SPOTLIGHT: Beyond economic hardship, these are other issues protest organisers have raised

As Nigeria prepares for a nationwide protest billed to begin on 1 August, there are uncertainties about its possible fallouts in a country that has seen the bad and the good of such street demonstrations.

It has refreshed the memories of the October 2020 #EndSARS protest, which went on peacefully around the country until hoodlums began to loot stores and attack public infrastructure and security operatives.

However, unlike the 2020 protest, which centred primarily on police brutality, this protest is mainly driven by the discontent of many citizens with the government’s handling of the economy.

The protesters have rebuffed appeals from President Bola Tinubu’s administration to drop the protest plan to allow the government to focus on addressing their demands.

There is a motley of interests and personalities driving the mobilisation for the protest.

So, the demands have been as varied as the diversity of the protest organisers, none of whom can boast of having a complete list of the protest wishes.

Many issues beyond the core rallying point have been drilled into the wish lists of the protesters.

PREMIUM TIMES collated some of these demands in posts and flyers shared by users on various social media platforms.

The demands range from economic hardship, reforms, and the enthronement of a credible electoral system to accountability and justice in the country.

Some critics of the protests say some of the demands are unachievable because of their vague nature. Others read motives to some of the demands, just as Mr Tinubu has described the protest as politically motivated.

As the #EndBadGovernanceInNigeria protest approaches, we present some of the main demands of the aggrieved protesters.

Economic demands

This category of demands forms the protest’s core and primary rallying points.

Central to the protest is the rising cost of living.

The cost of living has been skyrocketing since last year after President Tinubu announced the removal of fuel subsidy and the floating of the naira.

Therefore, in their demands, the protesters call for a restoration of the subsidy, demanding further a reduction of fuel prices to below N300 per litre.

Some protesters demand an increase of the national minimum wage to N300,000 instead of the N70,000 that President Bola Tinubu signed into law on Monday.

They also seek affordable electricity tariffs and the establishment of an emergency fund for small and medium enterprises, which they believe are the lifeblood of the nation’s crumbling economy.

Additionally, the protesters demand a state of emergency on inflation to address the rising costs that burden every household.

They also call for reopening national borders to stimulate trade and prioritise made-in-Nigeria goods to bolster local economies.

The protesters urge the government to restore import duties to their previous rates to revive local industries and ease financial strain on consumers.

Security, accountability and credible electoral system

There are security and accountability themes on the protesters’ list of demands.

For instance, they want the government to address general insecurity in the country while calling for an end to decades-long banditry and herders and farmers clashes.

Some of them tied the lingering insecurity in South-east Nigeria to the continued detention of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, who is facing trial over his Republic of Biafra agitation.

The protesters also advocate for reforms to make public officers more accountable and strengthen institutions to deliver justice to deserving persons and groups.

They call for public disclosure and reduced remuneration for senators and members of the House of Representatives.

Recently, PREMIUM TIMES reported that the House of Representatives announced a six-month 50 per cent cut from their basic salary as a ‘sacrifice’.

The protesters also want the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to operate more independently from the executive branch, underscoring a desire for a more credible electoral process.

To complement that effort, they call for law reforms to make live electronic transmission of electoral results mandatory to safeguard democracy.

They also want the government to release illegally detained #EndSARS protesters who campaigned against police brutality and remain.

Concerning education, the protesters demand that the government ensure that every child has access to quality education.

They also insist that the children of public officeholders must attend public schools. They believe this would compel them to develop the nation’s crumbling public schools.

They also seek the reform of the anti-corruption agencies, including the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the judiciary, to enable them to bring high-profile corrupt officers and other perpetrators of other forms of crimes to justice.

The protesters also seek total electoral reforms, including an independent investigation into the N355 billion allocated for electoral processes in 2022, demanding transparency and accountability from Nigerian leadership.