As labour mobilises for Monday’s protest against fuel subsidy withdrawal, the Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO) on Sunday cautioned against mistaking the planned protest for religious or tribal riots.
Executive Secretary of the organisation, Mr Steve Aluko, said in Jos that the protest was only a peaceful means of expressing grievances by Nigerians against a “bad policy”.
“We want to inform all Christian and Muslim brothers and sisters, particularly in the North, that it is simply a mass protest by Nigerians against those who have oppressed them.
“We have equally cautioned protesters against targeting Churches or Mosques; we are united in this struggle against bad policies, irrespective of tribe or religion,” he stated.
He urged the people to be wary of those who might want to divide them along religious and ethnic lines, saying such people should not be allowed to distract a noble cause.
Aluko, who is also the spokesman of the coalition of Civil Society Organisations in Plateau, lamented the hardships the masses had gone through since the removal of the subsidy.
He pointed out that Nigerians needed more subsidies in education, health, power and other sectors, rather than removing “the only existing subsidy”.
According to him, Nigeria has enough resources to go round if there is no waste in any quarters.
The CLO official advised political office holders to lead by example and sacrifice some of their benefits.
“It will not be right for elected public officials to live in massive affluence, while many can barely afford one meal a day,’’ he said.
Aluko lauded the proposed palliatives by government, but feared that they were rather belated and should have been put in place long before withdrawing the subsidy.
He rejected suggestions by State Governors that the subsidy be shared among them, and alleged that monies allocated to them had often been wasted.
According to him, subsidy proceeds, after certain conditions have been met, should be put in a special fund like the Petroleum Task Fund (PTF) under late Sani Abacha and managed by eminent Nigerians.