Market News

By : Seye Olumide

Pan-Yoruba socio-political organisation, Afenifere, Sunday, lamented that President Bola Tinubu’s renewed hope has turned into a nightmare for Nigerians.

However, the Presidential Media Team said recent government policies under Tinubu opened new economic opportunities for Nigerians and foreign investors, despite prevailing economic challenges.

The media team maintained that the economy was not in crisis but in transition and that those who could adapt were already reaping the benefits. Afenifere, in a statement by its Leader, Oladipo Olaitan, and National Publicity Secretary, Justice Faloye, asserted that the midterm report of the Tinubu administration showed that every human development and socio-political index regressed. It also accused the administration of engaging in “massive propaganda claiming false successes.”

The statement reads: “The Midterm Report shows that every human development and socio-political index has regressed since the coming to office of the Tinubu administration, turning the promise of renewed hope to a nightmare of regressing hopelessness and despair. Rather than take full responsibility for the unmitigated sufferings inflicted on Nigerians in the past two years on account of its wrong policy choices and wasteful spending, the Tinubu administration has engaged in massive propaganda claiming false successes and shifting blame to global and historical factors and showing scant empathy for ordinary Nigerians.

“Basically, due to unforced errors, especially the oversight of the production element of subsidies and floating the Naira, without any preparation to cushion the predictable impact, the Tinubu Economic Reforms have turned out to be Tinubu Economic Deforms. A prebendal and government for the privileged and connected.”

SPEAKING at a media parley in Lagos yesterday, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, alongside the Special Adviser on Media and Public Communications, Sunday Dare, defended the administration’s economic direction, stating that tough decisions such as fuel subsidy removal and the floating of the naira were designed to encourage competition and unlock market potential.

“Everything is not all bad for the economy,” Onanuga told journalists. “Some Nigerians are actually doing well. People are taking advantage of the devalued currency to export agricultural products like cocoa, sorghum, and even zobo (hibiscus). These exporters are making significant gains.”

He explained that the high interest rate and inflation should be seen in the context of a larger economic shift. “There is a paradigm shift happening. We are moving to a market-driven economy. If you produce water and people stop drinking water, you innovate. That’s how markets work,” he said.

Onanuga noted that the administration’s policies were based on globally accepted models such as the “willing buyer, willing seller” principle, particularly in the foreign exchange market. “This is how economies function around the world. We’re just aligning with global standards.”

The team also highlighted improvements in federal revenue distribution to states. “Sub-national governments are receiving more allocation than before, and many governors have confirmed this,” they said.

Responding to criticisms about fluctuating fuel prices, Onanuga said market liberalisation was working. “Prices are becoming competitive. Importers and marketers are adjusting. This is what happens when the market is allowed to play its role,” he stated.