Abba Hamisu Sani
Africa-Press – Nigeria. Talking about Tinubu’s one year in office as the President of the largest African nation means a lot at this time when Nigeria experienced the most critical economic period coupled with high inflation and the high cost of almost every basic amenity of life which made them beyond the reach of a common Nigerian.
Some analysts are describing the former Lagos governor’s twelve months in office as the extension of Buhari’s tenure.
Removal of the oil subsidy is the major critical decision taken by Tinubu right from his first day in Office.
The move has been there for years but successive administrations decided to execute it in phases as it’s evident that the subsidy provision was not part of the 2023 budget which was the last fiscal year of the former Nigerian leader Muhammadu Buhari.
The main economic issues under Tinubu’s one year as President
May 2023 to 2024 marked the one year of APC’s Federal government under Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu. The year witnessed multiple policies that turned around the whole economic system of the country ranging from the number one issue of fuel subsidy removal, unification of foreign currency exchange rate, electricity tariff increment, and the Labour Union’s agitations for the review of the minimum wage due to the high cost of living.
Shortly after the removal of the fuel subsidy, the Federal government promised to provide Gas-powered Vehicles to the 36 states and Abuja but the promise is yet to be fulfilled even though the government provided billions of Naira and food items to the state governments as intervention to cushion the effect of the policy but the items were alleged to be diverted in some states.
The foreign currency exchange rate unification pushes the exchange rate of the US dollar, which remains the most demanded foreign currency for importation, to an unexpected price which in turn causes high inflation in addition to what the removal of fuel subsidy removal generated.
Divergent views of politicians and Human rights activists
Barrister Haruna Magashi is the Vice Presidential Candidate of the African Action Congress -AAC during the 2023 elections.
The party has a renowned activist Omole Sowore as its Presidential flag bearer.
Magashi described Tinubu’s government as Buhari’s administration extension that focuses little on the economic initiatives that will drive the country out of heavy dependence on oil as a single source of income.
He stated this in an interview with Africa Press recently.
The legal practitioner turned politician says for Tinubu’s administration to change the present economic hardship it has to stop implementing the IMF and World Bank policies which are not meant for underdeveloped nations like Nigeria.
On the issue of Youth participation in government, the politician decried the injustice faced by Youth in terms of getting positions as the old generation dominated everything unfairly.
“Youth are only appointed as Personal assistants and special assistants with little salaries and even at that level they were not given opportunities to forge ahead.
So they should change their mindset through contesting elections to fill the positions of executives and legislatures at all levels despite the meager resources at their disposal” Magashi stated.
Human Rights protections
Interns of human rights protections Tinubu needs to be commended compared to his predecessor Muhammadu Buhari whose eight years were characterized by various human rights abuses of not only citizens but also some Judges where security agents intruded into their houses without search warrants.
Such actions affected many Nigerians such as human rights activists, religious leaders, and Youth who resorted to heavy demonstrations against the security apparatus under the watch of Buhari. One of these demonstrations was the “End SARS Protest” across the Federation.
Ambassador Ibrahim Waiya is the Chairman, Conference of Northern States Civil Society Networks. He commended Tinubu’s government in this aspect.
Waiya added that President Tinubu’s approach to protecting human rights sounds democratic.
“The impact of Buhari’s human rights abuse is still felt as we are still searching for an activist from Kaduna State popularly known as Dadiyata who is still nowhere to be found.
We plead with the present administration to release this activist if still in the custody of security agencies, ‘ Waiya urged.
He added that Nigerians need to enjoy their human rights in all aspects of life so we call on President Tinubu to do more in discharging his duties as the number one human rights protector as the Commander In Chief of the Nigerian Arm forces.
The civil society activists added that the Nigerian government needs to do all the necessary things to change the present economic hardship by initiating good policies and programs.
Tinubu’s success in 12 Months plus Nigerian expectations ahead
Despite the economic challenges faced by Nigerians in the 12 months of Bola Tinubu’s government some initiatives under his leadership can be described as a success. One such is his effort to attract foreign investors by attending different international forums and events.
He was in Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, India, and Saudi Arabia among many countries to attract foreign Direct Investments.
United Arab’s willingness to invest in oil exploration in Nigeria is another plus to Tinubu’s leadership.
What Nigerians expect from the former Lagos State governor is getting it easy to access basic needs such as food, fuel, electricity, and subsidized housing.
But these expectations seem to be unachievable within this one year.
The hope is that Tinubu will change his policy directions towards people-oriented initiatives by avoiding heavy reliance on IMF and World Bank directives as suggested by many economic experts.
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