There have been massive reactions following President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s speech on Sunday August 4th addressing protesters nationwide.

Many Nigerians are displeased with the speech and have voiced out their displeasure through their social handles.

Many of them lamented that the speech of the president failed to tackle the demands.

Speaking to ipledge2nigeria.net webteam, Executive Director of RULAAC, Okechukwu Nwanguma said: “The President’s broadcast, while belated, sounded perfunctory and defensive. He appeared to have made the broadcast just to fulfill all righteousness as he did not address concrete issues contained in the genuine demands of the protesters.

“I had expected the president to go beyond commiserating with families of those who were killed to order an investigation into their killing. The law requires that investigations should be ordered into all cases of unlawful killing with a view to identifying, trying, and bringing the perpetrators to account and compensating the families of the victims. They didn’t just die. They were killed. A government that cares will require an inquest into every killing and direct accountability on the part of whoever – protester or security agent – shown to have been involved.

“He also claimed that the oil and gas industry is experiencing a resurgence. But how has this impacted economic growth and in the lives of the people?

“The broadcast is entirely silent on corruption, extravagant lifestyle, and conspicuous consumption by his coterie, including by the national assembly. It made no mention of the cost of government or implementation of the Oronsanye Report. Couldn’t he have made the concession of reducing the number of federal ministries, many of which are not only dysfunctional but also contributing to wastage?

“He also made no comment about nepotism and the use of public offices as avenues of compensation and ‘settlement’ for political allies.

“One area he mentioned that sounded positive was about the people promoting ethnic hate, discrimination, and bigotry. But he fell short by failing to order the arrest and prosecution of the promoters of bigotry since they are well known. In fact, some of his official spokespersons have been openly involved in promoting bigotry. They carried it over from the last governorship election in Lagos State when well-known ethnic bigots threatened and attacked non indigenes and got away with it.

“While appearing to be open to dialogue, the President did not provide any avenue, channel, or mechanism for engagement and dialogue with the people.

“He did not respond directly to the people’s demands nor provided timeliness for meeting the specific demands.

“The president missed the opportunity to demonstrate genuine empathy and assuage the grievances of the people.

Also Saludeen Hashim, a Political Analyst referred to the President’s speech as “baa la blue baloney. Low spirited, tired, and worn. Out of touch, tone deaf and ineffectual. It sounded like something prepared for his one year anniversary. A hurriedly written jambled rigmarole after the Oro and other janjaweed tactics failed. He didn’t bother to appease the protesters. He didn’t make a single policy change. He didn’t bring anything to the table. My guess is, he did it to fulfill all righteousness for foreign observers. He still trusts in the wily and coarse hands of his agents who believe the protesters are either hired hands of vindictive political opponents and sore losers or idle folks seeking gratuitous political mischief. In between the lines of drudgery, it’s obvious he has confidence in his goons to muzzle and suppress protests

Nothing in that speech indicated that he watched the happenings of the past week with pain and empathy. He churned out too many half truths and ignored hard truths. The speech was a piece of pretty nonsense. Full of regurgitated and nauseating fluff, bereft of conviction and repentance. The president is sleepwalking. His men are grandstanding, he added.

Also human rights lawyer Inibehe Effiong described President Bola Tinubu’s Sunday broadcast to Nigerians as a disconnection from reality and a failure to address the protesters’ demands.

Effiong further stated on his X page that the president’s speech was a collection of empty words and irrelevant content.

In his address, President Tinubu ruled out the return of the fuel subsidy, contrary to the demands of the ongoing #EndBadGovernance protesters, who are seeking the reinstatement of the controversial scheme.

Effiong stated that great leaders make sacrifices for their country, while terrible leaders like Tinubu only sacrifice the country for their own interests.

According to him, “President Tinubu’s speech is a collection of empty words and irrelevant content. It confirms my long-held view that we are dealing with a political class that is intentionally deaf and willfully blind to the sufferings and yearnings of Nigerians.

“This President is disconnected from the reality of the everyday Nigerian. He’s living in an imaginary Nigeria that exists only in his mind. The speech could not have been more meaningless or aimless. Those who wrote it, and Mr. Tinubu who read it, have only succeeded in justifying the reasons for the nationwide protests.

“It is appalling that despite the events witnessed across the country in the last three days, the President did not address the specific demands of the protesters. A government is only useful if it serves the interests of the governed. This government is anti-people.

“Tinubu made no mention of electoral reform, no reversal of his harmful and devastating economic policies, and made no attempt to reduce the over-bloated size of his government. He made no concessions. This President, like despots, ignores the agitations of the masses. Great leaders make sacrifices for their country, but terrible leaders like Tinubu only know how to sacrifice the country for their own interests.

