Former presidential aide Reno Omokri has suggested ways for President Bola Tinubu to alleviate the current tensions in the country caused by the #EndBadGovernance protest.
In a statement on X Thursday, Omokri noted that protests in Nigeria are frequently exploited by opportunistic looters and recommended that the president address the nation to address the situation effectively.
“Protests in a country like Nigeria are often an economic opportunity for looters and others who want to cash out from a state of tension.
“To nip this in the bud, I urge President Tinubu to either call a National Council of State meeting, or give a National Broadcast, or even do both,” he said.
Omokri urged Tinubu to “make some concessions” by cutting his salary, those of his cabinet members, and reducing the convoys of government officials to lower governance costs.
He also recommended that the president “temporarily” restore the electricity subsidy and provide a year’s tax holiday for workers earning minimum wage to help alleviate the hardships faced by Nigerians.
“To show that the President feels the people’s pains, perhaps the President can make some concessions by temporarily returning the electricity subsidy for six months.
“Not fuel subsidy. The subsidy on power. That will ease the burdens of Nigerians and show that we have a listening President.
“Finally, the President may want to grant a year’s tax holiday to every person earning minimum wage to give them room to adjust to the changes in our economy,” the former aide to President Goodluck Jonathan said.
He added that “doing nothing at the presidential level is the worst strategy” adding that “history will forgive a leader who makes the wrong decision. But not the one who takes no action”.
