In response to the severe hunger brought on by the nation’s ongoing suffering, concerned Nigerians have urged the federal government to let go of its pride and adjust a few of its economic policies.

The guidance is given in the midst of warehouse looting as a means of survival.Numerous enraged and hungry Nigerians invaded the Federal Capital Territory’s (FCT) Agric Department Strategic Food Stockpile in Tasha, Abuja, early on Sunday morning, stealing food items.

The locals claim that the angry youngsters broke into the warehouse near the Tasha neighborhood and stole bags of wheat and corn.

The attack on the storage facility brought back memories of the COVID-19 shutdown and the EndSARS demonstration against police brutality, when irate and starving Nigerians broke into and looted multiple government warehouses nationwide.

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It’s possible that Nigeria’s current economic woes have made history repeat itself.

Nigerian security authorities battled to stop the growing number of looting occurrences at government-run warehouses throughout the nation in both instances. This was in response to widespread youth-led protests against police brutality and the ongoing lockdown during the COVID-19 pandemic.

When the hunger pangs became unbearable, Nigerians broke into and robbed the storage facilities that contained tons of relief supplies, including food intended for distribution during the lockdowns imposed to stop the spread of the new coronavirus.

A comparable process is evidently taking place in front of Nigerians today.

In July 2023, groups of young men raided food stores in Yola, the capital of Adamawa State, and two individuals were killed by soldiers who attempted to restore order.

On Sunday, July 30, 2023, police in Yola, the state capital, acknowledged that they had arrested 110 persons in the wake of the raids, which had quickly expanded from the government food depots to private shops in the market. The official death toll was not disclosed.

The state authorities implemented a 24-hour curfew. After one day, the curfew was loosened to permit individuals to go about during the day.

15 people are reportedly under arrest by the FCT Police Command in connection with the looting in Abuja.

Many Nigerians have expressed concern over this development, with some believing it could spark a revolution among the populace.

Some stakeholders believe that in order to prevent the impending catastrophe, the administration of President Bola Tinubu needs to take responsibility for its errors and change its ill-considered policies.

Chief Maxi Okwu, a former national chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), is among those who are considering this option.

While acknowledging that everyone in Nigeria—aside from those who hold certain positions of authority or public office—is going through difficult and trying times, Okwu said the government needs to own up to its mistakes.

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In his words,

“They are in serious distress. Even the business class, except the very big ones, is also taking a big hit based on the economic situation of the country right now, which has spiralled out of control.

“It appears that the government at the federal level is totally bereft of ideas. They are clueless as to how to proffer solutions to the problem.

“Yes, they have empanelled a high powered economic team, involving all sorts of people, including governors, but is that the answer? That is not the answer; they must tackle the cause of the illness and not the malaise. The reason is that the last government of Muhammadu Buhari crippled the economy and left us with a dead economy.

“The Anambra State Governor, Prof Chukwuman Soludo, said so and I agree with him. Something must be done to begin mid-term and long-term solutions.

“Some of the policies that the present government put in place as soon as it came to power need to be reversed, even if temporarily. I am talking about the floating of Naira, and the issue of fuel subsidy. Such policies must be temporarily adjusted to take care of the immediate challenges.”

He said that if Nigerians hadn’t shown such patience, the situation would have evolved into a full time revolution.

“It is only in Nigeria that things will be like this and there is no popular revolution. I am not talking about any military misadventure, I am talking about a popular uprising.

“Nigerians are a people, who will take everything in their strides,” he said.

He further warned that if something was not done very urgently to address the situation, it could degenerate to a worse situation.

“So, these looting and stealing are just a small reaction by people who are desperate. In fact, the government should thank its stars that it is just this small looting that is going on.

“By now, in a vibrant democracy, the people would have hit the streets, and the government would have been in big trouble. But, let’s pray for the best. Some of us have given up entirely. We are now on autopilot and watching what is going on,” Okwu stated.

Yusuf Shehu, a former legislator from Katsina State, also linked the tragedy to the nation’s worrying economic circumstances, stating that people are no longer able to handle the suffering, especially when it comes to food prices.

He called on the authorities to take action to solve the crisis and issued a warning about the repercussions of the current state of affairs.

“People are hungry; poverty is gradually becoming the order of the day. If the situation continues like this, things will go out of hand.

“People are hungry. There is no money; there is no work; and so, people are waiting for any little chance to capitalize on and cause mayhem.

“People are stealing food items from anywhere and there is no way they will find a food store and not vandalise it, even if it belongs to the government. The government should find ways as urgent as possible to minimise the people’s suffering,” he said.

He also did not support the looting, but stressed that when people are pushed to the wall, the only reaction is for them to fight back.

“It is wrong because people should be law abiding. But, the government should also live up to its responsibilities. People should not be pushed to the wall because when that happens, they will be left with no choice but to fight back,” he stated.

Romanus Okoye, a lawyer, would want to examine the legal definition of looting and the exact time at which it was made illegal.

“Of course, looting is, first and foremost, a form of stealing. As such, depending on how it is perpetrated, the looter may be arrested for petty theft, larceny, grand theft, burglary, or another similar crime. Some states also have laws that pertain specifically to looting, often with stiffer penalties,” he stated.

He also went back in time to quote the UN regarding looting, which states that it is expressly forbidden to take civilian property during a war (The Fourth Geneva Convention, 1949).

“Theoretically, to prevent such looting, unclaimed property is moved to the custody of the Custodian of Enemy Property, to be handled until returned to its owners.”

After reviewing the legislation on looting, he concluded that one can never predict what will happen when one has a populace as enraged as Nigerians right now.

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He held the leaders responsible for the populace’ extreme poverty while they lived luxurious lives.

He said: “Those in government display affluence as if nothing is happening, while the masses wallow in abject misery, poverty and hunger.

“The leaders must show examples by the way they live. Things are extremely out of reach of the people. The government must quickly do something to bring down the prices of goods so that people can buy food and eat to survive.”

Ikechukwu Anthony, a public affairs analyst, also contributed and complained the fact that more Nigerians are now unable to obtain food, the second most basic human need.

He issued a dire warning, saying that if the government did not act swiftly to end the hunger in the country, the worst things would only be getting started in Abuja.

He said: “What happened in Abuja is just a tip of the iceberg if the government does not do something urgently to provide food for Nigerians.

“Look, Nigerians are hungry and there is no money anywhere to buy food because the price keeps rising on a daily basis.

“I want to tell you that revolution is taking place. The food in those warehouses will soon finish and when that happens, nobody can predict the people’s next move. But, I can tell you, it will be dangerous.

“When people can’t find food in the warehouses and the trucks have stopped running because they are being attacked, they will turn their anger and frustration against any motorist on Nigeria road and people will stop going to work.

“You can see the gradual descent to anarchy and total breakdown of law and order, which in a simple term is revolution.

“So, I will advise the government to take what has happened seriously and urgently find a way of making food available and within the reach of ordinary Nigerians.”

He urged that the present government swiftly reform its policy.

Source: DAILY POST