“It is not his voice that people wanted to hear; they wanted him to speak directly to their demands. His call for dialogue is in bad faith. He did not address the mindless killing of protesters by security agencies in any meaningful way, nor did he set up any credible machinery for purposeful dialogue.

“Tinubu is preoccupied with the ridiculous idea that the protest is being sponsored by his political adversaries. This provocative arrogance by Nigerian politicians will one day be ended by Nigerians, one way or another.”

Speaking on the broadcast, SAN Jibrin Samuel through his X handle @JibrinSAN wrote that the speech dashed the expectations of many Nigerians.

According to him: “Before the official broadcast of President Ahmed Bola Tinubu this morning, the speech was already on social media. For me, this is not right. Be that as it may, while the speech gave this government pass marks for the efforts the government has made in the last one year, the speech dashed many hopes. The expectations of many Nigerians were dashed.

“Given what led to the protests, many expected the speech not only to bark but bite some persons in government.

For instance, the speech did not condemn in the strongest of terms, the unprovoked attacks on defenseless citizens by hungry triggered security agents who provoked the protesters. No head ever rolled, or nobody in government was sacked for provocative and inciting statements that were clearly unpatriotic and unwarranted.

Nothing was said about those who hired thugs to attack protesters. Those in government who, out of self-serving and selfish reasons, made provocative statements were never condemned. The president did not say anything about the costs of governance in Nigeria. I was expecting the slashing of salaries and allowances of political appointees and scrapping of unnecessary offices of political aids.

The increments’ in allocations to the States, good as it seems, have not produced proportional good governance in the states except very few states. The president was completely silent on the expensive lifestyles of those in government who have demonstrated carefree attitudes to the pains of Nigerians. The careless speeches from some government functionaries that provoked angers were never addressed by Mr. President.

Apart from the mention of the Lagos Calabar Road and Sokoto Lagos Roads or something like that, nothing in the speech suggests what to expect in health care systems. Corruption was not touched. The hoarding of goods by political actors was not touched. Those who are acting in sabotage of the palliatives said have been released were spared.

What drastic actions are there to make goods and fuel available to Nigerians were never disclosed. What actions are being taken for functional refineries we were not told. Indeed, for me, it was a speech lading with statistics of government achievements that are only visible to those who are benefiting from the money inherent in those achievements on paper.

Honestly, looking at Mr. President’s broadcast and the statement released, I saw a self contradictory struggle between a president who understood what led to the protests and a typical Nigerian politician who sees the hands of political opponents in every failure of government.

For instance, paragraphs 5 and 31 of the presidents’ statements are self-contradictory. In paragraph 5, Mr. President said: “…our government will not stand idly by and allow a few with a clear political agenda to tear this nation apart.”But in paragraph 31 of the speech, Mr. President acknowledged and then said: “… I understand the pain and frustration that drive these protests …”

From paragraph 31 of the speech, Mr. President understood the problems that led to the protests. The problems are high costs of living, lack of basic amenities, etc. These are not political enemies induced problems. Mr. President, please focus on solving these problems and leave political opponents alone for now, he added.

Using her X handle, @mercyAgera Mercy Agera accused the president of not being sensitive to the plight of the masses.

According to her: “Tinubu bought the seat with his funds as alleged by the traditional ruler. Here’s not there for the masses as seen in his speech. He doesn’t care whether we can move from one place to another. His concern is about what he can get from Nigeria, not what he can do for her.”

However reknowed statesman Atedo Peterside via his X handle @AtedoPeterside addressed the protesters

“Dear Protesters,
I doff my hat to those of you who have been protesting peacefully since 01 August. You have shaken Nigeria to the core and dispelled the falsehood that many of our youths are not politically active and/or do not care to demand good governance. I beg you in the name of God to please call off the protest now. In the aftermath of #EndSars (see my lengthy @AriseTV interview from 2020 attached) I explained that any mass street action that goes on for more than a few days will be infiltrated and overtaken by hoodlums. Please end the protests today (Sunday). Poor Nigerians cannot endure protests for more than a few days. You have made your point. Your massive turnout has frightened many people. FG is not deaf. The President spoke this morning. Perhaps even the Legislators have heard you also. If they collectively fail to significantly reduce the cost of governance, stop wasteful expenditures and tighten their own belts or lead by example, please then re-strategise, regroup and call them to order again. God bless you all.

EndBadGovernance : Protest Reaction trails president Tinubu’s speech

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