Minority Caucus in the House of Representatives has urged the President Bola Tinubu-led government to dialogue with the protesters in order to arrest and address issues.
Speaking with journalists after a dinner held in Abuja yesterday, the Chairman of the Caucus, Kingsley Chinda also persuaded the people against the proposed nationwide protest, stressing that the timing and intent of the industrial action might compound insecurity in many parts of the country.
“We also appealed to the government to dialogue with the planned protesters and also look at some of the messages they are raising, the critical areas that need government intervention. Government should intervene and ensure that issues are resolved amicably.
“We are not going to encourage any protesters because in the past we have observed in most cases that even peaceful protests have been overtaken by hoodlums and with the insecurity situation in some parts of the country, you may not have the control of the gathering of people. So some unscrupulous people may use the opportunity to create chaos.
“So we are discouraging any protest but we appeal to government to dialogue and also look at critical areas that are necessary and address them amicably,” he said..
He, therefore called on the federal government to adopt the carrot and stick method in addressing the problem of insecurity in the country even as he also observed that protest cannot solve Nigeria problem.
The caucus equally urged the government to create valid and sustainable means of livelihood that will ensure that citizens are self reliant in a bid to tackle the current prevailing economic downturn in Nigeria.
“We also acknowledged in our discussion that there is hunger in the land and we appeal to the government not only to be giving palliatives but to create ways and means whereby people can be self-reliant,” he said.
He said the dinner was organised to thank all the members for their support.
