Eminent Nigerians in the North under the aegis of the Arewa Initiative for Defence and Promotion of Democracy, have attributed the harsh economic situation in the country to the comatose economy handed over to the president, Bola Tinubu by his predecessor, Muhammadu Buhari.
The Arewa Initiative, an amalgamation of pro-democracy groups from the 19 northern states under the chairmanship of Prof Shehu Ma’aji, also stated that Nigerians should ignore protests recently staged against the Federal Government in Kano and Niger states which they described as sponsored.
On Monday, some citizens in Minna, Niger State, took to the streets to protest the harsh economic situations in the country which arose from the recent hike in prices of goods and commodities.
Similar protests were also held in Kano and Kogi states over the hardship across the country.
Addressing the media in Abuja on Thursday, Ma’aji pleaded that an eight-month-old government is too early to be assessed, much less criticised by people with ulterior motives.
He said, “The North is solidly behind President Tinubu and will continue to support and cooperate with him, for the actualisation of his Renewed Hope Agenda.
“The current administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu inherited a lot of problems from the past administration of Muhammadu Buhari which it is currently trying to address.
“For instance, the Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, and chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum had just revealed that the crude oil the country will be getting in the next six months had been sold in advance by the immediate past administration and the solutions to the problems cannot be instantly solved but in a gradual pattern.”
Ma’ji added, “Disgruntled politicians and other unpatriotic elements who have perfected plans to mobilise bogus civil society organisations to stage phantom protests across the country to smear the image of this administration should stop their evil machinations.”
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