The Chief of Defence Staff, (CDS), General Christopher Musa, has warned those he described as “evil people” calling for a coup in Nigeria due to the current economic hardship in the country.
Musa warned that the law will come for those calling for a coup in the country over the current economic realities.
He spoke after inaugurating the main entrance of the 6 Division, Nigerian Army and Officers Transit Accommodation, at the Division Headquarters in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.The Army chief assured of the Armed Forces commitment towards the sustenance of democracy in Nigeria.
Musa said: “Whoever is making that call (coup) does not love Nigeria. We want to make it very clear that the Armed Forces of Nigeria are here to protect democracy. We all want democracy and we do better under democracy. And so we will continue to support democracy. And any of those ones that are calling for anything other than democracy are evil people and I think they don’t mean well for Nigeria. And they should be very careful because the law will come after them. We can see that with democracy a lot of things are happening in Nigeria. Yes we are going through trying periods, I mean in life nothing is hundred per cent.”
Musa said the Federal Government was focused on addressing the current economic challenges in the country and therefore appealed to Nigerians to exercise patience.
“Everybody goes through a trying period in life, and it is what you do with them. You can see the government putting efforts to ensure that we come out better.
“And it is when you go through difficulties and come out better you will really appreciate what it is to build a nation.
“And so we are going through our trying period, but I can assure Nigerians that it will get better,” he added.
Tinubu to sign Executive Orders to bring down costs of medicines
In an imminent move to alleviate the cost burden of pharmaceuticals on Nigerians, President Bola Tinubu is set to sign executive orders aimed at reducing the prices of essential medicines. The announcement was made by the Minister of State for Health, TunjiAlausa and communicated through a post on X by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, BayoOnanuga on Wednesday.
This strategic decision comes as a response to the soaring prices of pharmaceutical products, which have increasingly become a concern for many Nigerians.
According to Minister Alausa, the executive orders are expected to provide “immediate succour” to citizens, addressing the urgent need for affordable healthcare products in the country. The move to regulate pharmaceutical prices through executive orders was underscored a month prior by the Minister of Health, Ali Pate.
He highlighted the necessity of such measures following the withdrawal of major multinational pharmaceutical companies from the Nigerian market.
This departure has exacerbated the challenge of accessing reasonably priced medicines, making the government’s intervention critical.
The minister said, “On what the government is doing regarding the high cost of pharmaceuticals, Mr. President has asked us to come up with a set of Executive Orders that he is going to sign to provide immediate succour to Nigerians about the high cost of pharmaceuticals.
“And these executive orders will get to the President’s table in the next few days. And that is the short-term solution to bringing down the cost of high pharmaceuticals and medical consumables that the citizens are experiencing currently.
“We are also working on medium-term solutions and long-term solutions.
For us at the ministry of health, we are collaborating with the ministry of industry, trade and investment, and others to develop medium and long-term plans so that the situation we suddenly find ourselves in will not be here ever again.
“This cost of high pharmaceuticals that we are noticing now is due to inadequate planning in the past, but we are working on plans and solutions that will be durable and sustainable.” Alausa added that the president is very committed to getting to the “end of this problem very quickly”. He added, “As we know, the president made a lot of campaign promises to revamp, improve, and put the healthcare system of Nigeria on a sustainable pathway. “As we can see, Mr. President is meeting a significant chunk of his campaign promises, and he is going to meet all of his promises. The healthcare budget for 2024 is the biggest ever that we have had in the history of Nigeria.”
While asking Nigerians to bear with the current administration, the minister assured that the costs of pharmaceuticals will plummet pretty soon.
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