Abuja. — Nigeria's President Bola Tinubu has urged young people not to join nationwide cost of living protests planned for next week, saying they are the work of "sinister" people "capitalising" on the country's economic woes.

Nigeria's last mass demonstration was three years ago, against a reviled police unit accused of extra-judicial killings.

The #EndSARS movement achieved its aim of disbanding the force, but was met with a violent crackdown in which dozens of protesters were killed.

As demonstrations planned for August 1 in Nigeria draw nearer, President Tinubu has urged organisers to drop their plans.

"Capitalising on the economic hardship in the country, some men and women with sinister motives have been reported to have been mobilising citizens, particularly youths, to stage a protest," he said.

The speech was delivered on the president's behalf to a gathering of traditional leaders on Monday by the secretary to the government, George Akume.

Referring to India, which has been hit by religious clashes, and Sudan, which has been destroyed by a civil war, he added: "Let's learn from India and Sudan's experiences. We are a country with more than 200 million people. Therefore, we can't afford to have this kind of situation."

Trade union bosses are urging Mr Tinubu to sit down with the protest organisers, and not to dismiss their concerns as "sponsored political dissent".

"A situation where most Nigerian families are forced to eat one miserable meal a day and eating from the dustbin beckons for serious intervention by the government," said the Nigeria Labour Congress.

But Mr Tinubu's camp has accused supporters of defeated presidential candidate Peter Obi of planning the protests, and galvanising support on social media.

"Obi should be held responsible for anarchy," said presidential adviser Bayo Onanuga in an online post.

Obi's Labour Party has issued a statement denying this, calling the allegations a "figment of the author's imagination" and branding the government "puerile". - BBC