Why Tinubu must declare state of emergency now – Edwin Clark

• He implored President Bola Tinubu to quickly declare a state of emergency on food to address the situation

An erstwhile Federal Commissioner for Information and South-South Leader, Chief Edwin Clark, has bemoaned the parlous and troubling state of Nigeria.

He said hardship is rife, hunger is pervasive and anger is commonplace as Nigerians toil and struggle to fend for themselves amid galloping inflation and cost of living crisis.

He implored President Bola Tinubu to quickly declare a state of emergency on food to address the situation.

Clark spoke on Friday at his Asokoro residence in Abuja when the President of Host Communities of Nigeria Producing Oil and Gas ( HOSTCOM) High Chief Benjamin Tamaranebi led a delegation of his team to pay him a courtesy visit.

On the recent protest by Nigerians, the elder statesman affirmed the right of the people to demonstrate, noting that the government cannot stop the people from protesting.

He pointed out that President Tinubu organised a protest that lasted for weeks against the then President Goodluck Jonathan when he removed oil subsidy.

According to the leader of Pan Niger Delta Forum, PANDEF, Tinubu should not be blamed for the removal of fuel subsidy since the budgetary provision for it ended in June 2023.

Clark, however, urged the government to find pragmatic means of ameliorating poverty, adding that fuel subsidy removal was inflicting pain on Nigerians.

“Oil subsidy is a big problem in Nigeria. Oil subsidy is not confined to Nigeria alone, but everything in Nigeria does not work because of poor management and poor leadership. True, we all realize later that the oil subsidy was a scam.

“That was why in 2012, during the administration of Jonathan, in January 2012, his government removed the oil subsidy.

“During the 2023 presidential campaign, all the major parties talked about removal of subsidies. But in 2020 and 2021, President Buhari, as well as the Minister of Finance, Ahmed, and the Minister of State Petroleum, Timipre Sylva, announced to Nigerians that there was no longer subsidy in Nigeria,” the elder statesman said.