Protesters under the aegis of Coalition of Concern Nigeria Citizens on Thursday, stormed major roads in Osogbo in compliance with the nationwide hunger protest slated for Aug. 1 to Aug. 10.
By Olajide Idowu
Protesters under the aegis of Coalition of Concern Nigeria Citizens on Thursday, stormed major roads in Osogbo in compliance with the nationwide hunger protest slated for Aug. 1 to Aug. 10.
The protesters, who initially converged on the freedom park, marched to Olaiya junction, carrying placards with different inscriptions and singing anti-government songs.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that, while the protest was peaceful, vehicular movement was halted during the protest.
Ajala Adetunji, the coordinator of the group, told journalists that they were out, to call the attention of government to hunger and poverty “biting Nigerians”.
Adetunji said: “We are out on the streets to protest because we are hungry, we have been impoverished because of bad policies and programmes of this government.
“We are here, not because of any political affiliation, not because anybody has given us a dime; but as a result of difficult situations we are facing
“What you are seeing today, is a function of the hunger and starvation that the people have been subjected to.
He added: “The youth population is the largest here, and they are the ones suffering the most. The Government must know that the office of the citizen, is the highest office in the land.
“We are not afraid of anybody. What we have come out to do, is to exercise our rights as guaranteed in the Constitution of Nigeria.
“We are here to establish what we are passing through, in defiant of the propaganda that we should not come out,” he said.
Speaking specifically on their demands, Adetunji said the pump price of petrol should be brought down, to ameliorate the sufferings of the people.
“President Bola Tinubu should review his tough policies to reduce cost of living,” he said.
Ajala said, although, the protest was slated to last for 10 days, they were going to review it in the state, because of the forthcoming Osun-Osogbo festival.
NAN reports that the protesters later marched peacefully to the state House of Assembly in Abere, with heavy security presence to prevent the protest from being hijacked by hoodlums
Meanwhile, Commercial banks and many shops in Osogbo were under key and lock, due to the protest. (NAN)
