The mouthpiece of the North, Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), has said that average Nigerians are facing unbearable and tough times due to the hard economic policies introduced by the federal government under the leadership of Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

This was contained in a communiqué read by the National Publicity Secretary of the forum, Professor Muhammad Tukur Baba, at the end of its National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting held in Kaduna on Tuesday.

NEC observed that life is tough and challenging for the average citizen, who is daily confronted with runaway inflation, unemployment, and a rapid deterioration in standards of living.

The Northern socio-cultural organization further noted that, “the immediate causes of the problems have been policies put in place by the government over the past months, including but not confined to the removal of subsidies from the prices of petroleum products, floating of the Naira, and astronomical hikes in the cost of poorly supplied electricity, increasing tariffs, and taxes against the seemingly insensitive profligacy in spending by public officials, to list a few.”

NEC acknowledges the efforts that the Federal, state, and, to a little extent, local governments have been making to tackle the identified problems.

However, overall, it is undeniable, perhaps due to the quantum and widening dimension of the problems, that the public policy response to the problems remains weak and ineffective at best.

ACF posited that, “With grave concern, regrets, and decries the continuing deterioration or escalation in the spate of insecurity-related incidents in all three geopolitical zones under which the northern states are grouped.

“These problems reflect on the region’s cascading political, social, and economic challenges. NEC reiterates AC’s earlier expressed position that the emergent protracted dimensions of these problems, if untamed, are harbingers of citizens’ discontent and social chaos.

“Equally worrisome is the widening regional disparities in socio demographic factors, such as access to education, health public, infrastructure, economic inclusion, political participation, living conditions, etc.

“Governments must move to curb such disparities so as to ensure that Nigeria does not become two states in one. Factors that unify rather than divide citizens along any lines should attract the attention of all concerned, government, and citizens alike.

“As it has severally reiterated in recent public outings, ACF calls for urgent action and definitive attention, by government at all levels, to confront the rapid decline in the living conditions of citizens.

“The addition of new taxes and levies is becoming increasingly burdensome and too heavy to bear for ordinary Nigerians. The need for a rollout of public policy programs and projects aimed at addressing low purchasing power challenges is clearly indicated,” ACF said.

ACF calls on citizens to rally around the government and offer prayers for God Almighty’s intervention in our various tribulations, such as will translate into a new, prosperous Nigeria where justice, equity, love, righteousness, and hope emerge to replace the current despair and hopelessness.

To inspire the spirit of needed sacrifices by citizens, ACF calls on public functionaries to shun profligacy and recklessness in spending public funds.

As always, unequivocally supports Nigeria’s security agents in their determined efforts to rid the country of criminality, insecurity, and instability and pray that they very soon enough prevail over insurgents, terrorists, and bandits. God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria. (Nigerian Tribune)

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