Arewa Youths Assembly for Good Leadership (AYAGL), an umbrella body of the young people from the 19 Northern States and the Rehoboth Community Advancement Initiative (RECAN), has urged Nigerian youths to resist the temptation of participating in the proposed nationwide protest.
The group urged youths in the north to do everything possible to protect their land and nation from every form of violence and invasion.
A statement signed by the Speaker, AYAGL, Ambassador Abdul Danbature, yesterday called on well-meaning Nigerians to consider other forms of protest apart from street protest so as not to play into the hands of the nation’s enemies.
“We have therefore concluded to explore other avenues to express our displeasure, and this we have done by writing a detailed position paper to Mr President, this is enjoying adequate attention of the Government as we speak, and we, at this point, officially and collectively withdraw from the National Street protest”.
“As you all know, recently, we have been at the forefront of the struggle to mobilise for the forthcoming National protest tagged ‘End Bad Governance in Nigeria’. This is because we are convinced that there are genuine grounds to protest, ranging from insecurity to the harsh economic situation in the Nation due to some economic policies of this government.”
The group said that as they were initially mobilising for the protest, they were also consulting their Stakeholders in Northern Nigeria; the Royal Fathers, the Entrepreneurs and some political and social actors across the lengths and breaths of our region and all these consultations have enriched and deepen our knowledge about the various government policies and programs, hence a rethink on not participating and calling others to shun the protest.
“We have also understood that while we have genuine intentions to express our displeasure with the current economic situation in our Nation, there are other, more effective ways to communicate the same message, bearing in mind that there are different enemies of our Nation both within and outside Nigeria waiting for every available opportunity to perpetrate evil in Nigeria,” the youth group emphasised.
RECAN, on its part, through its executive director, Dcn Nathaniel Cinwon Abaniwo, urged the Youth to choose the path of peace, understanding, and collective progress for a better Nigeria. We must remember that, together, we can build a more harmonious and prosperous Nigeria of our collective dreams.