By; BAYO AKAMO, Ibadan.
Oyo Voice Group on Monday declared that the ruling President Muhammadu Buhari led All Progressive Congress (APC) government cannot fix Nigeria considering the growing inequality, hopelessness, poverty, high cost of living in the country.
The group at an emergency press conference held at the University of Ibadan jointly addressed by its Conveners Comrades Tokunbo Salako and Babatunde Badmus also vowed to go ahead with the ‘Occupy Nigeria’ protest in major towns in Oyo state.
The Conveners lamented the present hardship in and across the country, saying “one of the reasons why the protest will continue is to tell government to immediately reduce the pay and allowances of all political office holders in order to change things for better in the country”.
“It so painful to state that after nearly two years in power, the Buhari/APC government has failed woefully. Things are worse now than before. The rising cost of living is unbearable for the vast majority. The high hope invested in Buhari by many Nigerians seeking genuine change is being shattered amidst growing disillusionment,” the group said
The Conveners added that “the Buhari government is incapable of reversing the growing inequality, hopelessness, poverty, high cost of living and despondency”, and that “under this government, electricity generation has become more epileptic despite giving the private electricity companies over N200 billion”.
According to Oyo Voice, “contrary to his campaign promises, President Buhari has carried out vicious attacks on the living standard of ordinary people. The Buhari-led government claimed to be fighting corruption but it has been largely one-sided and hypocritical”.
“On Monday, 6th February 2017, we of the OYO VOICE will be leading thousands of Nigeria working people to march through strategic parts of Oyo State specifically, Ibadan, Ogbomosho, Oyo and Saki to protest the growing economic hardship being faced by a majority of Nigerians”
He group maintained that the mission of Oyo Voice Group “is to provide a voice for the growing angers and mass dissatisfaction of the Nigeria working people particularly suffering people in Oyo State against continuous failure of both the present and past Nigeria government regardless of political affiliation and level of governance to effect any significant improvement in both their living and working condition of mass of the Nigeria working but suffering people”.
Oyo Voice group then demanded immediate reversal of all prices of goods and services in the country by the Federal Government,“reversal of prices of food items, kerosene, cooking gas, electricity and petrol back to pre-2016 levels, immediate payment of backlog of salaries and pensions being owed in 27 states, N56, 000 national minimum wage,
a monthly unemployment allowance to be paid to all unemployed persons, the immediate reversal of fee hikes in all public Universities, polytechnics and colleges of education. Adequate funding of public education and improvement in the pay and working conditions of staff. improved funding and upgrade of all public hospitals and improvement in the pay and working conditions of medical staff. Diligent prosecution of all those indicted or on trial for corruption and if convicted, they should be jailed and made to forfeit the proceeds of corruption and Drastic reduction in the cost of governance”.
