By Festus Fifen

I don’t envy President Bola Ahmed Tinubu at a time like this. This is because most Nigerians believe he is responsible for the not-too-recent Economic development in the country which has seen the price of goods and services rising beyond the reach of the average Nigerian.

Like the popular saying goes, “uneasy lies the head that wears the crown” I must confess with all sense of responsibility that the crown Mr. President is wearing does not look too good right now if you ask me. I am sure you already know the reason for my position on this matter

A leader is someone who must be ready to take responsibility for every action or inaction of those in their team and possibly those that occupied the position before them.

Sometimes even the led expects the leader to take responsibilities for events and occurrences that predates their time in Office, this is particularly so in a government or political setting where the phrase “Government is a continuum” holds sway.

Critics of a particular government or administration are quick to say that leaders should inherit the assets and liabilities of the previous government, though these statements have turned out to be mere political rhetoric as any administration that currently holds office is quickly reminded that the achievements of the past administration should remain in the past while their “failures” must be inherited by the new administration.

All these issues around who takes the blame whenever there is a lacuna in leadership points to the burden of leadership globally, especially in developing countries like Nigeria.

Nigeria President Bola Ahmed Tinubu (GCFR) popularly referred to as the Jagaban of Nigeria by his political associates is a perfect example of one man that is allowed to bear the burden of failures of governments before him, but not allowed to share from the accolades of successes recorded before his assumption of Office in May 29, 2023.

If you ask an average Nigerian why is there so much hardship in the Land , why is there a sudden increase in the prices of goods and services and other things that has made life unbearable for the people, I am sure most of them will all chorus President Tinubu is our problem.

The Notion that the President is anti-people in his policies and leadership style has gained so much ground to the extent that some people will blindly tell you that the President is even responsible for too much rainfall in the southern part of the country and lack of it in the North part as it is experienced year in year out even before President Tinubu was born.

It was in the light of these issues and complaints about the cost of living that the #endbadgovernance protest was conceived and executed with the name of President Bola Tinubu at the Centre of it. Opposition political parties and those who are not comfortable with some of the bold steps of the President quickly joined the bandwagon to criticize the president and his policies. Though the critical engagement of key stakeholders and wide consultations by the President and his men weakened the outcome of the protest, there were still pockets of crises in some states. While some were peaceful protest, others resulted to outright looting of goods and services in the name of protest.

For those who believe nothing is new in the country were indifferent about it while many political observers felt there was no need for such a protest at a time like this.

The Question many people have not answered is ” Is President Tinubu Really the problem?” Until and when this question is answered, we will continue to pass blame and shift responsibilities to the “other man” when we should all take blame and responsibility for what Nigeria has become today.

As a Nigerian Journalist who have covered political developments at the local , State and Federal Government level for well over two decades, I can tell anyone for free that the current challenges we are facing as a nation is beyond a leadership problem, though bad leaders and faulty policies can’t be excused, but is that really the main crust of the issue ? many may dare to ask.

A civil servant who comes to work twice in a month thereby delaying and slowing the speed, efficiency and effectiveness in governance and still collects a full salary with allowances and leave allowances blames the president for the slow pace of implementation of government policies.

A mechanic who deliberately defraud vehicle owners by fixing substandard vehicular parts which ends up killing and maiming innocent Nigerians through auto crashes turns back and blames the government for failures in the system.

A petroleum marketer who under dispenses petroleum products to Nigerians thereby making them spend more for energy, which in turn affects other areas of their livelihood will still tell you that the government is bad.

A political appointee saddled with the responsibility of distributing food items from the government to poor and vulnerable Nigerians diverts them and later sell them (after repackaging ) to those that should get it for free in order to ameliorate the sufferings of the people will still tell you President Tinubu is responsible for the woes in the country. The list is endless.

These reasons stated above and many more which time and space will not allow me to talk about is why every Nigerian should try to respond to the question I earlier raised ” is President Tinubu really responsible for how things have turned out to be in the county today? ”

On assumption of Office on May 29 2023, President Tinubu re-echoed a position and decision already taken by the Buhari led administration to end the fuel subsidy era in Nigeria. When he made that pronouncement “Subsidy is Gone” Immediately everything began to change and artificial and people induced market forces started thereby raising inflation to an all-time high. As at June 2024, inflation had risen to 34.2 percent from 22.8 percent in June 2023. Many Nigerians have refused to forgive him for that singular pronouncement till date. However, one thing that they failed to know was that Former President Muhammadu Buhari through the then Finance Minister Mrs. Zainab Ahmed did not make a budgetary provision for subsidy as from June 2023. So either the new President announced it or not, subsidy would have still been a thing of the past with current situation as at when the president took over the government. So technically it was President Buhari’s policy to remove subsidy. No need to even remind us that Buhari tried and failed severally to remove the subsidy during his 8 year term in office as Nigeria President

Delivering his speech during the inauguration at the Eagle square in Abuja on May 29 2023, ” we are hitting the ground running” he said .

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has kept to his words for the past 15 months

Though the result of the hard work, commitment and sincerity to nation building on his part and his deputy vice President Kashim Shettima are yet to yield the desired result, it cannot be said that this President is lazy. His continuous engagement with key stakeholders in the economy and political terrain is a pointer that this President means well.

