In the wake of the Call for National Protest against #BadGovernment in the Country, Nigerians have been advised to embrace round table talks rather than resulting to Protest.
The Ohi of Okene, His Royal Highness, Dr. Isah Mamman Okatahi, made the call at a meeting he held with other Traditional Rulers from Okene District at his Palace in Okene Local Government Area of Kogi State.
Dr. Mamman, who is also the Chairman, Okene District Area Traditional Council, said the meeting was called as part of efforts at ensuring that youth are well cautioned against acts that may be inimical to the Progress of the Society.
He cited that Protests in the past have been hijacked by enemies of the State, causing untold hardship to the people, stressing that it was important for the people to learn from the past to correct the future.
“The purpose of this meeting is to advice our youth regarding the planned Nationwide Protest slated for August 1st, 2024. We want to advice our youth who are always the frontliners when issues of this nature comes up
“We have not actually seen the need for the Protest because Protest of this nature have been hijacked in the past and the result has not been favourable. We knew how the #EndSARS Protest ended. The result was negative. Lives and property were lost and we are yet to recover from the aftermath
“We are advising youth in our domain, Ebiraland, Kogi State and Nigeria at large that dialogue is the best way to settling issues and the more we dialogue with government and give useful advices, the better for us
“As Royal Fathers, we are closer to the people at the grassroots so we are using this opportunity to inform us that we need to speak to our youth to desist from plans that will not contribute to the progress of the Society”, he stressed.
The Traditional Ruler however called on the Federal Government to intensify efforts at meeting the yearnings of the citizens of the Country, stressing that delivering purposeful leadership is all Nigerians are asking for.
“The challenges of today have been in existence even before the coming on board of the present Government. We know that they are unsurmountable. The removal of Fuel Subsidy also contributed to it but such was done to better the lives of the Citizens but it came with its short time consequences which we are facing today
“At this point, the Government will need to intensify more efforts at curbing security challenges so that Farmers can go back to their farms and contribute their quota to food security in Nigeria. The Government should do something about the high cost of fuel and food commodity in the Market, and more should be done in the issue of unemployment in the Country”.
HRH, Dr. Isah Mamman Okatahi, also praised the Federal Government for winning the long term Local Government Financial Autonomy Case, adding that it will go a long way at bringing governance closer to the people at the Grassroots.
The meeting was crowned with prayers for peace in Nigeria, Kogi State and Ebiraland as they also prayed to God to grant Leaders in Authority the wisdom to make decisions and take actions that will impact the lives of the citizens of the Country, positively.