There is an uneasy calm within the camp of the ruling party (APC). Many loyalists of the president are not comfortable with the prevailing situation in the country. They can see the hunger in the land. They can see the anguish on the faces of Nigerians. They just witnessed first hand the anger of the people during the recent protest against hunger and bad governance. And though they cannot confront the president and ask him pertinent questions, they know most of what Nigerians are going through are the direct results of some of the hard policies undertaken by the government. And they are wondering, why would a president who is only in his first term and still has to go back to the people to seek their votes for a second term be undertaking such bold and risky policies that he knows will come with consequences?
Without a doubt, the Bola Ahmed Tinubu led administration has been having a torrid time in power. From the very first day it came into office last year May, 2023, it has been bedevilled by all manner of challenges. The President himself did not help matters when it announced from its very first day in power that the fuel subsidy was gone. And from that moment, everything that could possibly go wrong with the government has gone wrong.
With the removal of the subsidy, fuel prices went up, hitting an all time high. It was first pegged at N600 and now Nigerians are buying it at N1000 or more per litre in some cases. This has led to an astronomical increase in the cost of transportation and prices of food items, taking the most previously affordable staples out of the reach of the common man. Expectedly, this triggered a loud and deafening outcry from Nigerians who began to demand for a change of government. With the hunger in the land, it was only a matter of time that the last protest against bad governance would happen. That the nation's security agencies were able to contain the outbreak of law and order by the protesters and prevent what could've plunged the entire nation into total anarchy of terrifying proportions still remains a miracle. But still, many lives were lost, properties worth several millions of naira were either looted or vandalized. The poor wreaked havoc on the poor. The entire protest, which lasted about ten days, clearly, and sadly, did not get the sort of attention or response it wanted from the government. And this is to be expected as the protesters, lacking in leadership and direction, could not hold any meaningful dialogue with the government. But they sent a very clear message though- that there is serious hunger in the land!
Now, while some would take one dispassionate look at the situation and declare that the government did right thing by removing the fuel subsidy, others would raise the question of several seemingly unpopular policies implemented by the government that are hurting the people in more ways than one.
Apart from the removal of the subsidy, the government decided to float the naira, hoping on the long run, to strengthen it and save millions of dollars that had been expended into more or less subsidising the naira against the dollar, to keep it at around N400 to the dollar. This decision to float the naira has sent it crashing hard against the dollar and of course affecting adversely everything the dollar is remotely connected to. This has in no small measure increased the inflation in the country and has left the economy severely battered.
There is also the increase in electricity tariffs that has left Nigerians totally shocked. The increase is pretty high and it makes many wonder if the government thought it through well enough before approving for these high rates in the tariffs to be implemented.
Lately, there have been several news contents on social media suggesting that the northern region is not the least happy with the Bola Tinubu administration and that they may not give him the kind of support he got from them last year when they voted massively for him to help him emerge winner of the last presidential election. Presently, some northerners feel the president has neglected them and gave them the short end of the stick. First, the lopsided appointments made in their favour when the the former president, Muhammadu Buhari was in power, has been addressed and there now exists a semblance of balance in the appointments made by the president. This has not gone down well with some northerners, especially the elites.
There is also the proposed bill for regional government or restructuring as some would prefer to call it. This proposal is at the National Assembly would be passed into law by the first of October this year. This proposal has the full backing of Mr. President and a lot of core northerners are already kicking against it. The Fulani have particularly expressed their resentment for the planned restructuring and are prepared to rise against it both at the red and green chambers where they are confident they have full representation of Lawmakers of their extraction.
These many bold steps taken by the president, including his backing of the Supreme court ruling giving autonomy to local governments, have been viewed by many of his loyalists as suicidal. And these policies have made a lot of enemies for the president. And his loyalists wonder, why take these hard decisions and risk your second term knowing these policies, though taken in good faith, will have very harsh effects on the people?
Just last week, President Tinubu confirmed the fears of his loyalists when he affirmed that his attention is focused on securing a brighter future for the next generation of Nigerians rather than focusing on 2027 elections. The President said he is not thinking about his re-election and the 2027 general elections.
The President, who was represented by his Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, stated this on Saturday at the 2024 South West Assembly of the All Progressives Congress, held at the Eko Hotels, Victoria Island, Lagos.
Tinubu stated that he was focused on restructuring the economy for the benefit of Nigerians and urged them to be patient with his administration, which is committed to the genuine progress of the populace.
Prime Citizens spoke to a close aide of the president, one of his loyalists who has been with him for decades running and he expressed his fears and that of his colleagues.
"Naturally, some of us who are loyalists of Mr. President are worried. We know the people are not happy with the situation of things in the country but the government, especially Mr. President, is working round the clock to ensure that the economy is revived and transformed into the economy that we all desire to have"
He continued: "We are hopeful that many of these policies will yield dividends but we are praying they do so quickly enough to douse the tension in the country and restore the confidence of the people in our party, the ruling party. But most importantly, we need to get them to believe in Mr. President's Renewed Hope agenda and trust in the capability of the president to take the country out of the woods and bring us the Nigeria of our dreams that we promised them. We know that, if this is not achieved in good time, it will be difficult, if not almost impossible for the president to win his second term election. If the people are hungry and angry, it will be a herculean task to convince them to vote for the president and for the ruling party, APC, again. But we are trusting in the president and the government to do everything within its powers to restore our economy and bring smiles back on the faces of Nigerians again. And it will happen. All we ask is for the people to give the president more time and we will all smile again."
WALE LAWAL (08037209290)
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