Nationwide Protests Could Destabilize Nigeria Further

Peaceful demonstrations to express concerns are rights protected by our nation’s constitution, which also outlines the proper ways to exercise these rights. However, are protests and demonstrations necessary at a time when our national ecosystem is recovering from a severe pandemic and the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression? I profoundly, and with a sense of responsibility, do not think so.

In the challenging circumstances that this nation finds itself, addressing triggers neglected over 25 years of democratic practices, you would agree that the present structural reforms implemented by the federal government, along with its many cushioning interventions, are the only way to get this nation out of the woods.

When the mandate to govern this nation was given to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, he took it as an honor of a lifetime and immediately began to rebuild the country. As a result, we have seen historic progress: $16 billion (about 18%) of the nation’s external debt has been cleared, $4 billion has been added to the external reserves, all forest backlogs owed to foreign airline operators have been cleared, and steps towards full local government autonomy have been taken to bring decision-making closer to the people. Additionally, there have been significant victories at the Supreme Court, the introduction of student loans for federal and state universities, and emergency relief measures in liquidity and palliatives distributed through subnational governments in line with federation principles.

Addressing the critical gaps, including the emergencies declared in the oil and gas sectors, where the government continues to bear the cost of variations in crude oil prices, is crucial. These efforts aim to address trade deficits, low manufacturing and production, and to meet domestic demands. Decentralizing the aggregation and production network of small and medium enterprises could mean the nation would earn forex and tax revenues to repay federal government loans and cover capital and recurrent expexpenditures.

Given these strides and the almost visible signs of progress, the planned August 1st protest would be premature, counterproductive, and distracting.

Let’s not forget that there are individuals who, when they look at Nigeria’s current path to economic recovery, see only carnage, despair, and darkness. They spread fear and lies for profit and power, hoping for government failure to justify their misplaced beliefs. They exploit short-term difficulties to create artificial scarcity, price gouging, and inflation. They seek to use our people to fund their agenda, having failed in previous attempts to destabilize the federal government.

There is hope, however, that governmental interventions will reduce inflation and provide a better life for our citizens.

We can’t ignore how previous unhealthy demonstrations were hijacked to perpetrate unrest, leading to property destruction worth billions of naira, prison breaks, and the release of dangerous criminals who became rapists, carjackers, kidnappers, and killers. These actions exacerbate the very issues the present protest aims to address.

As the Administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP), I appeal to all ex-agitators not to participate in any protests and not to allow themselves to be used to settle political scores or destroy government infrastructure.

In closing, I recall the words of the third-century Greek philosopher Sextus Empiricus, “The mills of God grind slow, but they grind exceedingly sure.” Like the unpleasant but necessary radical surgery to remove a malignant tumor, these efforts will ultimately improve the quality of life for the nation.

This should renew our hope as we look forward to a greater, bigger, and better Nigeria.

Dr. Otuaro, Administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, writes from Abuja.