Delta State is an oil and agricultural producing state in Nigeria.
A map of Delta State in South-South Nigeria
Youths in Anioma, Delta North Senatorial District, on Thursday said they will not participate in the planned nationwide protest scheduled for August 1.
The protest against economic hardship, which is gaining traction on social media, has been scheduled to be held across all states of the Federation as well as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, in August. The organisers of the protest have been faceless.
According to a statement jointly signed by the group’s National President, Nnamdi Ofonye and National Publicity Secretary, Ekwukwo Elvis, “leading a protest at a time like this will be counterproductive and will instead jeopardize public peace”.
They argued that the motive behind the protest calling for the sack of President Bola Tinubu was politically motivated.
“The motive behind the protest that is hashtagged ‘Tinubu must go’ is a red flag that it is politically motivated and has been hijacked by politicians which in the long run will not serve the interest of the people. Nigerians will rather wait for the next election cycle to take such actions through a democratic means if the need be,” the statement read.
“The forum emphasizes that while Nigerians, including the youths, have the inalienable right to a peaceful protest, historical records show that protests in the country often lead to unintended consequences as it has always been hijacked by hoodlums and unpatriotic groups in pursuit of selfish aggrandizement.
“The most recent, the EndSARS protest serves as a reminder of how such movements can be easily hijacked by miscreants, resulting in the loss of lives and the destruction of properties worth billions of Naira across all parts of the country.
“During that good-intentioned but infamous protest, Anioma land witnessed massive loss of government and private infrastructures many of which have not been replaced to date despite the high level of infrastructural deficit across the country. Aside from that, several lives were lost as others were maimed. We are not ready for such again at a time like this.”
