Governors from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) have expressed confusion over the planned nationwide protest set for August 1 to August 10, 2024.
Although different interest groups whose identities are not yet known, are mobilizing for the demonstrations, but the APC governors claim they are unaware of the reasons behind them.
After a closed-door meeting of the Progressives Governors’ Forum (PGF) in Abuja, PGF Chairman and Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodimma, said, “We don’t know what they are protesting for. We invite all of them to sit down with us in a room so we can discuss and agree on the issues, what they are, and proffer solutions. We as a body are committed to the unity of the country, to whatever makes Nigerians live better lives, bring prosperity, jobs to be created for young boys and girls who graduated to be employed,” as quoted by Daily Trust.
Governor Uzodimma emphasized that it is unwise for any group to demonstrate at this time, urging Nigerians to cancel the planned protest.
He also called for patience, noting that the government is working to alleviate economic hardships.
“We think it is not wise at this moment for any demonstration by any group of persons be it in whatever guise. This is so that we can manage the challenge of insecurity, the challenge of national minimum wage, the challenge of food security and then the struggle to come out of the current economic recession,” Uzodimma added.
He advised young Nigerians against being instigated into causing chaos, pointing out the many challenges already faced by the nation, including global economic recession, insecurity, political tension fueled by opposition parties, and social media attacks on government policies.
“For the interest of the country and as a show of patriotism, our citizens must take ownership of this country because we have no other country we can call our own outside Nigeria,” he opined.
