The Trade Union Congress (TUC) has backed a Lagos-based National Youth Service Corps member, Ushie Uguamaye, also known as Raye, who claimed to have received threats for criticising President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
The TUC President, Mr. Festus Osifo, who was a guest on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics, said that the corps member spoke out of frustration, advising the Nigerian government not to go after her, but to be tolerant of critics.
The TUC boss, however, advised critics to always criticise the government within the expected norm and with some level of decorum.
He said, “The (government) has to develop this resilience to understand that people are frustrated, people are hungry, people are tired. So, if they decide to vent, I strongly believe that the government should not personalise it and come after such individuals.
“Imagine a young lady carrying out her National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) member function, what does she really have to do to bring down government? So, it is about personal frustration that she has aired.
“So, I think that the government has to persevere much more, they have to be more tolerant, and they have to have this deep level of patience with Nigerians because people are passing through a lot as it stands today.”
Raye, a member of the NYSC serving in Lagos, recently made headlines after a video she posted criticising government policies went viral.
She later claimed to have faced threats, reportedly from the NYSC officials, pressuring her to take down the video.
In the video posted on her TikTok account #talktoraye on Saturday, Raye voiced frustration over Nigeria’s deteriorating economic situation, lamenting that hard work no longer guarantees financial stability.
She criticised Tinubu’s leadership, calling him a “terrible leader,” and questioned the government’s commitment to easing citizens’ hardships.
However, the NYSC has yet to release an official statement regarding the issue.
