Northern youths under the aegis, Arewa Youths Forum, have slammed President Buhari over his bid to run for a second term in 2019. In a statement released on Friday by the groups chairman, the youths described as insensitive and insulting for the Buhari-led administration to be announcing his re-election campaign when many Nigerians are being killed and some others are dealing with the pain of the lingering fuel scarcity.
Recall that three days ago, The Minister of Communications, Adebayo Shittu, announced that he had a meeting with President Buhari where he informed him that campaign for his re-election will start soon and that he has been appointed chairman of his support group in the South West. In the statement released todayits chairman, Alhaji Gambo Ibrahim Gujungu, the youths say it is an affront on Nigerians for the government to be discussing an election when the citizens are suffering. Part of their statement reads
"We are also worried that Nigerians had to go through the yuletide with agony and pains because of the fuel scarcity which still persist into the new year with the Federal government not having a definite roadmap to ending the malaise. This scenario was also compounded by the prevailing hardship Nigerians have been going through because of the actions and inactions of politicians and the elite who we believe have not done enough to assuage the plight of the ordinary Nigerians.
If you add these challenges to the corruption allegations that had plagued some top ranking officers of this administration and the inability or refusal of Mr. President to address same leaves a sour taste in the mouth of many Nigerians. Consequently, we are appalled to hear that in the midst of all these, the president and his men have already put in place measures to kick start his re – election bid for 2019.
As the apex body of youths in the 19 Northern states and Abuja with affiliates across the country, we see the re-election bid of Mr. President at this point in time inhuman, uncalled for and an insult to the sensibilities of the suffering Nigerian masses. On the magnitude of the killings, we expect the president to visit some of the states and when he came to Kaduna, he should have condoled with the people or even visited the affected area.
It is disheartening that when the President visited Kaduna State, black marketers were having a field day as many of the stations where closed and the people where buying fuel at over 350/litre. This we believe is not good enough. Nigerians expect a more purposeful leadership from the champion of change than this anarchy in the land and the time to act is now, Mr. President,”.
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