The Zamfara Indigenes Enlightenment Forum (ZIEF) has cautioned its members to shun planned nationwide protest against President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
The forums’ spokesperson, Alhaji Tanimu made the call at a press briefing in Gusau on Saturday.
He noted that the forum is a non-profit organization dedicated to addressing socio-cultural, economics and political issues in Zamfara draws its membership from the academia, professional bodies, youths organizations, students unions, civil society organizations among others.
“Recently, some Nigerians have been advocating for peaceful protests as a means of expressing dissatisfaction with government economic policies such as the removal of petroleum subsidy, increase in electricity tariffs, and the interest rate, among others.
“The outcomes of these policies have resulted in high costs of living, devaluation of the naira, unemployment, and the impoverishment of the majority of Nigerians”, he noted
He further said that the forum admitted high cost of living has caused untold hardship to Nigerians.
“The majority of Nigerians could not afford medical bills, rent, school fees for their children, or three meals a day.
“Hundreds of industries were either shut down or relocated to other countries due to unfavourable economic policies, and subsequently, thousands of people lost their jobs.
“After exhaustive deliberation and consultation on the planned nationwide protest with various stakeholders, we decided to withdraw from the upcoming national protest for the overall interest of Zamfara state and Nigeria as a whole”, he explained.
He said that, the Section 40 of Nigeria’s constitution (1999, as amended) provides that “every person shall be entitled to free assembly, associate with other persons, and protest peacefully.”
“The forum has observed that absence of well-defined goals can lead to confusion and disorganization among the protesters. This lack of coordination can cause logistical problems, such as difficulties in planning routes, managing crowds, and ensuring safety of both the protesters and general public.
“When objectives of the protest are not well defined, there is a greater chance that the protest may devolve into violence.
“Protesters may act on their own agendas or frustrations, leading to unpredictable and potentially dangerous situations, such as looting, destruction of public and private properties”, he added.
He further said that the forum remains committed to advocating for positive change and social justice, but we believe that these goals must be pursued through well-organized, peaceful, and structured means.
