President Bola Tinubu claims that the excellent life that Nigerians believed they were living before his rule was fabricated and capable of destroying the country.
Speaking on Saturday at the 34th and 35th joint convocation ceremonies of the Federal University of Technology Akure (FUTA) in Ondo state, Tinubu stated that the removal of petrol subsidies and the unification of exchange rates were required to preserve Nigeria from collapse.
During his inauguration, Tinubu promised that petrol subsidies would stop on May 29, 2023.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) recently announced the unification of all areas of the foreign exchange market.
The president, represented at the ceremony by Wahab Egbewole, vice-chancellor of the University of Ilorin, stated that his administration took decisive steps to prevent economic disaster and secure the future of Nigerians.
Tinubu said:
“As you are all aware, we took the baton of authority at a time when our economy was nose-diving as a result of heavy debts from fuel and dollar subsidies.”
“The subsidies were meant to support the poor and make life better for all Nigerians. We are all aware of the fact that the poor and average Nigerians were the sufferers of what was supposed to give them succour and an improved standard of living.
“Unfortunately, the good life we thought we were living was a fake one that was capable of leading the country to a total collapse unless drastic efforts were urgently taken.
“The need to salvage the future of our children, and bring the country back from the brink of collapse necessitated the strategic decisions to remove the fuel subsidy and also unify the exchange rates. I am not unaware of the consequences of the tough decisions on our people. I sincerely wish there could be softer options.”
The president expressed optimism that the reforms are already producing great results.
He said that the country’s macroeconomic metrics are improving on a daily basis, while the microeconomic system, which directly impacts residents, is gradually taking shape.
The president also stated that Nigeria is shifting from a consumption-driven economy to one focused on output in all realms of human effort.
Tinubu urged the graduates to work with his administration “to recover our lost glory and virtues.”
The president also decried the mass movement of youths in pursuit of “greener pastures,” emphasising that the practice has resulted in a huge brain drain across all sectors of the country’s economy.
Tinubu said:
“Many of our youths have chosen the supposed easy option of emigrating to the proverbial greener pastures where their citizens had rolled up their sleeves to bring their nations back from the brinks in their times of trouble.”
“Such inclination has led to the brain drain syndrome that we now experience in all areas of our endeavours as a nation.
“Our intellectuals and experts on whom the nation has massively invested huge resources to train in the interest of our country are migrating overseas in large numbers at a time their services are most required at home.
“It is heart-rending and the syndrome is not the solution to our problems. We are not Nigerians by accident, and I believe that the Almighty God who made us Nigerians has given us the required wisdom to turn things around for our betterment.
“The present challenges call for a high degree of patriotism and I can assure all Nigerians that there is light at the end of the tunnel. After rain comes sunshine. The brighter days are almost here.”
Tinubu said the renewed hope agenda is on track, assuring Nigerians that his administration will remain steadfast in its pursuit of a better and greater nation.
