Hardship: Atiku, UN disagree over protest

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Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar and the United Nations, UN, yesterday disagreed over the planned protest against the economic hardship in the country.

While the former vice president asked the Federal Government to allow Nigerians to exercise their constitutional rights to organise a peaceful protest, the UN United Nations Department of Safety and Security warned that the planned protests might be hijacked by groups with ulterior motives.

In a post on his X yesterday, Atiku said it was ironic that those stifling rights of Nigerians to protest in 2024 were leading protesters in 2012.

He slammed President Bola Tinubu’s administration for attempting to suppress the protesters, describing it as an “exercise in futility”.

The former vice-president said the government’s incompetence has caused widespread suffering, affecting citizens, including supporters of the ruling party and those of the president.
He added that any attempt to suppress the rights of Nigerians to protest was not only unconstitutional but a direct affront on democracy.

Atiku wrote: “For the avoidance of doubt, the rights of citizens to protest are enshrined in the Nigerian Constitution and affirmed by our courts. Section 40 of the 1999 Constitution (as altered) unequivocally guarantees the right to peaceful assembly and association.

“Chasing shadows and contriving purported persons behind the planned protests is an exercise in futility when it is obvious that Nigerians, including supporters of Tinubu and the ruling APC, are caught up in the hunger, anger, and hopelessness brought about by the incompetence and cluelessness of this government.

“It is deeply ironic that those who now seek to stifle these rights were themselves leading protests in 2012. A responsible government must ensure a safe and secure environment for citizens to exercise their constitutionally guaranteed rights to peaceful protest.

‘’Any attempt to suppress these rights is not only unconstitutional but a direct affront to our democracy.”

On July 20, Bayo Onanuga, special adviser on information and strategy to the president, alleged that supporters of Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 elections, were behind the proposed nationwide protest.

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