By Chinenye Anuforo
With the 2023 elections fast approaching, the Civic Consciousness Global Initiative (CCGI) Group, has urged Nigerians to be very careful not to make mistake of choices in the upcoming elections that will completely destroy their lives, constitutional rights and survival of the nation.
The group stated that what Nigeria needs are creative and pragmatic leaders both at the federal and state levels to solve Nigeria many problems.
The group, made up of eminent personalities, mostly, senior citizens of the country, made the call at a press conference to give their counsel to the nation on the upcoming election yesterday in Lagos.
The Chairman of the CCGI, Rev Solomon Aderibigbe, while briefing the media said: “Our nation Nigeria is currently passing through the worst curve of her evolution as a nation. We have had unprecedented escalation of our challenges: economic downturn, profligacy of our scarce finances by government agencies and persons, massive corruption, debalitating foreign debt burden to the tune of about 77 trillion as well as slouch funds of almost same magnitude.
“We have inflation, unemployment, mascara of innocent citizens, destruction of village settlements, unregulated prices of petroleum products among others.
“All these combined ills have clearly made Nigeria to become a failed nation. And these have combined to threaten our nationhood and put the hopes of present and upcoming generations of Nigerians in great jeopardy. This is further complicated by lack of of creative and pragmatic leadership,” he said.
Speaking on the election, he said: “We resolved to address the nation to take caution knowing fully well that their lives from the election day would be based on the choices they make with their PVCs in exercising their franchise come 25th February.”
Also, on the fuel scarcity, he noted that it is not the right time to play the politics of fuel for which the nation is blessed with it’s rare deposit.
He added that government should suspend the currency politics and address the issues of small scale trades and daily earning businesses whose turnover is much more than the approved N20, 000 daily withdrawal.
Also, Prelate of the Methodist Church Nigeria, Mr Sunday Olamakinde said: “As elders, we are advising the government to do something immediately to alleviate the sufferings of Nigerians.
“We want this suffering to come to an end. Any body that says that there’s no suffering in the land is deceiving himself.
Do we talk about insecurity, fuel scarcity, unemployment for our teeming graduates, exodus of better qualified hands in teaching, medicine abroad?
“As the elections approach, we want it to be free and fair. There should be no killing, anarchy. We are elders and we have seen better years in Nigeria and we want those better years to come back.”
In his view, the Anglican Bishop, Prof. Dapo Asajie, advised that the Government should not impoverish the public with unfavorable policies.