Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has called on the president Muhammadu Buhari administration to listen to Nigerians and attend to their needs.
Obasanjo who made the call on Monday while on a visit to the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, described the #EndSARS protest as the product of an extensive agitation by the Nigerian youth that needed to be attended to by the government.
He said, “More than 65 per cent of our population are within the ages of 18 and 30; they are not only struggling to acquire education, they are also aspiring for the best that life can offer them.
“Some of them didn’t even get educated, while those who are educated are getting frustrated because of lack of opportunities. We must realise that the lid on the boiling steam would have to be removed.
“But, I believe that there are windows of opportunity which the government can explore to show that it cares about the people’s welfare, especially the youth, as the father of the country and particularly, as the father of the youth.
“Fortunately, the President has children and he knows how youths behave.
“I believe that the opportunities can still be taken to let the youth know that he, as a father, understands their plight and that his government understands their plight and he is ready to make life better for them.”
Meanwhile, Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum and Ekiti State Governor, Kayode Fayemi, said on Sunday that Nigerians have every reason to be angry due to the realities facing the country. The governor said he and his colleagues are worried about the discontent, hunger, and anger in the country.
The governor spoke at a Special Thanksgiving Mass held at St. Patrick’s Catholic Cathedral, Ado Ekiti as part of activities to mark the second anniversary of his administration in office.
Fayemi said, “There is a lot of anger in the land, there is a lot of hunger in the land, pent-up emotion. There is disillusion in the land. As a young man who spent much time in the barricades protesting bad governance, I can understand what is going on now.
“I and my colleagues are concerned and we are committed to reforms not just about SARS because we will be making a mistake that the general disaffection in the land is all about SARS,” he said.