Fellow Nigerians, the last few days have changed my understanding of the people of this great nation. I have developed a greater sense of respect for the passion with which millions of you trooped to the streets to register your opposition to the policy of my government.
I have heard you. Without hesitation, I hereby announce an immediate reversal of the oil subsidy removal.

The debate we’ve had and the energy your actions infused into our political process make me feel so strong about this decision. Living in this bubble called Aso Rock Villa, I often forget that the mandate I have came from the people. I appreciate the stress and hardship you went through to remind me of that very important tenet of our democracy.

On behalf of the nation, I wish to extend my sincere condolences to the families of those who lost their lives in the demonstrations. Their deaths will not be in vain. In the future, I hope we can find a way to do the right thing without losing the precious life of a single Nigerian.

If I read your message right, my government has not earned your trust. And without trust, we have no moral authority to demand sacrifices from you. More so when we, the government, have not made sacrifices ourselves. I have come to realize that more than everything else, the Nigerian people want accountability from their leaders. It is through the door of accountability that you will open for us the room where your trust resides. You all have taught me that only a foolish man will put his tomorrow in the hands of a man who cannot account for his yesterday.

Even a government with good intentions is not always right. In our haste to implement a policy we felt was essential to our economic well-being, we failed to envision the ramifications of our action. We appeared silly arguing that we did not expect the price of food items to go up because trucks and buses use diesel and not fuel. But the truth, which we should have known, is that once the price of one thing goes up in Nigeria, the prices of other things follow. In fact, prices go up in Nigeria for the mere fact that workers got a pay increase. Click to continue reading...FanBox Desktop