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African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar has donated N20 million to the families of the 37 miners who died in the custody of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Niger State recently.
Atiku, according to a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, announced the donation during a meeting with the families of the deceased miners.
The statement noted that the ADC candidate also visited Minna, the Niger State capital, where he condoled with the Emir of Minna and Chairman of the Minna Emirate Council, His Royal Highness, Alhaji (Dr.) Umar Farouk Bahago, and former military president, General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (rtd.).
He noted that Nigeria cannot secure its future without deliberately investing in its young people, expanding opportunities for them and enabling them to pursue legitimate and productive livelihoods.
The former Vice President, who stated that it was harrowing listening first-hand to the account of one of the survivors, described the tragedy as a painful reminder of the vulnerability of young Nigerians struggling to survive amid severe economic pressures.
According to him, “It was a gory tale listening to one of the survivors. He told us that more than 68 of them were crammed into one small detention facility and that conditions became so desperate that they had to drink one another’s urine just to stay hydrated.”
“No Nigerian should ever be subjected to such indignity in the custody of his own government. These were human beings in the care of the state. Whatever accusations may have been made against them, they were entitled to their lives, their dignity and the protection of the law.”
Atiku said the fact that many young Nigerians are being driven into hazardous and poorly regulated occupations should compel government to confront the deeper questions of poverty, unemployment and the cost-of-living crisis.
“Thirty-seven young Nigerians entered the custody of the state alive and did not return alive to their families. That tragedy demands truth, justice and accountability.”
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“But beyond establishing what happened in that detention facility, we must also ask why so many of our young people are being pushed into dangerous and precarious livelihoods simply to survive.”
Atiku said the deaths should force the Tinubu administration to reflect on the human consequences of economic policies that have placed enormous pressure on households and diminished opportunities for millions of young Nigerians.
“When families can no longer afford the basics and young people are forced to take extraordinary risks just to earn a living, government cannot pretend that everything is working.”
“Economic reform must ultimately be measured by what it does to the lives of ordinary people. If life becomes progressively more difficult for families, workers and young people, then government has a responsibility to reconsider the choices producing those outcomes,” he stated.
The ADC candidate reiterated that if elected President, he would implement policies designed to reduce the cost of living, including a targeted production subsidy for petroleum products refined in Nigeria, rather than a return to an open-ended subsidy on imported fuel.
“My promise to make life affordable again is not a political slogan. It is a solemn covenant with the Nigerian people. We will support what Nigeria produces. We will support fuel refined in Nigeria, create Nigerian jobs and insist that every naira of government support delivers a measurable benefit to the consumer.”
“The purpose of government is not merely to announce reforms. The purpose of government is to make life better for the people,” Atiku stated.
