Eminent lawyer and politician Owolabi Salis has called on President Bola Tinubu to implement urgent measures to address the intense hardship faced by Nigeria, which is incredibly impoverished.
Salis, popularly called Oba Mekunu, also emphasised the need for the government to bridge the gap between the rich and the poor by ensuring access to basic needs.
He further stressed the importance of taxing the rich to support the poor and urged the government to take action to alleviate poverty and provide essential resources.
The lawyer also highlighted the spiritual consequences of allowing people to suffer from hunger and lack of access to healthcare.
Salis cited historical and spiritual references to emphasise the moral imperative of addressing poverty and ensuring the well-being of every individual.
He urged for compassionate governance that prioritises the needs of the less privileged and avoids corruption and mismanagement of resources meant for the poor.
Salis stated, “While it is true that the economic hardship the country is experiencing today is essentially a carry-over effect of the misgovernance of past leaders, it still behooves the president to chart a course that would redeem the starving, poverty-stricken class from the socio-economic stupor in which they are currently entangled.
“Mr President, it is necessary to emphasize a basic fact that you do something urgently to grapple with this task, considering the crucial essence of human life at stake. The government must bridge the gap between the rich and the poor to ensure access to basic needs.
“This often requires taxing the rich to support the poor in assuring these basic needs. The rich do not need the government to provide food or health for them. They have money to buy them. However, people with low incomes who cannot do so must be assisted by the government. That is governance.
“As a lawyer and keen student of history and world politics, I will shudder from the predictably usual, even if realistic, reference to inevitable bloody revolution simply because I am an apostle of peace who has no option than to pray for and support your government, in the interest of peace without which no meaningful success could be achieved.
