The Kogi state government on Sunday, July 21, explained why the people of the state, especially youths, will not participate in the planned nationwide protests over the state of the nation, scheduled to begin on August 1.
Commissioner for Information and Communications for Kogi State, Kingsley Fanwo, in a statement gave said the people would not join unpatriotic forced bent on disrupting the peace in the country and the economic progress being recorded by President Bola Tinubu in Nigeria and Governor Usman Ododo in Kogi state.
The Nation reports that youths and some groups are planning a nationwide protests over the state of the nation, slated for August 1, with viral hashtags and promotional flyers circulating on social media.
Fanwo in the statement titled: “We urge Kogi Citizens to subscribe to the Not-In-My-State Movement Against Violent Protests” said the planned demonstrations are unnecessary at this time as the efforts of government at the Centre and in Kogi State are already yielding beneficial fruits.
“As responsible citizens, there is a need to queue behind the efforts of the government at all levels to frontally deal with the issues challenging our well-being.
“A protest would have been proper if the Government was making no efforts. Protests would have been popular if the efforts were not bearing fruits yet.
“Protests would have been understandable if we were not gradually moving out of the hopeless situation.
“But a protest at this point is an attack on the foundation of our rebuilding process and an attempt to throw the nation into the darkness orchestrated during the #EndSars destruction and carnage.
“It will be understood if the opposition feels disappointed that our economy is gradually regaining momentum and therefore would not offer them the opportunity to campaign against the ruling party using those parameters.
“But it is unacceptable and utterly unpatriotic to stoke violence at this period in the name of protest. The citizens have a right to protest but they do not owe the unpatriotic opposition elements, the window of violence,” Fanwo said.
He added: “The Government of Kogi State wishes to state clearly that it is totally in solidarity with efforts at the centre and sub-national levels to put the economy of our dear nation on the right track.
“The President and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR is working assiduously to get the nation’s economy working again.
“Apart from the fiscal and monetary policies that are already yielding positive results, the Federal Government has injected economic stimulating incentives to address the challenges we are facing in the short, medium and long-term.
“Agriculture, industrialization, infrastructure, education and healthcare are receiving due attention from the Federal Government.
“The administration of Alh. Ahmed Usman Ododo in Kogi State is completely committed to ensuring the central efforts percolate into the state as we have begun massive investments in agriculture, education, healthcare and infrastructure.
“We have also continued to support homes across the state with palliatives to cushion the effects of the economic hardship occasioned by decades of mismanagement that the Tinubu Administration is working hard to correct.”
He revealed that the government of Kogi State has credible intelligence at its disposal which points “undoubtedly to the desperation of certain opposition figures to unsettle the nation and stop our march to recovery and prosperity.
“They are fanning the embers of war using protest as a smokescreen. It is our responsibility to stop these unpatriotic elements bent on manipulating the citizens to achieve their evil expectations.
“It is heartwarming that we have received reports that our citizens are ready to march in solidarity with Mr. President’s efforts at defending the economic interests of the poor.
“We are proud of the fact that the people of Kogi have refused to yield the state to the macabre dance of agents of destabilization.
“In furtherance of the efforts of the Government of Kogi State to deepen patriotic orientation in our dear State, the Chief Servant of Kogi State has directed the State Ministry of Information and Communications to step up sensitization efforts aimed at keeping the people informed about what Government is doing at all levels.
“The administration of His Excellency, Alh Ahmed Usman Ododo, has also expressed its commitment to investing in cushioning the impact of the economic challenges, promoting industrialization to enable young people to get jobs, prioritizing agriculture to crash the prices of food in the State and the nation as well as other measures to improve the standards of living in the state.
“Protests won’t crash the prices of food, intentional investment in agriculture like we are doing at the moment, will.
“We urge parents and guardians to give the right orientation to their wards. Nigeria cannot afford another violent destruction of public infrastructure in the name of protests.”
