"What Is The Mystery?" OPC Speaks on Hunger Protest, Makes 3 Demands
- The OPC has called on President Bola Tinubu to ensure dialogue with organisers of the hunger protest across the country
- Otunba Wasiu Afolabi, the president of the group, said the president and the organisers of the protest must avoid the Kenya-like protest
- Afolabi made three demands from the president, which included the opening of land borders across the southern region
The Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC) has called for dialogue between the government and protest leaders to address economic hardships caused by President Bola Tinubu's reforms.
Otunba Wasiu Afolabi, the president of the socio-cultural group, made the call in a statement on Tuesday, July 30, while commenting on the planned nationwide hunger protests scheduled to be held between August 1 and 10.
Source: Twitter
According to Tribune, Afolabi's statement demanded the opening of land borders across the southern region, the return of the refineries, and the cutting of the cost of governance. The group advised avoiding Kenya-like protests and added that dialogue was the best option.
Tinubu asked to open land borders
According to The Punch, the OPC urged the president to open land borders in the southern part of the country to import food items and reduce prices. The organisation cautioned protesters to embrace dialogue and avoid violence.
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The OPC called on President Tinubu to issue an Executive Order opening up borders in the southwest and south-south to allow for the rapid inflow of food.
According to the group, high food prices can lead to anger and unrest, and the government must take action to address this issue.
OPC asks Tinubu to bring back refineries
The OPC urged the government to fix the nation's refineries to produce domestic fuel and solve the problem of inadequate and expensive petroleum products.
The organization questioned why the maintenance of refineries has been an impossible task since 1999. The OPC called for the identification and apprehension of cabals making life difficult for common Nigerians.
"If one man, Aliko Dangote, can build a refinery in less than 10 years, how can ordinary maintenance of four full-fledged and functional refineries become impossible since 1999, when civilians took over power? What is the mystery?"
Reduce cost of governance, OPC tells Tinubu
The OPC further emphasized the need to reduce the cost of governance, urging politicians to adopt austerity measures in line with the current economic realities.
Additionally, the organisation appealed to the police to ensure that the protest was not hijacked by hoodlums who may exploit the situation for looting and chaos.
The OPC also cautioned against allowing the protest to escalate into uncontrollable violence, referencing the example of Kenya, where demonstrations spiralled out of control, resulting in bloodshed and widespread destruction of property.
List of states where hunger protests will hold
Legit.ng earlier reported that Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa (SAN), a human rights lawyer and one of the organisers of the hunger protest in Nigeria, released the venues for the demonstration nationwide.
Adegboruwa, at a meeting with IGP Kayode Egbetokun, listed no less than nine states in the country, including the FCT.
It was learnt that the list would be expanding, and more states could join as the lawyer requested police cover from IGP Egbetokun.
Proofreading by Nkem Ikeke, journalist and copy editor at Legit.ng.
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