The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Governors forum, have lamented that rather than undertake a review of macro-economic and social policies with a view to giving them a human face, the federal government has resorted to blackmail.
The governors stated this in a communique issued at the end of their meeting on Friday in Jalingo, the Taraba state capital.
The governors also said the federal government interventions in states are not enough to address the economic problems facing Nigerians.
The federal government has been distributing palliatives to states to address the economic hardship in the country.
The forum urged President Bola Tinubu to caution his appointees against mentioning the interventions provided by the federal government to states to make them “ook bad.
The communique called on President Tinubu “to show statesmanship by restraining his officials from blame games that make the sub-nationals look bad by mentioning piecemeal interventions that cannot solve the problem.”
“We remain unshaken in our firm resolve to stand with the suffering Nigerian masses and to take all legitimate steps to ameliorate their plight”, the governors said.
Commenting on the forthcoming governorship election in Edo, the forum alleged that there are attempts to compromise the poll in favour of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
The forum alleged that security operatives were intimidating PDP supporters in the state.
The governors also urged the federal government to ensure a fair and speedy trial of those arrested over the recent #EndBadGovernance protest.
“The governors noted with a sigh of relief the end of the #EndBadGovernance protest, which was edging to a major national crisis.
“We salute the dexterity of the governors, especially of the PDP extraction, in handling the situation in their respective states with maturity, thereby restraining hoodlums and other unscrupulous elements from hijacking the protests.
“The Forum reiterates that peaceful protests are the inalienable rights of the citizens through which they vent their genuine grievances.
“The Forum commiserates with the families of those innocent souls that were lost and calls on the Federal Government to ensure a fair and speedy trial of those who were arrested”, the communique said.
