Hard decisions: Tinubu credits his courage to Nigerians

April 28, 2024

Since May 29,2023, almost a year ago, when President Bola Tinubu assumed office and started calling shots and pulling unusual weights with his office, many observers, including leaders in other parts of the world, have wondered where he gets his guts and ideas from. Not many of those observers, who have met with him have thought of inquiring about these unusual administrative and governance moves and strategies, which have actually set a new tone, a new experience in public administration in a sub-Saharan African country.

We all know the view of the rest of the world, especially the developed West, of the peoples in this part: they only see backward people, incapable of self-reengineering and most definitely bereft of techniques to self-govern. Their view had over the years been buoyed by the abysmal attempt at democratic rule in most parts and the countless cases of bare-faced stealing of public resources by leaders who rode on the back of electoral heists to power. But since May 29, 2023, the rest of the world welcomed a new leader in the most populous black nation, who has been damning consequences to inject new reforms that are targeted at reordering the lives and fortunes of Nigerians.

Since Asiwaju took over, the subsidy on petrol, which has been part of our system for almost fifty years, has vanished. Petrol subsidy has been described as the single misadventure that was actually designed to finish Nigeria by steadily bleeding off the nation’s life source and its cost was progressively. In 2022 alone, officials in the nation’s oil sector put the cost of petrol subsidy at N4 trillion, which measured with about 23.4% of that year’s budget. The 2022 Budget stood at N17.12 trillion. So on his first day as President, he relieved the nation of that baggage with a mere proclamation.

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Of course, that was not the last to be heard of the subsidy, the following months unleashed some of the most debilitating economic experience on most Nigerians and the rising cost of petrol started reflecting on the cost of other things of life we have been accustomed to. Transportation took a rocket launch and so were other domestic commodities. That situation was compounded by the floating of the Naira at foreign exchange market, another leviathan system through which some of the ‘people with connects’ have milked the common patrimony.

There were protests and resistance from various quarters, some were even sponsored in different parts of the country. Among these resistances, those from the organised Labour seemed most agitating, considering the fact that they actually have access to the nerves and joints of the nation’s ‘wheel of progress’, but the one that was of most desperate concern was from those sponsoring others to protest, those who have for long benefited from the rot that has kept Nigeria weak and Nigerians poor. About this set of people, the President already knew they will fight back, and he once said “those who have been feeding fat on the system” will resist changes aimed at promoting transparency and accountability. These developments are well worn and most politically and economically aware people know where Nigeria is currently.

Now the silent question in most minds, including many of his colleagues in other parts of the world, especially the developed West, has been about what could have been his motivation and staying power through the last eleven months. How did he come about the right reforms that seem to be addressing Nigeria’s age-long development crisis and finding the right antidotes for the series of malaise afflicting different sectors?

However, on Thursday, in far away Netherlands, he was faced with that question from his very bold host, the Prime Minister of the country, Mark Rutte, who noted a few of the successful solutions that President Tinubu had administered in dealing with Nigeria’s peculiar issues. By the way, I must let you know that the week was one of those very busy ones for the Jagaban as he spent part of it in the Netherlands, on official visit, on the invitation of Prime Minister Rutte. While there, the President engaged in high-level discussions with Dutch authorities and participated in the Nigeria-Netherlands Business and Investment Forum.

During their meeting, Prime Minister Rutte, out of curiosity, wondered “you are promoting democratic governance and the solutions it can bring in dealing with problems of development. I saw how you went through democratic channels to remove an incumbent president in 2015 in partnership with President Buhari and how that has led to development in your country. I saw you take the courageous decision to deal with fuel subsidies and other reforms, and we are interested in what allowed you to take the decisions that many before you could not take. And you took those decisions early in your term. It shows rare determination. Your stand in ECOWAS, all of these point to your commitment in leadership”.

As his response to his host’s query, President Tinubu put it all back on Nigerian; his confidence and courage to face the daunting and scary. He simply said Nigerians have tremendous confidence in themselves and that his confidence in the Nigerian people gave him the courage to take difficult decisions on their behalf, given his full awareness of the need to give Nigerians the long-term tools they need to succeed. The resilience of his people encourages him to work for the enduring. The enduring is what basically makes the difference between those being looked up to and those looking up to them.

