By Goodluck B Ikiebe
Abdulsalami Abubakar middle in a group photograph with the Campaign for Democracy and Human Rights group
Former Military Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar, says that the hardship in the country is getting out of control.
He stated this when members of the Campaign for Democracy and Human Rights paid him a birthday visit in Minna, Niger State.
“Everybody is crying of this hardship and it seems to be getting out of control; people cannot afford three square meals; the issue of transportation, the hike in fuel, the hike in school fees for the children and the lack of funds in everybody’s pocket is making life difficult for everybody.”
The group led by Comrade Abdullahi Mohammed Jabi, used the opportunity to ask General Abubakar to prevail on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to find solutions to the hunger in the land.
General Abubakar said: “We will continue to encourage the government to introduce measures to soften the hardship,” adding that “the federal, states and local governments should see how they can cushion this economic hardship.”
The former military Head of State said he belonged to a forum that had made recommendations to the federal government on the way out of the economic hardship in the land.
According to him: “I will like to intimate you that in some of the proposals we have given to government on another platform, (He did not mention the platform) that giving palliatives is not the answer to the high prices of food and other items in the country.”
He said, “There is a need for government to flood and saturate the communities with food; let them (governments) buy food and sell it at lesser prices to the people so that people will try to buy some of these food items depending on their pockets/ income.
“We have passed these recommendations to the government, and we hope they will implement it.”
On the planned #Endbadgovernance protest slated for 1st of October, he appealed to Nigerians to maintain the peace, adding, “For God sake, when you demonstrate, do it peacefully.
