A good number of students, workers and civil society groups yesterday stormed the streets of Ibadan, Oyo State to express displeasure with the climb in price of petrol and increase of electricity tariff.

The protesters assembled at the Awolowo Junction, Bodija, where they chanted anti-government and solidarity songs before moving to the Federal Secretariat, Ikolaba, Ibadan.

The protesters who described the recent rise in electricity tariff and hike in fuel price as obnoxious and one that lacked sound judgment vowed to paralyse the economy if the government failed to reverse the price and tariff.

Speaking to newsmen, the president of National Association of Polytechnic Students, NAPS, Benedict Olalere, said: “We are giving the Federal Government a seven-day ultimatum to reverse the pump price and electricity tariff. Failure to do so, we will shut down and paralyse the economy. If they want to arrest us let them do so. I am ready to die. The masses cannot be sacrificial lambs because they want to take care of political office holders. They should cut down their expenses.”

Responding also was the Chairman, Joint Campus Committee of the National Association of Nigerian Students, (NANS), Mayowa Opakunle, emphasised who maintained that students in the state totally reject the increase.

On the part of the Convener of All Workers’ Convergence (AWC) and former Chairman of Trade Union Congress (TUC) in Oyo State, Andrew Emelieze, said: “The policies of the current government are inimical to Nigerians and are making life difficult for Nigerians. By illegally increasing pump price and electricity tariff, life has become miserable for Nigerians. They promised to build refineries. Where are the refineries?”

Similarly, the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) and rights activists during a protest in Osogbo gave the Federal Government a three-week ultimatum to undo the hike, lamenting that the policies by the current leadership have brought untold hardship to the citizens.

The protest which was organised by NANS, Action Front (JAF) and Amica Ideological School Movement (ACIS-M) had one of the stakeholders, Kola Ibrahim, who is the Secretary of JAF, say: “Our aim is to resist all anti-people policy of the Buhari-led government and its surrogates across the states.”

A Lagos-based socio-political activist and critic, Chief Adesunbo Onitiri, has appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari to repeal the recent hike of electricity tariff and petroleum pump prices without further delay in order to save the poor masses from economic pressure and described the development as unreasonable and totally unacceptable to the Nigerian people.

Onitiri in a statement in Lagos who said the anti-people’s policies were ill-timed, coming at a time the COVID-19 pandemic has dealt seriously with the country, thus, urged the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) to stand up to the task of saving the poor masses, especially the workers and should protect and defend the weak and feeble Nigerian masses.

In another development, the Aare Onakakanfo of Yorubaland, Otunba Gani Adams, has warned the Federal Government against pushing Nigerians to a point where they would choose violence as an option due to its intolerable and hard policies like the recent increase in the prices of fuel and electricity tariffs.

The National Co-ordinator of the Yoruba militant organisation, Oodua People’s Congress (OPC), while describing the new policies as tyrannical, suppressive and a demonstration of insensitivity on the part of the government and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to the plights of Nigerians said that the decision should be reversed with immediate effect.

The Publicity Secretary of OPC, Mr. Yinka Oguntimehin, in a statement yesterday described the increase as an attempt to push Nigerians to the wall, warning that the Federal Government is sitting on a time bomb.

In another development, the Electricity Distribution Companies (DisCos) have said that the new tariff hike, which took effect from September 1, 2020, will also affect those that had recharged their unit in advance without recourse to what they had been charged.

The Ikeja Electricity Distribution, Eko Electricity Distribution and Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company spokespersons, Felix Ofulue, Godwin Idemudia and Busolami Tunwase respectively, who spoke with newsmen respectively, said that the increase would only be for bands A-C. But the National Co-ordinator, All Electricity Consumers Protection, Adeola Ilori, said that the firms did not consider the troubles of prepaid meter users before the increase.