The Nigerian Bar Association and northern traditional leaders denounced the hardships the nation is facing as a result of the removal of fuel subsidies, which have increased transportation costs and caused food inflation on Wednesday.
The NBA and the traditional rulers requested that the Federal Government act swiftly to resolve the issue, and President Bola Tinubu is scheduled to meet behind closed doors with state governors this Thursday at the Aso Rock Villa in Abuja in order to propose solutions to the nation’s economic crisis.
The meeting with the governors would take place prior to the President’s departure to Ethiopia for the African Union meeting, according to two officials from the White House who confided in The PUNCH on Wednesday.
Aides to Governor Nasir Idris of Kebbi State and Governor Dikko Radda of Katsina State also attested to the scheduled meeting with the president.
The meeting is taking place just a few days after governors chosen on the Peoples Democratic Party platform likened Nigeria’s economic predicament to that of Venezuela, a South American nation experiencing hyperinflation, rising rates of hunger, illness, crime, and high death rates.
Nonetheless, the Presidency chastised the governors for their performance, highlighting their noncompliance with N30,000 minimum wage, pensions, and salaries.
The high cost of living has sparked protests across the nation, with people in Niger, Kano, Kogi, Ondo, and other states calling for solutions to the financial crisis.
Although, organised labour had expressed dissatisfaction with the state of affairs in the nation and had threatened to go on strike by February 23 if the Federal Government did not offer workers palliative care and other forms of assistance that would lessen their financial hardships.