Stephen Adegbite, chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in Lagos, has appealed to Nigerians to be patient and support President Bola Tinubu in his quest to build a better country.
Adegbite spoke on Thursday at a news conference in Abuja.
His plea followed protests by members of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) on Wednesday over the petrol subsidy removal and the rising cost of living in the country.
Adegbite said continuing with the subsidy regime would be the same as pushing forward the evil days which may be worse than what is being experienced now.
The CAN chairman appealed to Nigerians to be calm, noting that the nation is already getting out of the woods.
“We cannot be complaining about a deficit of social infrastructure and amenities as well as low wages for civil servants and at the same time be opposed to efforts to improve the quality and availability of same,” NAN quoted him as saying.
“While it may be easy to appreciate the altruism behind the protest, I believe that it must have the overall benefit of the entire polity as its ultimate objective.”
Adegbite added that when the subsidy was being paid, Nigerians were not the major beneficiaries as it was hijacked by a few individuals.
“The best that can happen to us is what we are experiencing now, though with pain. We feel the pains of Nigerians, we have families, we have members; even in the church some people cannot come to church anymore because of fuel increase,” he said.
“But we have to endure for now, Mr President said there are better days ahead and by the special grace of God, in another six months, Nigeria will sing a new song, Nigeria will be delivered.
“Mr president is a very compassionate individual, we have known him for more than 27 years, even as an individual, he does not like people suffering around him.
“He wants the best for this nation, he has the interest of this nation at heart and that is why he has met with the labour unions personally.
“We will ensure to follow the government closely on their promises to ensure that the dividends of democracy is delivered and Nigeria becomes a better place for all us to dwell in.”
