In response to the lingering economic hardship and increasing calls for a nationwide protest against President Bola Tinubu’s administration, the Federal Government called for an emergency meeting.
The Federal Executive Council meeting was convened by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume.
Now, the government has appealed to Nigerians for more time, promising that the situation is being addressed with urgency.
This message was conveyed by the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, on Wednesday in Abuja after the meeting.
Family Matter
According to Idris, the planned protest is a “family matter” and should be resolved in a manner that ensures peace and stability across the country.
The Minister acknowledged the legitimate concerns of Nigerians.
Idris stressed that the Tinubu-led administration is focused on implementing solutions to curb the lingering hardship.
He emphasised that dialogue and patience are essential during this period of economic transition.
Idris, after the closed-door meeting, told journalists: “We came together to discuss. You can see that this is not happening at the Council Chambers, it’s happening at the office of the SGF, and many of the ministers are here.
We have discussed issues of national interest, and all of us are working for Nigeria and we hope and believe that Nigeria is going to be great again.”
The Protest
“No one is going to sleep. Those who are agitating and asking for protests are Nigerians, and they are our brothers, they are our sisters, they are all Nigerians and those in positions of authority; the ministers, the President, everybody, we are all Nigerians too. So, this is a family matter.
This is a Nigerian family issue, and all of us are looking at this issue very well and we hope that peace will prevail at the end of the day.”
Idris was asked whether the government has been engaging with the stakeholders and organisers of the planned protest.
He replied: “This is not a peculiar situation. Engagement has been ongoing.
The President has met severally with all key stakeholders. I have also been meeting with stakeholders, and other government functionaries have also been meeting with other key stakeholders.”
Tinubu Is Working
“Engagement is going to continue and in the interest of Nigeria, we will continue to engage.
We know this is the only country that all of us have, and at the end of the day, Nigeria is going to be better for all of us for it”, he added.
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Idris continued: “If you have anything that you want to put out there, you are free to put it out there, but the government is insisting that we are all Nigerians.
“We have to be calm, we have to be patient and suffice it to say that let us give peace a chance.
Mr President is working round the clock, his ministers are working, everyone is working, all hands are on deck.”
“Like I said yesterday, everyone is listening; we are all listening.
The President is listening, and he has a message for all Nigerians; that message is that they should all calm down; they should please give the man more time.
Everything they asked for, all their pleas will be answered”, he added.
Ministers Present At The Meeting
Some Ministers present at the meeting included:
Nyesom Wike (FCT)
Yusuf Tuggar (Foreign Affairs)
Zephaniah Jisalo (Special Duties)
Tahir Mamman (Education)
Abubakar Bagudu (Budget and Planning)
Wale Edun (Finance)
Mohammed Idris (Information)
Bello Matawalle (Defence)
David Umahi (Works)
National Security Adviser (NSA) Nuhu Ribadu.
