A collaboration of two civil society groups in Kano have called on the general public to shun the planned nationwide protest as information coming from security sources say they will turn violent.
The groups, made up of Civil Society Organization for Conflict Resolution in Nigeria (CS-CRIN) led by Adeniyi Aremu, and WAZOBIA Conflict Resolution, and Peace Advocacy Initiative (WARCOPAI) led by Garba Marafa, also announced that Civil Society Groups are not involved in the planned protest while addressing newsmen at a press conference on Sunday in Kano.
In his address, the Aremu explained that they as conflict resolution experts always maintain a neutral ground and have met with the security on the matter where they are informed that it might turn violent.
He said those who organized the protest are not known and cannot be reached for any form of dialogue, a situation that shows that mayhem might erupt without anyone to direct on decorum.
“We are here to appeal to the public to give peace a chance and shun the planned nationwide protest.
“This protest has no leaders as people are only mobilized through the social media with some of those influencing it living outside the country.
“We as civil society are not part of it because there is no leadership” he stated.
However, he called on the Nigerian government to deal with the hardship situation people are facing in the country which he believed can only be achieved through dialogue.
“We opt for dialogue in achieving solutions to the mariad of problems facing Nigerians. Arrangements have gone far and we are going to dialogue with the presidency on the matter” he added.
On his side, the WAZOBIA group leader Marafa, stated that the timing for the protest is wrong and and people are wrongly mobilized especially as the leaders are not known.
“The nationwide planned protest is organized by unknown persons and people are wrongly mobilized.
“As you see, we are made up of people from all parts of the country and are concerned about the plight of the public. We are going to discuss the matter with government to address the plights of the public while we ask the public to shun the protest.
“We will also engage the various security outfits as well to ensure that the lives and property of citizens are protected” he said.