The Osun Masterminds (TOM), a civil society organization, has called upon the Osun State Government to temporarily close schools in the state for a few weeks in response to the challenges posed by the ongoing fuel scarcity.
The group argues that this action would help alleviate the considerable suffering experienced by children and their parents.
These recommendations were included in the group’s April State of the State address, delivered by its Executive Director, Prof. Wasiu Oyedokun-Alli, on Tuesday in Osogbo.
TOM also urged the Federal Government to take immediate action to address the issues related to erratic power supply and fuel scarcity, expressing concern over the significant hardships faced by Nigerians at present.
According to TOM, “We cannot be living like slaves in our own country, under a democratic governance.
“In just a few days of this meaningless fuel scarcity, Nigerians have faced one of the toughest experiences of their lives. Students have had to return home, unable to get to their respective schools due to shortage of public transportation. The economy is getting crippled by the day as workers and informal sector operators are also unable to get to their places of work.
“We recommend the shutting down of schools maybe for a few weeks while this scarcity lasts to avoid the children and their parents suffering unduely.
“We demand as a group that the Federal government acts immediately to solve all the problems pertaining to epileptic power supply and fuel scarcity, to stop the untold hardship that Nigerians are currently going through. We cannot be living like slaves in our own country, under a democratic governance.”
The group also called for the sack of the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu.
According to the group, Adelabu’s insistence on classification of users in different bands is as absurd and ridiculous.
They also demanded that if sacking any government official was the way to solve the situation, such step should be taken immediately.
“If solving the current hardship requires that some government officials be sacked, government must take that decisive action now.
“Use of Electricity is a social contract and every Nigerian irrespective of class should have access to quality and regular supply of electricity. We have come so far as a nation to have overcome those self inflicted pain occasioned by lack of power.”
Lambasting the government for not making any clear statement about the worsening situations across the power and petroleum sectors, the group added that the government’s stance was grossly irresponsible.
“We challenge the Osun State government to rise up and do the needful like Ekiti state and others in facilitating alternative power generation for her citizens. This we belief should be the duty of the Ministry of Energy hitherto redundant in the state.”