Nigerian anti-government protests ease as President Tinubu defends his administration

Aug. 3 (EUROPA PRESS) –

The campaign of protests declared by opposition activists against the Nigerian government’s economic management began this Saturday, the third day of demonstrations at a much lower intensity than that recorded last Friday — which ended, according to Amnesty International, with 13 deaths.

The protests are fueled by rising prices for petrol, food and electricity, which have pushed inflation to its highest level in nearly three decades. Protesters blame reforms introduced by the country’s president, Bola Tinubu, since he took office in May last year, including the removal of subsidies and the relaxation of currency controls that have weakened the national currency, the naira.

Tinubu’s administration has suspended import duties on basic foodstuffs, medicines and other essential items for six months to bring down prices and more than doubled the country’s minimum wage, but that has not appeased protesters, who police say include rioters who are vandalizing businesses.

There have been no reports of fatalities so far on Saturday and the Nigerian police have only used tear gas in the vicinity of the Moshood Abiola stadium in the capital, Abuja, according to the Daily Trust, which also reported the temporary detention of several journalists covering the protest. States such as Kano have, however, taken drastic measures, such as declaring a curfew after confirming 269 arrests yesterday, all of them accused of looting.

The Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Christopher Musa, has however warned that the army will intervene to assist the police and other security agencies if the protests in the coming days – the campaign ends next Saturday – take on a violent character again.

“I want to once again call for the support of all Nigerians, the federal government, state and local governments. We have seen the level of destruction that occurred just yesterday. The military and all security agencies will not sit idly by while this continues,” Musa warned in statements reported by the Nigerian website ‘People’s Gazette’.

President Tinubu has yet to directly address the protests but did defend his government’s economic management during a speech on Friday at an economic forum delivered by the country’s Vice President, Kashim Shettima.

“As a government, we have initiated bold economic reforms aimed at steering our economy away from the recessions caused by the multiple crises declared in the global economy. We believe that this is a path to recovery and resilience through significant economic transformation,” he said.