“I am a determined leader of my people. I have and will continue to take the difficult decisions that will benefit our people, even if there is short-term pain. We have gone through the worst of the storms. I am unafraid of the consequences once I know that my actions are in the best long-term interests of all Nigerians. The Nigerian Naira is one of the world’s best performing currencies today. We took the necessary risks, and all resilient Nigerians kept faith with us. They will be rewarded, and the reward will only be greater as we partner effectively with you on new opportunities for development. As leaders, we must take decisions for the benefit of our nations, and we cannot shy away from that”, the President said.

Meanwhile, in the course of the week, President Tinubu set another structural reform in motion when he approved the take-off of his administration’s Consumer Credit Scheme, which was on his to-do list when he was campaigning to be President. This scheme, for which a corporation, the Nigerian Consumer Credit Corporation (CREDICORP), had already been established with the 36-year Engr Uzoma Nwagba, as its pioneer Chief Executive Officer, is targeting efforts at ensuring financial inclusion and economic prosperity for the majority of Nigerians.

A platform known as Forexpedia describes consumer credit is an economic indicator that measures the amount of debt held by households in an economy. It measures the amount of credit extended to consumers in a given period of time. Consumer credit is a key driver of consumer spending, which in turn drives economic growth. It is what most of the developed economies have adopted to provide an economic cushion for their citizens, a buffer between insufficient resources and meeting basic human needs for a good life. 

On Wednesday, Presidential Spokesman, Ajuri Ngelale, announced the commencement of the scheme, pointing out a couple of the deliverables targeted, saying consumer credit serves as the lifeblood of modern economies, enabling citizens to enhance their quality of life by accessing goods and services upfront, paying responsibly over time. It facilitates crucial purchases, such as homes, vehicles, education, and healthcare, essential for ongoing stability to pursue their aspirations. The President believes every hardworking Nigerian should have access to social mobility, with consumer credit playing a pivotal role in achieving this vision.

Meanwhile, to prove that the scheme is not floating and that there is a long-term planning for it, Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Alhaji Atiku Bagudu, during a briefing on 2024 Budget, said government had allocated N100 billion to support consumer credit, with the goal of strengthening the manufacturing sector and stimulating economic activity

“We put N100 billion fund in the budget to support consumer credit. This is important because the manufacturing sector is struggling with two challenges: efficiency of production and finding someone who can buy. The introduction and support of consumer credit, we believe, will help in the revival of our manufacturing sector to meet international standards. It is a catalytic fund that is expected to have significant growth”, he said.

However, advancing an opinion on how he thinks the scheme should run, a former Investment Banker, who is now devoted to agro-produce trading, Mallam Bolaji Lawal, said “I think as part of the attempt to boost the economy of Nigeria with consumer credit, we should have insisted that imported items that are being produced in Nigeria will not be funded with this consumer credit. In essence, the only imported items that will be funded with the consumer credit are those not produced in Nigeria. If I were a part of the credit committee, for household items like television, refrigerator, cars, generators and others, only those produced in Nigeria will be funded by the Consumer Credit Scheme”.

Besides the disclosure of his staying power in his ongoing work on Nigeria and the launch of the Consumer Credit Scheme, other very impactful events littered the week. For example, on Monday he declared the African Counter-Terrorism Summit open at the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) in Abuja, telling the developed world that Africans know that the affliction of terrorism on the continent had been compounded by illegal mining, which in turn is being fueled from abroad. The key note he left with them was “we shall be knocking on this door of the international community to answer this call for justice, peace and fair play”.

He also made appointments during the week. On Friday, his appointment of the Founder of Zenith Bank, Mr Jim Ovia, as the Chairman of the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) was announced. Also, the appointment of Dr Innocent Barikor as the Director-General of the National Environmental Standards and Regulation Enforcement Agency (NESREA) and Prince Ebitimi Amgbare as the Managing Director/CEO of the Niger Delta River Basin Development Authority (NDRBDA) were also announced. He arrived Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, where he will be participating in the Special World Economic Forum, on Friday evening.

As a new week starts, new events and activities will be coming with it, so stay put to see whatever Jagaban has in store for Nigeria this week.

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