The #FearlessInOctober protest recorded a low turnout in the Federal Capital Territory.
This was as the organisers of the protest, the Take It Back Movement, rejected the planned 30-day National Youth Confab, announced earlier on Tuesday by President Bola Tinubu, describing the initiative as ‘’a jamboree” designed to reward the President’s supporters.
In his Independence Day address, Tinubu announced plans to convene a youth conference which he said would be held for 30 days to address and discuss challenges facing the Nigerian youth, who accounted for more than 60 per cent of Nigeria’s population.
“I am pleased to announce the gathering of a National Youth Conference. This conference will be a platform to address the diverse challenges and opportunities confronting our young people, who constitute more than 60 per cent of our population.
‘’The 30-day confab will unite young people nationwide to collaboratively develop solutions to issues such as education, employment, innovation, security, and social justice. The modalities of this Confab and selection of delegates will be designed in close consultation with our young people through their representatives. Through this confab, it will be our job as leaders to ensure that their aspirations are at the heart of the conference’s deliberations,” the President said.
Reacting to the plan, the National Coordinator of the Take It Back Movement, Juwon Sanyaolu, noted that the President did not organise any confabs before implementing his policies.
He said, ‘’I think President Tinubu wants to lavish taxpayers’ money to organise a jamboree for his supporters. We saw some of them that were paid, NANS (National Association of Nigerian Students), singing his praises in Abuja, so I think that is simply what the President wants to do.
“What confab did he organise before he awarded a private jet to himself costing billions? Did we hold any confab before he decided to use billions of naira to construct an apartment for the Vice President? Or which confab did we hold before they started paying themselves huge allowances, budgeting billions for kitchen utensils?’’
Continuing, Sanyaolu added, “As a matter of fact, what confab did the President hold before increasing the price of fuel, even between August and now, to over N1,000? Even, some are buying at N1,500. Nigerians don’t need a confab.
“We don’t need our money to be wasted on organizing a jamboree for his supporters in APC or wherever they come from. Nigerians need good governance, and it is not a confab that will fix that.”
Asked whether the protest will continue, Sanyaolu said “The protest continues, but the new date will be announced because I am aware that there are still people in different states who want to protest. But we are going to announce the next days, which we will definitely not be far from now.”
The Minister of State for Youth Development, Ayodele Olawande, said that the Federal Government would set up an implementation task force to spearhead the implementation of the recommendations from the upcoming youth confab.
Adding context to the nature of preparation, Olawande said it included creating an implementation task force for various issues on the agenda.
“We are going to roll it out very soon, and we are going to have the terms and conditions, the areas, the views and all that. And we are still going to plead with the President to give us what we call an implementation task force so that immediately, where we need to do an Executive Order, we put it up.
“Those (recommendations) that need to go to the National Assembly, we take it off and we start having this as quickly as possible. So, it’s a done deal,” the minister noted.
Olawande said the process leading to Tuesday’s announcement stemmed from extensive stakeholder consultations.
Although the initial brief proposed four days for the dialogue, the President recommended a one-month confab.
He explained, “I was very happy because I’ve been telling the young people in my constituency that the President is a listening President. Last month, we brought many young people together and talked to ourselves. After the strategy meeting, we told ourselves that we needed to get all the youths from all the parties to come and talk, strategise together and present something to the President.
“We called it a Youth Dialogue. We consulted with all the stakeholders. After consulting with the stakeholders, the President listened to us and said, ‘Fine, you want to dialogue within four days, right? But for me, I want to expand it, and let’s see how you can come together as young people of this country.
“We believe in this country and know that it belongs to us. This is what you’ve seen today, and we are very happy with it. It’s a very good development, and we are preparing to roll out things very soon with all stakeholders involved, which the President has consulted.”
The Senate Majority Leader, Mr. Opeyemi Bamidele, promised to support the recommendations from the youth confab, saying such an initiative was overdue.
He stated, “The need for a youth confab at this point cannot be overemphasised. The youth, like the President, who is also duly recognised, constitute over 60 per cent of our population or demography. And I believe that the time to listen to the youth is not just when they are on the streets protesting.
“If we can hear them loud and clear when they are protesting, we should be able even to hear them louder when we are all seated through a confab to discuss in a very articulate manner.
“So it would be a welcome development. We all look forward to that. And as elected representatives of the people, we also will ensure that we join in creating a conducive atmosphere and environment for the youth confab.”
The lawmaker also said that the National Assembly would give due consideration to the Economic Stabilisation Bills, which were approved at the last meeting of the Federal Executive Council.
Unimpressed, the Peoples Democratic Party and the Coalition for United Political Parties criticized the President’s decision to hold a youth confab, describing it as ‘a misallocation of priorities.’
