Tag: President Tinubu
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A world, a continent in transition
By Bola Ahmed Tinubu
The world exists in a period of fundamental transition. Neither Africa nor Nigeria is exempt from realities of this transition.
Where there is transition, there inherently is uncertainty. Again, neither Africa nor Nigeria is immune from the uncertainty for it is systemic.
As a continent and as individual nations, we face strong headwinds and difficult hurdles seeking to complicate our mission to bring democratic good governance and economic development to our people.
Many of these obstacles such as climate change and unfair patterns of global trade are largely not of our making. However, some of the pitfalls, such as coups and the frequent tinkering with constitutional tenure provisions, we Africans have purposely dug for ourselves.
If we are to be the Africa we seek, we must fill the holes already dug. Most importantly, we must stop the digging of new ones.
Sadly, for my own region, I cannot say this reparative work is being done everywhere and as much as needed. In West Africa, our glass is half full….but, also half empty.
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Last month, we celebrated the peaceful transition of presidential power from one party to another in Liberia. Sierra Leone also held elections last year. Several other ECOWAS members will hold elections this year, further cultivating a tradition of democratic governance and peaceful politics.
However, faced with the harsh difficulties presented by insecurity teamed with poverty, some of our brothers have jettisoned democracy, hoping that military rule will provide quick solutions. Thus, the regional quest for civilian good governance has been impeded by military takeovers in the republics of Guinea, Burkina Faso, Mail and Niger.
Here, we must sound an alarm. But we also should not be too hasty in concluding that some irresistible wave of military interventions now sweeps the continent. Such sensationalism is no substitute for collective diplomacy and prudential statecraft.
Permit me to use the opportunity of this esteemed venue to state something very clearly and plainly. In the statement regarding their intention to withdraw from ECOWAS, the military authorities of the three member states asserted that ECOWAS had drifted from its purpose; that we seek to undermine these nations and their people.
As the chairman of EOCWAS, I stand before this assembly to state that I do not question the sincerity of these leaders of men who are brothers in the same regional and continental families as I am. But I must state for the record that such an interpretation is a most unfortunate and truly mistaken one.
As chairman of ECOWAS, I declare we do not seek to harm these important nations or their people.
Yes, there is disagreement about military takeovers. But disagreement should never mean the permanent rupture of the abiding lines of regional affinity and cooperation.
Yet, an impasse blocks forward progress. Harsh rhetoric has been uttered in the heat of the moment. But pride and personal umbrage should not stand in the way of collective duty and advancement. I take no insult even where insult was clearly intended. The drive for a peaceful, strong, united West Africa is bigger than any one person. The bonds of history, culture, commerce, geography and brotherhood have primacy for me.
Thus, out of the dust and fog of misunderstanding and acrimony, we must seize the chance to create an era of trust and accord.
To all who care to listen, I declare that if you come to the table to discuss important matters in good faith, you will find Nigeria and ECOWAS already sitting there waiting to greet you as the brother that you are.
Gaza and the Middle East
Here, I would be remiss without mentioning events in Gaza and the Middle East. We have seen enough violence and suffering. It is time to cease armed force and to demand that restraint and dialogue be given a fair chance to deliver a just and lasting solution for all parties involved.
Theme of the year – Education
This year’s theme – Education – is essential to a durable solution to the challenges confronting our continent. Helping to achieve the Agenda 2063 objective of a peaceful and secure Africa, I speak Africa not only of education in terms of the benign use of science and technology to improve the material standards of our people. Africa must also become better educated in the humane art of democratic practice and conflict resolution.
This year’s theme encourages us to remodel our educational systems to fit these goals. In Nigeria, my administration is devoting ample resources to education at all levels. From improving our school feeding program to making ourselves an Information and Communication Technology centre, we shall bring more youths to school and afford them the tools needed to flourish in the 21st century.
Admission of the AU into the G20
Admission of the African Union into the Group of 20 is a welcome step in our longstanding demand to play our fair and proper role on the global stage.
Nigeria will work closely with South Africa and the Union to justly represent the continent in this forum. In similar vein, we remained focused on equitable reform of the composition of the UN Security Council.
Institutional reform of the African Union
Nigeria solidly supports current reform efforts aimed at greater efficiencies in Union internal systems and processes. This will lead to a Union better equipped to tackle the various challenges we face now and into the future.
On Agenda 2063
To further the continent’s economic development, we must better utilize the doors to trade, economic diversity and industrialization opened by the Africa Free Trade Area. This includes intensified cooperation in building the connective infrastructure that promotes intra-continental economic activity and true integration.
On counter terrorism
Violent extremism undermines our efforts toward democratic societies where the rule of law outweighs the rule of armed might. While progress has been made, it is also timely that we reassess the decisions adopted in Malabo regarding terrorism.
