President Bola Tinubu on Sunday accused opposition politicians in Nigeria of ulterior motives and instigating the #EndBadGovernance and hunger protest in the country.

Mr Tinubu made the claim in a nationwide broadcast on Sunday, without citing any instance to prove his claim.

Following the looting, loss of lives, and property destruction, especially in the North, Mr Tinubu vowed to perform his duty to provide security, and not allow actors with selfish interests take advantage of the protest to cause division in the country.

He said, “As President of this country, I must ensure public order. In line with my constitutional oath to protect the lives and property of every citizen, our government will not stand idly by and allow a few with a clear political agenda to tear this nation apart.”

He also pleaded with the “protesters and the organisers to suspend any further protest and create room for dialogue.” The President appealed to citizens to join hands with his administration regardless of age, party, tribe, religion or other divides, to work together in reshaping the destiny of Nigeria as a nation.

Mr Tinubu’s decision to make the broadcast came after yielding to growing calls for him to address Nigerians, especially youths who trooped out on August 1 to protest against hunger and bad governance and demanding a reversal of his harsh economic policies.