Protest: APC State Chairmen begins 2-week ‘counter rally’

Against the nationwide planned protest slated for August 2024, the Forum of All Progressives Congress (APC) States Chairman in Nigeria, has said structures of the party across all political wards, Local Government Areas and States Capital, including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), will commence a two-week solidarity rally to re-echo the laudable projects of President Bola Tinubu.

The Forum revealed this during a press conference on Monday at the APC headquarters in Abuja.

Speaking on behalf of the Forum, the APC Cross River State Chairman and Secretary of the Forum, Alphonsus Ogar said the peaceful rally will begin today, July 29 and end August 11, 2024.

The Forum said, “We shall embark on a peaceful rally to re-echo the laudable projects and the programs of President Tinubu with greater vigor to protect and defend our democracy from any attack by hoodlums or some criminal elements who want to carry out violent protest”.

However, the state chairmen urged Nigerians to give the President, Bola Tinubu, more time to implement his Renewed Hope Agenda project and programs.

According to them, President Tinubu is already embarking on policies with the intent to providing a sustainable permanent economic prospect for Nigerians.

“While we want to commend the patience and tolerance of Nigerians this one year, we align with our traditional, religious and political leaders, fathers, mothers and friends alike across diverse religious, ethnic and different political parties to humbly appeal to all Nigerians to give Mr. President more time to implement his Renewed Hope projects and programs. We believe there will be light at the end of the tunnel.

“Fellow citizens, your voices have been heard and we assure you that Mr President is relentlessly committed to providing the leadership that will take this country out of the current challenges.

“We therefore humbly appeal that a little more patience be shown by all Nigerians even as we urge all our party men and women and Nigerians across political party lines to remain vigilant and work towards maintaining peace, law and order in their respective domain and localities to protect our hard earned democracy”, they stressed.

They warned that the alleged sinister arrangements in the name of protest could be hijacked, become counterproductive and even worsen the already challenging economic situation.

According to them, “Protest is a constitutional right when done through the rule of law. However, security reports have shown that it is counterproductive to embark on this protest this time as there are sinister arrangements by some unpatriotic persons to hijack the protest for the sole purpose of unleashing nefarious agenda to perpetrate violence and indulge in high level criminality reminiscent of the 2020 Endsars protest and the recent experience in Kenya.

“Fellow Nigerians, It is our humble view that this will worsen our already challenging socio economic situation and that is why we have decided to join our voices to make this appeal to all Nigerians.

“Futhermore, we have become fully aware through public utterances of some persons that the protest is more political than the economic concerns earlier expressed.

“It is therefore proper to bring to the knowledge of rightly guided patriotic Nigerians that the political under current flowing from the planned protest appears to have redirected the initial focus of the planned protest from economic hardship to an unconstitutional change of government by some failed politicians.

“While elections have since been concluded and all judicial disputes amicably resolved by the Supreme Court, the attempt by sore losers trying to use this planned protest to achieve their aim is stoutly condemned by us APC Chairmen and must be condemned by all Nigerians across political parties who fought so hard toward the attainment of the democracy we all enjoy today”.