Nigerians are still downcast and unsmiling; many countrymen and women, who have nowhere to turn for help, are feeling on edge because of the harsh economic climate in the country and believe they have been abandoned to their fate by the government.
But the President of Africa’s most populous country, Bola Tinubu, whose 64th Independence Day anniversary speech was on October 1 broadcast to anxious but hopeful Nigerians, said he was aware of the struggles people were facing “in these trying times” as well as the struggles associated with rising costs of living and the search for meaningful employment.
Tinubu, who said that the policies his administration put in place were beginning to work, also noted that he was committed to finding sustainable solutions to alleviate the plight of Nigerians.
The President, thereafter, kindled the people’s hopes of light at the end of the tunnel.
“Fellow Nigerians, as I address you today, I am deeply aware of the struggles many of you face in these challenging times.
“Our administration knows that many of you struggle with rising living costs and the search for meaningful employment. I want to assure you that your voices are heard.
“As your President, I assure you that we are committed to finding sustainable solutions to alleviate the suffering of our citizens.
“Once again, I plead for your patience as the reforms we are implementing show positive signs, and we are beginning to see light at the end of the tunnel,” the President said as he addressed Nigerians.
Many Nigerians, including Reno Omokri, a former aide to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, said that Tinubu showed empathy and understood the challenges Nigerians face.
“The only results or fruits Nigerians will appreciate now are the ones that translate to reduced costs of living and increased salary at places of work”
Omokri, who reviewed Tinubu’s Independence Day anniversary address and described it as “a good speech,” noted that the President admitted that the country had made mistakes which his government is working to address.
“The President started his speech by showing empathy; saying he understands the challenges Nigerians face as his administration returns the economy and devolves power. It was a commendable start to his Independence Day speech.
“President Tinubu fessed up to the country’s mistakes, and talked about how he and his government would address them.
“By going into details of the progress they have made in the last sixteen months, he gave Nigerians and our international partners some relief and confidence about the future,” Omokri stated as he addressed his followers on Facebook.
Omokri, who said he spent Independence Day with Tinubu at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, was, however, criticised by some of his followers who faulted his lauding the President.
According to these followers, who also cast doubt over the government’s ability to make them see light at the end of the tunnel, Omokri, a member of the People’s Democratic Party, is fraternizing with the “enemy” because he wants to be in the running for a ministerial slot.
The “conundrum” hanging round Omokri’s neck notwithstanding, many Nigerians are of the view that Tinubu’s government and that of his predecessor, Muhammadu Buhari, cannot be separated and are to blame for the country’s woes.
“They are the same. There is no difference,” a Lagos-based businesswoman, Ugochi Ekeh, told The Point.
“I don’t see light at the end of the tunnel. How will I see light when I know that Buhari and Tinubu’s governments are the same APC?” she retorted.
“My daughter, who is serving in Akwa Ibom State, called to tell me that the government didn’t pay them their new N77, 000 allowances, and you are telling me that there’s light at the end of the tunnel? How will she survive till next month as my business is suffering?
“These governments are the same. No difference,” Ekeh submitted.
Buhari was President of Nigeria from 2015 to 2023 and is still a stalwart of Nigeria’s governing party, the All Progressives Congress. During his tenure, Nigeria’s economy took a lot of beating and even experienced a couple of recessions in 2016 and 2020.
Because of Buhari’s “sins,” quite a lot of Nigerians, to this day, hold Tinubu responsible for the country’s not-so-inspiring state as he (Tinubu) revealed, before the 2023 presidential election which he won was conducted, that he helped put Buhari into power.
Nigerians, thus, candidly remember, for instance, that when Buhari was in power during the twilight of his administration, he had introduced an infamous naira redesign policy that backfired and brought untold hardship on citizens.
Buhari later urged Nigerians to exercise patience as appropriate measures were being taken to ease the hardship occasioned by the policy. He, too, said there would be light at the end of the tunnel.
“I want to once again assure you that I am fully aware of the current hardship you are facing as a result of some policies of the government which are meant to bring overall improvement to the country.
“I am appealing to you to exercise further patience as we take appropriate measures to ease these hardships. God willing, there will be light at the end of the tunnel,” Buhari said.
Unfortunately, by the time Buhari handed power over to Tinubu, Nigerians had begun to argue that the light at the end of the tunnel, which Buhari harped on, had disappeared and was part of the reason why they yearned for another “messiah” in Tinubu to take them to the promised land.
A political analyst, Muyiwa Bello, told our correspondent that Buhari’s “light at the end of the tunnel” was a “scam” that Nigerians did not see until the former President left office.
Bello said the assertion by Tinubu that his own reforms were beginning to yield results would only make sense to Nigerians if it amounted to reduced living costs and increased salaries.
“Buhari’s light at the end of the tunnel was a scam. Nigerians didn’t see it until he left the seat of government.
“We are now looking at Tinubu’s promise to make us see light at the end of the tunnel and I can assure you that we are scrutinizing it in 3D.
“Tinubu said his reforms are beginning to yield results, right? I don’t want to sound like a prophet of doom, but if these results are the ones Nigerians only see on statistical data sheets, then we are still playing in this country.
“The only results or fruits Nigerians will appreciate now are the ones that translate to reduced costs of living and increased salary at places of work.
“My position is this way because past governments had promised to change our lives but, sadly, many Nigerians died waiting for the manifestation of such blessings. So, enough is enough.”
Another analyst, Elvis Ogbomo, said, “I am a stakeholder in the Nigerian project and I believe that I will not only see the light at the end of the tunnel but I, as a person, will also bask in it.
“If anyone is not seeing the progress made so far by this government, well, I am sorry for him or her.
“By the grace of God, based on some of the solutions that the government has already proffered, I can beat my chest confidently now and say that our problems will not get any worse than this. In fact, it is finished with half of Nigeria’s problems.”
