BY NAJIB SANI, GOMBE
The Coalition of Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) in Gombe State, led by their spokesperson, Dr Habeeb Muhammad, has presented a list of demands to the federal government as parts of their conditions of withdrawing from the planned national protest.
They urged prompt action from the federal government to address critical issues affecting the nation including; ensuring the safety and security of citizens, alleviating poverty and promote economic prosperity, and revitalising refineries to increase domestic production.
Additionally, the coalition asked the government to reverse the petrol price to below N300 per liter, review electricity tariffs to make electricity affordable, and restore tertiary institution fees to their previous rates.
Apart from that, the coalition also demands that the government cuts the cost of governance, carefully considers international loans, reduces taxation on citizens by 50%, and implements a new minimum wage of N70,000 while improving welfare packages for workers.
The coalition, comprising 15 like-minded groups including Gombe for Peace Forum, Women of Hope, Life of Hope Foundation, Peace, Justice for Youth in Nigeria, Arewa Youth Movement, Youth Assembly in Nigeria, Joint Hands Cooperatives, Hikmah Foundation, Rashida Multipurpose Society, Taraba Youth Forum, PDP Youth Forum, North East Forum, Giwa Group Forum, and Women Initiative for Good Governance, withdrew from the planned nationwide protest scheduled for August 1-10, 2024, citing lack of clarity in leadership and potential hijacking of the protest procession.
However, they emphasised that the government’s prompt attention to these issues would prevent future threats of protest.
