By Amos Aar
THE CARETAKER chairman of the Benue State chapter of the Nigeria Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Comrade Julius Agbatar, has called on members of the union in the state to shun the nationwide protest planned to hold on October 1, 2024 being the 64th Independence anniversary of Nigeria.
Agbatar stated this while interacting with journalists in his office on Monday shortly after a meeting with members of the union.
Although he explained that Governor Hyacinth Alia was performing well hence there was no need for the industrial action in Benue state, the NURTW caretaker chairman however disclosed that, state commissioner of police called them for a meeting at the state command on Monday to warn against the planned protest.
“We appreciate what he (governor) is doing. That was why they called us for a meeting with the commissioner of police today that they are going to do demonstration on Tuesday. We said we are not part of that because our governor is performing. So, why should we be doing demonstration against him?
“Today, I instructed my union members that they should go back to branches and tell their members that they should not step out. And if anybody wants to hire them for that protest, they should ignore that request. So, this Benue State chapter of the union has disassociated itself from the protest tomorrow”, he stated.
Asked who are those planning the protest in the state, Agbatar said, “we don’t know. We heard it from the police. We don’t know the people who are planning the protest”.
National Record however gathered that some civil society organisations slated October 1 to begin nationwide protests against the current hardship attributed to bad governance and President Bola Tinubu is already negotiating with groups’ leaders to drop the plan.
The planned protest, tagged “#FearlessInOctober” or “EndBadGovernanceProtestInNigeria 2.0,” is believed to be a follow-up on the 10-day hunger protest in August when thousands across various states expressed grievances against government’s anti-people policies.
Also fielding questions about the 64th independence anniversary, whether it is worth celebrating, Comrade Agbatar said, the day must be celebrated because it is the right of the citizens.
“Independence is the right of the national cake. So, as we gained independence, every Nigerian was happy. So, we are all happy on that Independence Day. That is why we always celebrate that day because we have our own self-independence. That is why we always celebrate that very day, 1st of October, which is tomorrow [today]”.