As such, I humbly extend my personal invitation to the Africa Counter Terrorism Summit in April in Abuja. This summit aims to expand our discussions beyond military and law enforcement remedies to more comprehensively tackle the root causes of violent extremism, such as poverty, inadequate political access and propagation of hateful ideologies.
I ask that you come to Nigeria not only to experience our hospitality but to contribute to a new paradigm for healing this painful wound that hurts us all.
African Central Bank
Consonant with the Abuja Treaty, Nigeria is ready to host the African Central Bank. My administration will actively engage with the African Union Commission and member states to ensure the timely commencement of the Bank by 2028.
As I conclude and on a lighter note, I proclaim West Africa the football capital of the continent. ECOWAS deserves the applause of this assembly for capturing both Gold and Silver in the African Cup of Nations. Beware, my Flying Eagles are primed to soar even one spot higher next year.
• President Tinubu’s maiden address at the 37th Ordinary Session of African Union in Addis-Ababa, Ethiopia.
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Will President Tinubu restructure this nation
As Nigeria continues to experiment with its journey into nationhood, reputed statesmen, scholars, patriots and groups alike have repeatedly called for the total overhaul of the nation’s political system and the ushering of another which would best suit its present configuration and one that will guarantee the total development of the nation as well as its continued stability.
Whether we like it or not, restructuring remains the elixir to the nation’s cauldron of socio-economic cum socio-political conundrums. While I might agree with the school of thought that the major problem of this nation has been the challenge of leadership, the truth remains that even if you give Nigeria the saintliest of saints as its leader or select of leaders, the present stack of our nation’s quasi federal structure would at best frustrate whatever efforts such a Saintly Leader would exert in the course of his duties.
One of the reasons why I supported President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was owing to his stance on restructuring. Of the three major candidates that vied for the presidency, Tinubu was the ‘talk na do’ candidate on restructuring! How can anyone forget that he was a victim of the overt lopsidedness of the nation’s federalism which saw President Obasanjo antagonize him for his pro federalism views and nuances? Tinubu as an advocate for true federalism did not budge and the nation today is better for it, call it, a small step for the father of modern Lagos, one giant leap for the nation.
Sadly, the Tinubu administration has been taciturn on the subject of restructuring that many have wondered if it is the same “Jigi Bola” that is at the helm of affairs in this nation. In a country given to a number of urban legends about the cloning of our presidents, such a question may not be out of place, even with its hilarious bent.
While my president has kept Nigerians second guessing about his stance on restructuring, events since his assumption of office has drummed up with staccato strokes the need to do otherwise and with much urgency.
The present situation where the Supra-national, the Federal Government receives 52.6 per cent of Nigeria’s while the sub national, the states as well as the LG’s share the rest cannot guarantee true federalism and the inclusive gains of development and growth. A situation where the goose that lays the eggs boasts of decrepit infrastructure and the residuals of oil pollution whereas states that contribute little or nothing continue to benefit much from the dividends of such wealth cannot put the nation on the path of economic progress.
Imagine a situation where a local government like Njikoka has much more control on resources located within, the desire for the LG to be dependent on the centre for its resources would be near zero and Njikoka, like every other LGA would develop at its own pace. This development would see the LGs as spurs for economic growth.
Imagine if each state had control over its own police structure, partnering with the Federal police on matters such as terrorism? Would the states not fare better in fighting crime and would our governors face the problem of crime squarely without laying blames on the centre over its non control of the police in their respective states?
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President Tinubu must take unto cognizance the fact that his party, the All Progressives Congress,APC had made restructuring one of its campaign promises before the 2015 elections, while I am aware that the party sometime in 2017, set up a committee to that effect, nothing further was heard about its report not to talk about its implementation, it did seem that President Buhari and his handlers wasn’t too keen on such a promise and thus such a moment for positioning the nation for greatness was lost.
The future of this nation and its stability rests much on the restructuring of Nigeria, otherwise the strictures presently faced would continue to breed agitation among the components of our federation, let’s face it the recent clamour for secessionist republics of Biafra, Oduduwa and the Niger Delta stems from such imbalance, give Nigerians true federalism, restructure this country and such clamour would die a natural death.
President Tinubu and his handlers must therefore heed the call by numerous persons, some of these voices have served as voices of conscience for the nation and did not just wake up now to call for such. He must heed such calls as posterity would much be grateful to him for such an act!
Mr. President like those words on President Harry S Truman’s table did announce, “ The buck stops on your table”
Restructure this nation!
May Nigeria Succeed
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President’s bold steps
SIR: President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has shown signs that he is ready to put his foot down when it matters.
A presidency which emerged at the end of hotly disputed elections was at pains from the very beginning to stress that it would hit the ground running. It did hit the ground running as an inaugural address served as the final nail in the coffin of the controversial and costly fuel subsidy regime.
