The Imo State Chairman of the National Union of Road Transport Workers, NURTW, Samuel Udeh has enjoined members of the union not to join the protest.
Nigerians are gearing up to stage a nationwide protest against hunger and bad governance. The pretest is billed to commence tomorrow August 1.
But Udeh do not want the union to be associated with the protest on the ground that the possiblity of hijacking the protest was high, among other reasons.
Udeh reiterated his stance during an emergency meeting of the State Executive Committee, SEC, of the Union, held on Tuesday in Owerri.
Addressing the executives, Udeh noted that though a peaceful demonstration by citizens to express the unfair treatment being meted out on them by their leaders was a constitutional right, this particular right had been abused and wrongly carried out, which according to him had caused more pains, sorrows and setbacks.
The NURTW boss therefore urged the members to resist the temptation of joining the planned protest.
He believed that dialogue with the leaders remained the best approach of getting things done rightly in the country rather than resorting to protest.
He said “The risk and possibility of the protest being hijacked by miscreants and hoodlums who may want to use it to perpetrate evil and cause havoc in the process should be a concern to Imo citizens.
“We are not disputing the fact that there is hunger and hardship in the land, but we must be careful not to allow those with evil intentions of destroying lives and property to prevail”, Udeh said.
In their separate speeches, some of the executive members agreed with the Chairman, they commended him for calling the meeting as it afforded them the opportunity to know the position of the Union as regards to the protest.
They acknowledged the Chairman’s effort in fighting for the general good of members, stating that he has always carried members along in the scheme of things.
