After 30 Days In Office, When Is It Not Too Early To Criticize Tinubu’s Government?

There is no denying the fact that since President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was declared winner of the keenly contested presidential election that was held on February 25, 2023, that not a few Nigerians are looking to his administration to heal and rebuild trust, while also expecting that under his regime there would be a great transformation of the economic, political and economic systems as Nigeria is in dire need of healing and rebuilding trust as well as the transformation of the country’s economic, political and societal systems.

While it is not an exaggeration to opine that his coming to the presidential height of leadership literarily signalled a new day for Nigerians, particularly to those in the categoryof persons that fall within 63% of multidimensionally poor Nigerians as researched by the Federal Government and the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics (NBS) in November 2022.

However, given the rising level of hardship that has characterized his administration right from the day of his inauguration when he made the pronouncement that the era of Petroleum subsidy has gone, his presidency, which is today in its 30th day, is unarguably impacting negatively on virtually all Nigerians and their businesses and the economy in an excruciating manner.

The reason for the deepening level of the biting hardship under his nascent administration cannot be farfetched when understood from the prism of the fact that it is a fallout of the policies he has so far implemented, which are the removal of subsidy through petrol pricing to market forces and removal of official controls on foreign exchange market by floating the Naira exchange rate in the open market, and which were launched in the first two weeks of his assumption of office. However, many analysts, are optimistic that the difficulties would ease off only if they are properly managed.

At this juncture, it is not an exaggeration to say that at the time of putting the inspiration of this piece into writing that the pump prices of petrol have risen by a minimum of 175 percent to a national average of N600 per litre outside Lagos. Though petrol filling stations in Lagos still sell at an average of N500 per litre, which is about 169 percent rise.

In the area of the foreign exchange rate, the Naira, as at the close of business on Friday, June 30, 2023, has depreciated by 63 per cent to N768.17 per dollar in the official market.

Even at that, prices of food, and essential items are by each passing day since May 29, 2023, when the president was inaugurated into office fast becoming unaffordable. For example, eight out of the 11 food and essential items monitored by Financial Derivatives Company (FDC), a leading Lagos-based economic and financial research company, recorded significant price increases in June. These are: Beans Oloyin (50kg) rose from N30,000 to N35,000; Tomatoes (50kg) rose from N55,000 to N65,000; Pepper (bag) rose from N20,000 to N33,000; Onions (bag) rose from N28,000 to N37,000; Palm Oil (25liters) rose from N22,500 to N29,000; New Yam (medium size) rose from N2,000 to N3,500; and Sugar (50kg) rose from N35,000 to N42,000. The prices of Semovita (10kg) and Flour (50kg) remained stable at N6,800 and N28,500 respectively. But the price of Garri (50kg) Yellow fell from N28,000 to N19,000 and Rice (50kg) short grain fell from N35,000 to N33,000.

In a similar vein, as further gathered, the exchange rate in the I&E window rose to N768.17 per dollar on June 27th from N471.67 per dollar on May 20th. This translated to a 63 per cent depreciation of the naira in the official market. The depreciation in the parallel market was marginal at 0.9 per cent during the same period, rising to N775 per dollar on June 27th from N768 per dollar on May 28th, even as the nation’s external reserves declined by $927 million during the same period.

Last week, it was also announced that new taxes will be taking effect from today, July 1, 2023, which is today, while a 40 per cent hike in electricity tariff has been proposed to also take effect from today if President Tinubu appends his signature to the proposals as forwarded to him by the sector regulators and operators.

Without a doubt, these policies meant to take effect from today are expected to be added to the petrol and the forex reforms, consequently deepening the burden of both everyday Nigerian and the elite.

At this juncture, it is expedient to conjecture that not a few readers of this piece are wondering about the rationale behind the expression of this view. However, it is germane to confess that I was compelled to express this opinion as some people are wont to counter me each time I want to air my view, particularly on the newly inaugurated Tinubu administration, and for being critical, I am always shut down and challenged for criticizing an administration that was newly inaugurated. Literarily speaking, one of them almost ate me raw. He shouted at me, “Why are you always censorious, it is sad that an administration that was just inaugurated has come under your critical lens”. I was no doubt disappointed by his partisan disposition to an issue that is of public concern, given the fact that he is a Journalist.

Against the foregoing backdrop, it is expedient to ask, “After 30 days in office, when is it not too early to criticize Tinubu’s government? The reason for this question cannot be farfetched as expressing one’s opinion on a newly formed government is tantamount to supporting one’s country’s policies and decisions. Not only that, it is one part of keeping the newly inaugurated government on the path of prosperity and development, while keeping track of its activities, being vigilant about them and highlighting loopholes in policies made under the regime as they are needed are indispensable in a democracy.

In fact, in our country, Nigeria, we have people with different ideologies, some criticize the government policies and some support them, while others remain at the top of it appreciating the good policies and highlighting the drawbacks to improving governance. It is common nowadays to see us as Nigerians divided into cliques, with our different perspectives about the policies undertaken by the government; it is something which keeps the true essence of democracy alive. There are many instances in the past of governance and society improving because of the positive criticism by some people or groups of them. Take it or leave it, criticism gives democracies around the world a chance of improving the quality of governance and hence create a better society.

Weighing the option of criticizing the government or not, it is expedient to recall that former President Muhammadu Buhari (retd) apologised to Nigerians over the cash crunch caused by the naira redesign policy of the Federal Government. The apology came following the abysmal performance of the ruling All Progressives Congress(APC) at the presidential and national assembly elections in Kaduna state. In a similar vein, while speaking on the occasion that marks his final outing as president on the Eid-el-Fitr day before handing over to Tinubu, the former president said Nigerians should forgive him in any way he has hurt them, saying “All those that I have hurt, I ask that they pardon me”.

“God gave me an incredible opportunity to serve the country. We are all humans, if I have hurt some people along the line of my service to the country, I ask that they pardon me,” Buhari said.

“I think it is a good coincidence for me to say goodbye to you, and thank you for tolerating me for almost eight years.”

Without a doubt, the president made the foregoing remorseful statements because Nigerians were criticizing him before then. The former president even said he accepts all the criticism thrown at his administration in good stead because it is part of leadership.

In his book, Mass Communication: Theory and Practice, Ifedayo Daramola defined Public Opinion as “the consensus or aggregate views held by the public on a burning issue or about a product, service, organization, individual or government.” Public Opinion or Criticism is not an act to shy away from if Nigerians want the country to be better than President Bola Ahmed Tinubu met it on May 29, 2023.

If I may ask again, “After 30 days in office, when is it not too early to criticize Tinubu’s government?