The PDP Deputy National Youth Leader, Timothy Osadolor, argued that the move highlights the President’s lack of ideas on governance.
He stated “The President has just said he’s bereft of ideas on how to govern this country. You see, the President likes rhetoric, big talk, and zero action. It is time for an economic summit rather than a youth conference.
“What he should be doing now is organizing an economic summit where he will gather Nigerian economic experts from around the globe to get the best minds to assist him in fixing Nigeria’s economy. He should also convene a security summit to engage some of the best security chiefs and experts to address the security issues in the country.’’
The Labour Party National Youth Leader, Kennedy Ahanotu, similarly criticized the move as a superficial approach to addressing urgent national issues.
Ahanotu said the idea of a youth confab is poorly timed, emphasizing that what Nigerians truly needed is good governance.
“I feel that this is just a peripheral approach to solving pressing national issues. This conference was initiated to divert the attention of Nigerian youths. What Nigerian youths have been asking for is good governance. When transportation, education, healthcare, and other sectors are functioning, why do we need a national youth conference?’’ he queried.
The CUPP National Spokesperson, Mark Adebayo, slammed the Federal Government over the proposal, describing it as insincere.
He expressed concern that the confab might turn into another jamboree to influence youths to support Tinubu’s re-election in 2027, ‘’despite his poor performance.’’
He stated, “As far as I’m concerned, this so-called national youth conference will likely be a mirage with no concrete achievements resulting from it. It’s a deliberate and strategic distraction by the government, in my opinion. Another senseless waste of resources that will run into billions of naira in a very sick economy. It has no intrinsic value.”
But the All Progressives Congress and some youth groups commended the planned conference.
APC Director of Publicity, Bala Ibrahim, said by this decision, Tinubu has shown he is a caring and attentive leader who exemplified the party’s principles.
He urged the protesting youths to rethink their positions, emphasizing that the president’s mission and intentions are honourable and genuinely aimed at benefiting the country.
Ibrahim also labelled the PDP, LP and CUPP, which have criticized the move, as not having Nigeria’s best interests at heart.
“What the president is trying to do is engage the youth politically and politely so they can plan for their future. A conference of this nature will help prepare young minds to take charge of their country’s future and shape their destinies. Anyone who opposes this does not have the country’s future at heart, ’’ he insisted.
The National Youth Council of Nigeria commended Tinubu for approving the youth confab.
The youth body in a statement by its President, Sara-Igbe Sukubo, on Tuesday, said ‘’This initiative marks a significant milestone in promoting youth engagement and empowerment within our nation, highlighting the government’s acknowledgment of the essential role young people play in shaping Nigeria’s future.’’
The Speaker of the Arewa Youth Assembly for Good Leadership, Abdul Danbature, urged the President to move beyond mere statements and ensure the implementation of all his promises.
Danbature expressed disappointment that despite responding to Tinubu’s call for dialogue during the #EndBadGovernance protest, nothing came of it.
Earlier on Tuesday, the October 1 protest was dispersed by police officers who fired tear gas canisters on the protesters in the Utako area of the nation’s capital, but the FCT police command denied the attack on the youths.
The protest was a continuation of the #EndBadGovernance protests held between August 1 and 10 in response to the economic hardship experienced by many Nigerians.
As early as 7am, the protesters, whose numbers were considerably lower than the previous rally, gathered at the busy Utako market in the Utako area of the FCT.
The participants consisting mostly of youths were demanding a review of the policies causing hardship in the country when some police officers arrived and dispersed them with tear gas.
However, the FCT police spokesperson, Josephine Adeh denied that the police attacked the protesters.
Adeh, in a statement, said the police officers only took measures to prevent miscreants who allegedly took advantage of the protest to loot shops in the market.
She said, “The FCT police command is aware of reports making the rounds that policemen attacked protesters at Utako Market in Abuja earlier today, October 1, 2024.
‘’The command wishes to categorically debunk the narrative, tagging it completely false and misleading. Acting on intelligence, the operatives only took measures to forestall some miscreants who were taking advantage of the protest to loot shops in the market and as a result, extended focus to them.
“As a responsible agency, we could not stand by and allow traders to be robbed of their hard-earned money and belongings without intervening. We therefore urge the populace to disregard such misleading and mischievous information, as the command is committed to ensuring the safety of the populace in the exercise of their civil rights.”
But our correspondent, who was at the scene, reports that the police officers dispersed the protesters with tear gas.
Unlike the previous protest when the participants regrouped after being tear-gassed, the youths simply fled from the relentless onslaught of the armed security personnel who had been deployed across the FCT.
