By CHARLES IWUOHA

A Human Rights Lawyer, Dr Jezie Ekejiuba, has advised President BolaTinubu to take a cue from his Kenyan counterpart, President Ruto in addressing the ongoing nationwide #EndBadgovernance Protests.

Ekejiuba, who is the President of Voters Rights Association of Nigeria (VRAN), stated this in an open letter to President BolaTinubu: entitled “Nigerian Youths and poor masses Deserved Better”.

The letter reads in part: “After hearing and reading from the print and electronic media as well as from the online social media platforms, your early morning presidential speech broadcast live this early Sunday morning of August 4, 2024 on the ongoing bad governance and hunger protests by the BRAVE Nigerian youths, it became very crystal clear and sure as day follows night that you will go down in the history of Nigeria as the Worst President of Nigeria.

“How can you make such an evasive speech which merely rehashed the arm-chair anti-poor people’s policies that never works or the provocative self-claimed achievements that only exists on the news pages of newspapers and electronic news waves without even for a single moment address the problems of high cost of bad-governance, prohibitive fuel and electricity prices and devaluation of naira that have made the lives of about 99% of Nigerians unbearable.

“Your government has as a state policy enthroned starvation and famine as a way to punish Nigerians. This is man’s inhumanity to man!It is not too late to reverse your anti-poor policies. It is now or never.

“Former President Muhammadu Buhari laid the trap for the next government and even though you saw the trap in advance but you still fell for the trap. How can an outgoing government refuse to make budgetary provision for an age long petrol subsidy policy that is as old as Nigeria so as to enable the incoming government to prepare well and take a decision one way or the other before the eventual removal if need be.

“Petroleum product is a mineral resource found in the ancestral lands of Nigeria and it remains an inheritance of all Nigerians hence the age long petrol subsidy administered by succeeding governments of Nigeria from independence to military era befote your emergence as President through a rigged poll. Your current National Budget is in Trillions of naira.

“Are you meaning that the children or youths of a man called Nigeria who is a Trillionaire will be hungry and starved to death when the father (Fatherland) is so rich? This is unbelievable. This is the cause of action of the protesting youths. The legendary Chief Obafemi Awolowo of the blessed memory made this wise saying: “Failing to prepare is preparing to fail” .Your current 100% failure is a good example of this wise saying.

“For how can you justify that on the first day of your inauguration as President of Nigeria you declared: “Petrol Subsidy is gone forever!” As President everything is free for you at government expenses including petrol or fuel for your travels, free food, free housing, free cars, free medicare, in fact free everything and because of this free everything in your life you fail to feel the sufferings of the youths and poor masses.

“What will it profit you and your government of the cabals by the cabals and for the cabals if you gain the whole world and chastise the poor masses with scorpions?

“Please take a cue from how President Ruto of Kenya addressed the similar protest that happened in Kenya not long time ago. Do not feign ignorant of how to address the teething problems raised by the protesting youths of Nigeria in the interest of peace and harmony in our dear nation.”