With a little over 14 months in office, President Tinubu has shown that he is ready for business.

For example when he assumed office, Nigeria had up to 6 different foreign exchange rates which made sourcing for foreign exchange to facilitate trade with other countries a herculean task for business men and women.

President Tinubu who has a proven track record as a business man took a deliberate step towards rebuilding the credibility and capacity of Nigeria’s apex bank, the Central Bank of Nigeria CBN. In a major policy shift, he directed the unification of the Nigerian foreign exchange market, this led to CBN floating the Nigerian currency, the Naira. This policy was geared towards creating a balance in the official exchange rate, the investor’s and exporters’ window rate as well the parallel market rate this singular move put an end to round tripping of FOREX which was almost becoming a norm in Nigeria at the time. Business men are now able to get the United States Dollars to transact their Businesses without looking to the “black market” for help.

On dealing with insecurity in the land, President Tinubu intensified efforts to ensure peace and stability across the country by identifying insecurity as a major challenge to governance. Some of the strategies in this regard include the enactment of the Terrorism Prevention and Prohibition Act, which established the National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC), the Zero Ransom Policy and prioritizing of safe return of victims of kidnapping. The Nigeria military working on the matching order given to them by the President recorded a lot of successes which includes safe return of Kidnap victims and amongst another.

With rising food inflation, shortage of food and concerns about the viability of the agriculture and food value chain, the administration of President Tinubu also adopted urgent action to ensure the well-being of Nigerian citizens through the distribution of 42,000 metric tons of grains nationwide and an accelerated agricultural mechanization Programme to improve production and empowerment of young farmers all over Nigeria.

With the consciousness that stable power (Electricity) plays a major role in development of any country , President Tinubu signed the 2023 Electricity Bill into law to decentralize electricity generation, transmission, and distribution in Nigeria so that private concerns can come into it with huge investments.

President Tinubu also signed the Nigeria Data Protection Law in 2023, establishing a legal framework for safeguarding personal information and promoting data protection practices in Nigeria.

The Nigerian government also demonstrated political will and prioritized the rehabilitation of Nigeria’s seaports and the implementation of policies and programmes that delivered direct and targeted economic relief to Nigerians. Through such initiatives as grants and cash transfers, President Tinubu approved N50 billion as nano-grants of N50,000 each to 1, 300 small businesses in all the 774 local government areas in Nigeria. If this is not showing capacity, I wonder what capacity means again.

The president also approved the Renewed Hope Infrastructure Fund to bridge Nigeria’s funding gap of $25bn per year in infrastructure. The fund will focus on road, rail, agriculture, ports, and aviation.

On social investment, President Tinubu repositioned the National Social Investment Programme NSIP, to ensure it delivers maximum value to the intended beneficiaries by eliminating middlemen in the process.

He approved the takeoff of the first phase of the Consumer Credit Scheme that will enable Nigerians access goods and services upfront and pay over time. This is to facilitate crucial purchases, such as homes, vehicles, education, and healthcare essentials to pursue life aspirations.

This vision of targeted economic relief also led to the enactment of the Student Loans Access to Higher Education law this year. This is in keeping with President Tinubu’s declaration that no Nigerian student, regardless of his background, will be excluded from obtaining quality education.

Targeting increased gas production to ensure the supply of about 500 million standard cubic feet of gas per day, the Tinubu administration resuscitated three out of the seven gas processing plants across the country to improve value from the nation’s gas assets while eliminating gas flaring. This policy will provide gas to the market in no distance time for electricity generation and industrial needs.

The Tinubu administration’s Presidential Compressed Natural Gas Initiative offered more affordable alternatives to petrol and diesel for transporters and commuters to ease the burden of the increase in petrol cost after the removal of subsidies, conversion points and dispensing outlets are now all over Major cities in the country with more cities coming with further acceptance of the conversion process.

In the health sector, President Tinubu directed the redesigning of the Basic Health Care Provision Fund as the foundational basis for sector-wide reforms that attracted the infusion of $2.5 billion into the financing of the National primary health care system in the country.

These various interventions by President Tinubu in their first year in office created an emerging consensus among Nigerians that President Tinubu has a clear intention on the path he is taking Nigeria.

The recent autonomy granted the 774 local government Areas across the country through the supreme Court ruling is another testament of his commitment to make sure development gets to the grassroots.

There is no doubt things are hard now because of decades of negligence of previous government in tackling development issues in such a way that the President is currently doing it.

President Tinubu obviously is not responsible for the current economic outcome of the country.

Though he was able to do what other leaders before him couldn’t do by facing the problems and challenges head on, that does not suggest in any way that he does not mean well for the nation Nigeria

While these measures are not panaceas, they reflect a commitment to improving the country’s situation. The current hardships stem from decades of neglect and mismanagement by previous governments. While President Tinubu is not solely responsible for the country’s economic outcomes, his efforts to tackle entrenched problems demonstrate a genuine intent to move Nigeria forward.

While President Tinubu faces significant challenges, attributing all the nation’s woes to him alone overlooks the complexity of Nigeria’s situation. His administration is actively addressing deep-rooted issues, and it is essential to recognize these efforts rather than solely focusing on immediate difficulties.