A pressure group, Eastern Union, Saturday, predicted more difficult times for a majority of Nigerians in 2025.
EU’s National President, Hon Charles Anike, stated this in an interview with NewsNGR. He said from every indication, Nigerians’ hope would be by divine providence, and not in governance.
According to him, “Our hope for a positive change doesn’t rest on the government. We are not expecting anything extraordinary from this self-serving government.
“From its inception, the government never showed any interest or concern about the wellbeing of the citizens. That was why a president would at his inauguration remove fuel subsidies without consultation.
“Since then, Nigerians have been living with over 500% inflation, and that has depleted the lifespans of the people.”
He opined that no conscious effort had been made to reverse the ugly trend, adding that, “rather things are getting worse and tougher by the day”.
Quoting him, “You can imagine the number of healthy looking people that died at Anambra and Abuja Christmas rice sharing centres, and scores of younger people that died at the Ibadan Christmas stampede!
“The government, rather than feel remorseful and take responsibility for the unfortunate incidents, is giving excuses.
“Anything you see this government do, no matter how they paint or present it, is for its own selfish interests and also geared towards its 2027 renewed agenda. The citizens are not in their calculations.”
On President Bola Tinubu’s 2025 budget of N49.7 trillion, Anike said, “There is nothing special with the 2025 budget. It is still a budget targeted at making the rich richer and the poor poorer.
“A proper analysis of the budget shows that it is a repeat of what was presented before, but more carefully padded and skewed to serve the various interests.
“The Nigerian masses will still continue in their struggle to survive. It is a budget designed to service the insatiable luxurious appetite of the Presidency, National Assembly big boys, their cronies and then the foreign borrowers and collaborators.”