• Says call for change of democratically-elected govt illegal, provocative
• Tinubu striving to ensure better Nigeria, give him time, Aiyedatiwa tells Nigerians
• Avoid repeat of #EndSARS tragedy in Oyo, Ogundoyin warns

The All Progressives Congress (APC), South-west zone, yesterday, said that the hardship facing the country was expected due to the economic changes effected by the President Bola Tinubu-led administration.

The South-west Executive Committee of the party, during an emergency meeting in Akure, Ondo State capital, appealed to Nigerians to exercise patience, assuring that the pain, which is temporary, would soon give way to a meaningful livelihood for all.

In a communiqué signed by Zonal National Vice Chairman of the party, Issac Kekemeke and Zonal Secretary, Vincent Bewaji, which acknowledged the right of the people to protest, the party called on all south westerners not to allow the zone to be used as a centre of violent protest, particularly since the zone was yet to recover from the impact of the #EndSARS protest.

The party, while urging government officials from the zone to return home and intimate their constituents on the efforts of the government in solving the economic challenges, tasks opposition parties, students, traditional and religious leaders to protect the socio-economic interests of the zone from being tampered with in the guise of protest.

RELATEDLY, Ondo State Governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, has urged Nigerians to give Tinubu more time to pull the country out of its current economic challenges.

Aiyedatiwa, who disclosed that Tinubu is striving to make Nigeria better, gave the assurance that the expectations of Nigerians would be met and achieved.

The governor stated this, yesterday, while meeting with some stakeholders of the APC in Akure, the Ondo State capital.

According to the governor, those behind the planned protest should seek a more peaceful approach that would promote development, national peace, and political stability.

He, however, urged them to be conscious of the potential risks protest portends for the country.

ALSO, Speaker of Oyo State House of Assembly, Adebo Ogundoyin, yesterday, warned against any form of violence to prevent a repeat of the #EndSARS protest.

Ogundoyin, who spoke during a youth stakeholders’ meeting held at the House of Chiefs, Parliament Building Secretariat, Ibadan, emphasised the need for peaceful protest but urged security agencies to take proactive measures to prevent any breakdown of law and order.

He, however, called on security agencies to identify potential hotspots ahead of the planned nationwide protest.