President Bola Tinubu’s allies are pressuring him to authorise a desperate strategy that could dramatically escalate the stakes of the raging nationwide protest against poverty and corruption, Peoples Gazette can report.
Two independent sources have briefed The Gazette about a plot that one of them described as “too sinister” to be allowed to proceed without being exposed, hoping its disclosure would put its proponents on the defensive and force the president to end the plot in its tracks.
“The discussion at the meeting was too dangerous for our country,” a source with information about what transpired at the parley said. “I support the president and all the efforts he’s making to get the protesters to call off their disruptive activities, but we have to put the country first by not taking extreme measures.”
The Gazette learnt that the meeting was held at about 11:00 a.m. on Monday, and it featured Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele and ministers David Umahi, Nyesom Wike and Bello Matawalle among other officials. Chief of Staff Femi Gbajabiamila coordinated the meeting on behalf of the president, who did not participate, our sources said.
Mr Tinubu had on Sunday announced his government’s desire to find urgent solutions to some of the issues animating the rallies across the country. He proposed an urgent removal of levies on food imports and additional support for poor seniors and low-wage earners, among others.
But protesters said the nationwide address did not go far enough and the protests, which began on August 1, would continue until further demands were met, especially a return of the subsidy regime and a radical reform to significantly deplete the federal budget and divert the funds to the poor masses instead.
Sources said Mr Wike, the FCT minister, was adamant that the president should not concede any further to the protesters, arguing instead that they would be tired and go home. But should the demonstrations move forward, the government should not hesitate to take steps that would make the price of further protests too high for participants.
Mr Wike had already taken measures to deter the protests in Abuja, including obtaining a series of dubious court orders to prohibit citizens from taking to the streets. But the court orders were ignored and the judges who granted them were mocked on social media for doing what critics described as transparently shoddy work.
Mr Wike’s turned to friendly judges in addition to previous government efforts to impede internet access nationwide and make it difficult for protesters to share multimedia from venues in Lagos, Kano, Kaduna, Ibadan, Abuja, Port-Harcourt and other cities around the country.
“They will get more hoodlums to cause more destruction and looting amongst the protesters, and kill some policemen, then the government will blame it on the protesters,” a senior administration official said, relaying how Mr Wike said the plan would go on. Messrs Gbajabiamila and Akpabio were said to have agreed with the plan.
Additional federal troops would be deployed to violently disperse protesters from grounds across the country, according to the source who was relaying Mr Wike’s argument. The Gazette reported last week that the military was preparing to intervene in the protests, which are guaranteed under the Nigerian Constitution.
“It could turn out to be the greatest mistake of the president if he follows this reckless recommendation,” another official said. “We have to continue to dialogue with the protesters, but the FCT minister didn’t seem to be interested in doing that.”
Already, at least 15 civilians have. been killed by security forces since the rallies began on Thursday. A police officer brazenly executed an unarmed protester in Azare,
(NAN)