Back Movement, and Faculty of Peace Organisation during a protest march to the state secretariat of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ), Edo State Council, Benin City, said the removal of fuel subsidy, insecurity, and floating of the Naira had made life very difficult for Nigerians.
Speaking at the protest, Coordinator, Take-it-Back Movement, Edo State, Dr. Lawal Haifz urged the government to restore the hope of the common man.
According to him, “We are here to protest the current situation in Nigeria. People are really suffering. We demand the restoration of the fuel subsidy. Insecurity has made it impossible for our people to go to farm and that is why you can no longer buy foodstuffs.
“We don’t need the Senate and House of Representatives at the same time. The money spent on the two Houses can go a long way to take care of Nigerians’ needs. The so-called minimum wage cannot even buy a bag of rice. There is extreme hunger”.
Also, speaking the convener of Faculty of Peace Organisation, Kelly Osunbor, described Nigeria’s political class as “wicked”. He queried where the money distributed to voters during the September 21 Edo State governorship election came from.
Osunbor posited that “They tell us that there is no money; where did they get the money shared to voters during the September 21 election? Just calculate the ₦10,000 to ₦20,000 distributed to voters, and they said there is no money. These guys are just being wicked. My father hoped for better Nigeria, he is dead now. He did not see a better Nigeria. Today, we are hoping for a better Nigeria.
“Government does not provide anything. We sink our own borehole, and the fuel God has given to us freely is what they are using to punish us. Let me tell you that they are calling for revolution. If a parasite goes into its host, it will never stop eating the host until it finishes it. The Nigerian political class is like a parasite. They are calling for revolution, and they must get revolution. We have tried BVAS, it did not work; we have tried IReV, it did not work. We have tried Atahiru Jega, that one did not work. So, the only thing they will hear is revolution”.
The CSOs moved from the Kings Square (Ring Road) to the NUJ Press Centre, GRA, chanting solidarity songs while brandishing placards with different inscriptions like: ‘Restore fuel subsidy’, ‘We are hungry”. ‘ End insecurity ‘ among others.