From Joseph Asegba, Yola
Following the ongoing nationwide hunger protest, Adamawa State Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri has said, he not not against protest as is a constitutional right of citizens and is a wake-up call to the government, as it bounds in the armpit of the law.
The Governor disclosed this while addressing the good people of the state saying “Fellow citizens, we can feel your pain; we can relate with what you are passing through; but we also assure you that as your leaders, the best payback you deserve from us is an advocacy to any level and a leadership that can work round the clock to not only reverse the situation of your ugly realities but restore the collective hopes of our livelihood. Good governance is your right and that is what we have all sworn to give you.”
Fintiri retreated that, “It is our trademark in Adamawa state. As a government, we don’t need a protest to remind us of this sacred responsibility. We are doing our best to cushion the effect of your hardship. We are particularly conscious of the disturbing youth budget with a growing and alarming unemployment rate. We saw this coming.”
Since the “inception of this government, we did a study on this and we revealed that no government can take all the army of the youths into its employment. Even if it can, in this age of enterprise, creativity and entrepreneurship, it is the dumbest decision to take.
“We therefore created the Ministry of Entrepreneurship to build the capacity of our youths to innovate, own and manage investments successfully. We have trained and are training many youths who are willing to be off the street and creating an enabling environment for SMEs to thrive, he said.
According to Fintiri, this is not the moment of running away from the truth, We must not pretend that everything is right. We must also be able to tell you honestly what is within our carrying capacity as a subnational government. Some of the demands of the protesters as genuine as they are, are macroeconomic policy issues that can best be addressed by the national government.
This is the reality of our federal structure and constitution. We shall work with you to make sure that the demands are attended to. The president is a listening president, I believe he can equally hear us loud and clear.
His words, “Fellow citizens, protest is a constitutional right of citizens and a wakeup call to the government. We thank you most sincerely for this call to duty. For those who came out to protest, I thank you for doing so within the bounds of the law; for those who did not come out and indeed those who are in the majority, I thank you so much for sending your message louder than those who came out.”
“There is so much we can achieve in an atmosphere of peace than we can in that one of rancour and chaos. I must thank our traditional institution represented by our royal fathers for their support, counsel and sensitization of the citizens on the prized value of peace. I thank our religious leaders, especially the leadership of our churches and mosques for the ecclesiastical call to civil and peaceful coexistence.
The youths, Fintiri thank the youths for using their exuberance productively and also thank the Labour Unions, trade unions, students’ unions and civil society for their support in seeing reasons why violent protest is the wrong antidote to our present situation. The parents, guardians and caregivers in the state thank you for training your children to resist the temptation of being used by merchants of violence to cause mayhem as found in some states across the country.
The gentlemen of the press, Fintiri commended them and described them as the lead role the media has played so far in the balanced reportage of the situation in Adamawa state. My team, especially my deputy and the entire cabinet and the leadership of our local government areas whose major assignment as chief security officers of their respective local governments after the election, is this concerted effort at managing citizens’ grievances and entrenching peace in our land.
“I must thank our greatest partners in the peace enterprise – the security agencies – the army, the police, the DSS, the NCSDC, and all other agencies who have not only played by the rules and civil enough to manage the protesters where they exist but gave us – the larger majority, the assurance of security and peace to continue with our daily businesses. Once again, thank you for being civil. Thank you for the TRUST. This is the hallmark of every ideal democracy.”
