Ike Nnachi, Abakaliki
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Ebonyi State Chapter, and its affiliate bodies in the state have embarked on a peaceful protest in Abakaliki, the state capital, over what they described as the increasing rate of terrorism, banditry, kidnapping, and incessant killings in different parts of the country.
The protesters, in their numbers, converged at the Pa Ngele Orunta Township Stadium, Abakaliki, as early as 7 a.m. for the peaceful protest.
They marched from the stadium gate to the Old Enugu–Ogoja Express Road and returned to the stadium, chanting solidarity songs and urging the state and federal governments, as well as security agencies, to rise to the occasion and put a stop to the high rate of insecurity in the country.
In his address, the State Chairperson of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Comrade Ogugua Egwu, expressed regret that many Nigerians have become refugees in their own country, now referred to as internally displaced persons (IDPs), living in IDP camps that are still unsafe and uninhabitable.
He noted that Nigerians can no longer comfortably take their children to school and be at peace, as even the lives of children in schools are no longer safe. According to him, the abduction of innocent children in large numbers raises the question: “Where are our security agencies?”
“Have they also been recklessly abandoned and abducted by agents of social and financial insecurity, or have they been crippled by the killing hands of poverty such that they can no longer live up to expectations?” he asked.
Egwu maintained that governments are more concerned with winning elections than safeguarding the people who will vote in those elections, adding that Nigerians can no longer remain silent when the security of their lives cannot be assured by a government whose constitutional role is primarily to protect lives and property.
“We cannot remain silent when foreigners make gestures out of our country because the government is showing a lack of will to conquer insecurity in Nigeria,” he said.
He stated that just last week, a worker in Ebonyi State was abducted alongside her husband along the ever-busy Afikpo–Onueke Express Road, adding that several staff members of the Alex Ekwueme Federal Teaching Hospital, Abakaliki (AEFUTHA), had in the past been abducted along the Enugu–Abakaliki Express Road.
Comrade Egwu said that, aside from unprecedented insecurity, Nigerians are also faced with financial insecurity. He added that while citizens are inundated with statistics of an improved economy, they see nothing that reflects such data.
“The cost of PMS has not reduced, the wage system is grossly inadequate and cannot take us home. Over 80 per cent of Nigerian workers spend close to 100 per cent of their wages on basic needs of life—food, shelter, and water,” he said.
He added that even the shelter component has eluded many workers, especially in Ebonyi State, noting that some people virtually live in their offices, while others operate from obscure and slummy environments unfit for human habitation. He lamented that quality education for children is gradually becoming a distant dream.
The NLC chairperson maintained that financial insecurity is the foundation of absolute insecurity, adding that youths are increasingly being used as tools for numbers in support groups during elections and abandoned afterward, a situation that often breeds violence.
He called on the government to take drastic and positive steps before Nigerians are overwhelmed by all forms of insecurity.