There was also a lot to like very early by way of optics. In making his first key appointments, the president gave space not just to women, but also to some of Nigeria’s historically disadvantaged sections. For the first time in a long time, the Southeast got a key security just as someone from Southern Kaduna was strategically named the Chief of Defence Staff.
Many Nigerians welcomed the president’s appointment as a sign that he was prepared to listen to Nigeria’s marginalized.
In choosing some of their own and causing them to fill some of Nigeria’s most sensitive seats, Tinubu chose to tow the path of diplomacy and equity.
In a country where more than 300 ethnic groups jostle for the few positions available, who gets what was always going to come under scrutiny.
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The president has also moved with impressive speed to confront the first corruption saga to rock his administration. The fact that corruption has seemingly come to stay in the country means that throughout his time in office, the president will be forced to confront one of Nigeria’s more stubborn monsters again and again.
The way and manner he has suspended the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation pending the outcome of investigation deserves commendation.
The hope is that this is not just a flash in the pan and that eventually, the president will not just combat corruption, but put in place necessary measures to ensure that Nigeria remains corruption-free.
In a bid to save Nigeria from the government’s regime of waste, the president has also cut the number of appointees who can make foreign trips with himself or the vice president.
It is still early days for the Tinubu administration, but in the course of human affairs, the morning very much tells the day.
The president has started off with impressive boldness, and it is hoped that he carries on in this manner.
Nigerians can only offer him their best support and prayers and hope he succeeds because if he fails to undo the damage done by the disastrous administration of his predecessor, Nigerians would be the worst for it.
- Kene Obiezu, keneobiezu@gmail.com
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Awaiting President Tinubu’s renewed hope
By Ezinwanne Onwuka
SIR: I am smitten with nostalgia when I remember the ‘good old days’. The days when N5,000 could buy a big fowl that would feed a family of six. How much did you buy a fowl last Christmas?
How could I have forgotten that Nigeria’s economy dealt with the majority of us last year so much so that we had no option but to be grateful for life and good health, and watch the clock tick away the minutes?
The year 2023 was tough.
It was a year of sustained financial misery for many Nigerians. It began with a frenzied naira scarcity that had us buying currency. Had it not been for the Supreme Court which came to the rescue, the barter era could have descended upon us.
While Nigerians were still recuperating from the harsh effects of the naira crunch, the new president, Bola Tinubu scrapped the petrol subsidy that has kept the cost of petrol cheap in the country for decades. Nigerians are yet to recover from the impact of that single decision.
Inflation is reaching for the skies and it is not likely to drop anytime soon, the cost of living has tripled, and Nigerians have had no choice but to sit back and witness the deterioration of the spending power of their currency. The naira is trading for over N1,000 to a United States dollar in the streets, and it has hit a historic low in the official market.
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It is alarming.
Is this the ‘Renewed Hope’ Tinubu promised Nigerians? For certain, I am not the only Nigerian asking this very important question. It is on the lips of the keke (tricycle) driver who spends half of his daily earnings to refill his fuel tank. It is on the lips of the petty traders who record low sales every day. Parents and guardians who now struggle to pay their wards extra exorbitant fees are also asking the same question.
Tinubu’s manifesto ‘Renewed Hope ‘23’ prioritises the creation of sufficient jobs for the country’s teeming population and ramping up of local production of goods, investing in agriculture and public infrastructure, providing economic opportunities for the poorest Nigerians as well as creating better national security architecture to tackle all forms of insecurity.
Seven months after taking over as Nigeria’s captain, it seems the unprecedented challenges in Africa’s most populous country, from insecurity to a fiscal crisis, poverty and deepening public discontent with the state, have not abated.
In his first comments as president, Tinubu declared that ‘hope is back for Nigeria’ but the deadly security crises, widespread poverty and hunger, high unemployment and a heavy reliance on dwindling oil revenues have left many frustrated and angry, provoking a mass exodus of mostly young Nigerians in a brain drain crisis known locally as ‘japa’.
Of course, Mr President has said time and again that he is not oblivious to the travails of Nigerians against the backdrop of a fractured nation, an ailing economy and spiralling insecurity. ‘I am attuned to the hardships that have come. I have a heart that feels and eyes that see,’ Tinubu said in a nationwide broadcast on October 1, 2023 to mark Nigeria’s 63rd Independence Day anniversary while assuring that the pains would be short-lived.
Yet, the clock is ticking and the ‘Nigeria where hunger, poverty and hardship are pushed into the shadows of an ever-fading past’ is still very hazy. Indeed, the path to progress will be arduous as Nigerians await the transformative leadership that Tinubu has promised.
• Ezinwanne Onwuka, ezinwanne.dominion@gmail.com.