The pan-Yoruba socio-political organisation, Afenifere, on Thursday, x-rayed the third anniversary of of the President Bola Tinubu administration, lamenting that that it has been has been characterised by maladministration, poverty, unemployment, mass killings, kidnappings, tampering with democratic federalism and subjugation of other arms of government.
The statement, titled’ Tinubu’s 3 year Report: ‘Summum Malum
or Summum Bonum’, urged the administration to change its course towards a one
man rule by allowing credible opposition parties and voices to exist.
The statement reads: “On May 29th, formerly Democracy Day,
now Inauguration Day, Afenifere is fearful of the current course of our
democracy, and commiserates with Nigerian citizens following three years of the
inauguration of this maladministration that has bred poverty, unemployment,
mass killings and kidnappings, tampering with democratic federalism and
subjugation of other arms of government.
“Across the world, citizens are motivated by their
governments either with Summum Malum – fear of ultimate evil – violent death,
poverty, tyranny, or Summum Bonum – promise of ultimate good – homes,
prosperity, security.
“For an administration that came to power on a mantra of
renewed hope, we can only dare to hope that our electoral system can do the
right thing by the next Inauguration Day due to the following reasons:
“The nightmare of ultimate evil has become a reality under
APC administration with teachers being beheaded, children being kidnapped and
villages ransacked and displaced.
“The ongoing kidnapping of students and teachers and
gruesome murders in Kwara, Oyo and other states is a painful reminder of the
Tinubu government’s culpable wilful negligence of not restructuring our
security architecture, especially the failure to create state and community
Police.
“Nigerians can’t but question whether there is an unholy
pact between the APC and terrorists/bandits/mercenaries, following the
admittance by some APC stalwarts that they imported terrorists to embarrass
President Jonathan out of office in 2015, after which insecurity moved
wholesale to President Muhammadu Buhari’s Northwest region, and now to
President Tinubu Southwest region.
“Previously, we heard of politicians sleeping in coffins for
political pacts with their godfathers, now our whole democracy is wearing
coffin shoes under APC governance.’
On the economy, the Yoruba body said: “The ultimate evil is
also being witnessed economically, as a result of President Tinubu’s neoliberal
economics that has resulted in the poverty rate increasing to 63% and debt of
N65.9 trillion for cost of governance and tokenist development projects.
“Despite the concerted efforts and propaganda to cover the
true state of the economy, the unimplemented budgets, false revenue and
employment statistics, two out of three Nigerians are facing dire circumstances
of lack of food and secured shelter.
“Nigeria ranks as the world’s second-largest extreme poor
population after India. We also have the highest homelessness in the world with
30 million homeless people. Also, Nigeria now has the world’s lowest life
expectancy rate at 54.6 years, 20 years lower than the global average. Nigeria
also has one of the world’s highest infant mortality rate.
Therefore Nigerians feel threatened by the replacement of a
finance minister that oversaw the drastic fall in living standards with an
undertaker tax man bent on sapping blood from our anemic economy.
“Afenifere has insisted from the first day in office that
the ideological position of neoliberal economic policies being adopted can
never yield good fruits. It is known to breed poverty, great income
inequalities, prebendalist governance and ethnic conflicts.
“While the government appeals to the people to make economic
sacrifices for the unworkable reforms, government corruption and cost of
governance increases.
‘The recent N800 billion campaign finance allegedly deducted
from federal allocations to states by APC governors is immoral, illegal and a
threat to democratic institutions.”
“This administration has thrown all caution to wind from
allocating contracts without due to process to companies belonging to friends
and family, to corrupting all arms of government.
“The continued institutional bullying of opposition parties,
labour and student unions is a defiant march towards fascism. The independence
of our electoral and judicial institutions are being compromised. Instead of
our electoral system evolving to a higher state, new reforms have degraded its
moral compass.
“Summarily, in this last year of the administration,
Afenifere and other well meaning Nigerians can only have the audacity of hope
of a free and fair elections to replace the current Summum Malum/Ultimate Evil
with Summum Bonum/Ultimate Good.
“Afenifere hereby implores the Tinubu administration to
change its course towards a One Man rule by allowing credible opposition
parties and voices to exist, to allow a free and fair election, and to prevent
unsavory change and total derailment of our democracy.”
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