The Committee for the Defence of Human Rights (CDHR), has applauded President Bola Tinubu’s giant strides since assumption of office, recommending measures to reduce cost of governance.
The CDHR President, Mr Debo Adeniran, gave the commendation in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Lagos.
He was reacting to the president’s national broadcast on the ongoing nationwide protests.
“We will like to commend the president for the giant strides his administration has recorded in the last one year.
“Some of these laudable achievements are signing the student loan bill into law, paving way for the ongoing disbursement of the monies to students.
“We also applaud efforts to secure Supreme Court pronouncement for local government financial autonomy, payment of forex backlog, and raise in the minimum wage from N30,000 to N70,000,” he said.
Adeniran also commended the president for increment in crude oil production from 900,000 barrels per day to 1.6 million barrels per day.
Other achievements include the creation of the North-West and South-East Development Commissions and the suspension of tariff on imported grains and other essential food items.
The activist called on Tinubu to ensure that Nigerians whose business capital was not up to five million Naira were exempted from paying tax.
He recommended that all essential commodities, including foods, books, medicine, among others should enjoy tax waivers.
The activist also advocated free education and free healthcare for all children up to the senior secondary level.
According to him, grants should be given to indigent students in tertiary institutions.
“Those who are not indigent should be encouraged to take the option of the student loan introduced by the government.
He said that Nigeria was unnecessarily encumbered by the weight of its heavy system of government.
“We will like to recommend a unicameral legislature in the mould of the House of Representatives, which is cheaper and easier to maintain.
“It also makes government business simpler and faster,” he said.
Adeniran also recommended two tiers of government – the federal and local governments.
He urged the president to convene a Sovereign National Conference (SNC) to give birth to a new constitution for Nigeria to accelerate unity and progress.
“SNC is the foundation of a true democracy and nationhood; without it, we shall only be living under self-denial in a mere political contraption without any true unifying factor.
“We believe that if the above recommendations are adopted, it will douse the current tension being witnessed across the country in the form of protest and wanton looting and destruction of properties,” he said.
NAN recalls that the protest, which started on Thursday, crippled socio-economic activities across states as motor parks, shops, malls, markets and roads were deserted.
The first day of the protest recorded violence and looting in some states like Niger, Kaduna, Jigawa and Abuja.
The protest, planned to end on Aug. 10, is aimed at drawing the attention of the Federal Government to the hardship faced by citizens.
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