Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has blamed President Bola Tinubu for the country’s current economic woes.
Recall that Nigerians have been protesting against hardship and hunger that has devastated many homes this year.
Atiku who was the 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party disclosed this in his official X account on Sunday, where he called on Tinubu to learn from Argentina’s President Javier Milei how to regain investors’ confidence in a short time despite inheriting a disoriented economy.
“Nigeria is where we are today simply because of what Tinubu has done or did not do. His shifting the blame on the opposition and, even ridiculously, his predecessor is needless and myopic. Market forces don’t play politics. They respond to your actions and inactions,” Atiku posted.
He continued: “The examples set by President Milei are the requirement of leadership in a time when the economy has begun to fail the people’s expectations.
“The reforms implemented by the Tinubu administration are ad hoc and hurriedly put together without proper review. Ours is unlike Argentina’s Milei, who is sequencing his reforms.
“President Milei anticipates the after-reform shocks and admits that things will be tough for the people. But he is fully prepared for the aftershocks and has in place mitigating pills.
“He walks the talk. He sacrifices himself by giving up the perks of office. It is not business as usual for the presidency while the people are called upon to make sacrifices.
“Argentina runs a lean government by reducing the number of ministries, privatising nearly 40 state-owned enterprises, and reducing wasteful spending.
“Conversely, Tinubu in Nigeria increased the number of ministers and ministries and is spending enormous resources renovating houses for himself, his deputy, and the first lady.
“That is nothing short of Nero playing fiddle while Rome is on fire! Worse still, Tinubu has refused to roll up his sleeves and do the work that he signed up for. Instead, he and his team are preoccupied with behaving like Napoleon and Squealer, characters in the satire book Animal Farm, who made it a state policy to scapegoat Snowball (the opposition) for their failures arising from their ill-advised policies.
“I am attracted to the reforms in Argentina because Javier Milei’s stabilization plan bears a similar emblem to my Recover Nigeria Plan.
“It is a plan that I am more than willing to disclose details of its workings with the current government to take Nigeria out of the hunger and anger that we find ourselves in.
“The plan includes strategic steps to recover the economy and make it stronger, dynamic, resilient, and competitive.
“Unless, and until there are clear-cut policies and pathways to economic rejuvenation predicated on a leadership-led sacrifice, there will be discontentment, especially among the youths, which may find expression in protests and for which it will be silly to continue to blame the opposition for,” Atiku stated.
Recall that economic misery worsened for Nigerians due to a soaring inflation rate and high cost of living.
According to the National Bureau of Statistics, Nigeria’s headline inflation rose to 29.90 per cent, and food inflation stood at 35.42 per cent in January 2024.
