As President Bola Ahmed Tinubu records his 10th day in office as the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, some Nigerians have shared their opinions on the effect of his decisions so far .
By Adesuwa Osunde
On Monday, May 29, 2023, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, an ex-senator, former Lagos State Governor and National Leader of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) was sworn into office as the President of Nigeria in Abuja.
His victory at the February presidential poll was preceded by a tough contest with two other major aspirants – Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Peter Obi of Labour Party (LP), so the inauguration ceremony was a fiesta of some sort as his supporters gathered from far and wide to felicitate him.
Hit the ground running…..
Tinubu had promised Nigerians that he would hit the ground running if elected as president and 10 days later, the president’s race has received condemnation and commendation for decisions he has taken so far.
Interestingly, all assessment done were based on the now famous words which have been the highlight of his administration: ‘’Subsidy is gone.’’
The effect of those words was immediate on the masses, and made even worse when the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) announced new pump prices for fuel in all its retail outlets across the country, from N198 to a range of N511 to N557.
It’s been 10 days of agony to the masses….
For Chukwuemeka Daniel, a teacher who resides in Chikakore which is located in one of Abuja’s suburb, Tinubu’s first 10 days in office has brought nothing but agony to financially struggling Nigerians.
According to him, the president has further compounded the problems of the masses which he identified as transportation and feeding by unilaterally removing subsidies on fuel without first consulting relevant stakeholders or putting measures in place to address its effects.
‘’He was too quick in removing fuel subsidy. It is not that it is not right to do so, but it was not well planned. Food and transportation which are the poor man’s major worries have gone even beyond reach. I used to pay N200 to get to my workplace but that has increased to N500. School bus fees have increased and the parents have to find a way to bear the additional costs even though income remains fixed.
‘’Food stuff prices have hit the roof, it is only gas price that has been dropping. The performance of Tinubu in his first 10 days in office is too poor, Nigerians are in agony,’’ he said.
So far, so good….
Mr. Gaius Tsan, a civil servant residing in Kubwa in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), believes that Tinubu’s performance in the last 10 days deserves rounds of applause.
Speaking with our correspondent, he expressed confidence that the President is working to better the lives of Nigerians, though things may be tough at the moment.
He said, ‘’I like his body language. I like the fact that he is reaching out to different groups and doing consultations. He has met with governors, traditional rulers, health workers, labour unions and so on. This shows he will listen to views before taking decisions.
‘’The removal of fuel subsidy is not his fault, he inherited it from the last administration but I believe he will put in measures to cushion the effects on the common man. When he increases salaries and subsidises transportation by providing mass transit and inter city trains, life will get better for the masses. For me, so far, so good.’’
‘’Tinubu’s 10 days in office negative, but things will get better….’’
Emmanuel Gambo is a dry cleaner operating his business in a location where most residents are mid-level income earners. According to him, President Tinubu’s performance in the last 10 days have mainly been overshadowed by the effect of fuel subsidy removal.
He, however, stressed that he believes the president made the right decisions in the period under review, but noted that the implementation of the fuel subsidy removal should have been better planned as it is causing loss of revenue to the masses.
‘’It has increased the price of everything. The cost of doing delivery to my customers has risen and getting the vehicle to even take me is another issue because there are fewer cars on the road now. I used to buy polythene covers for the clothes at 2500, it is now 2700; starch 3500, it is now 5000; water price has increased by over a hundred percent, though soap price has remained the same.
‘’My clients have not been bringing clothes like before, they said they don’t go to work always anymore. I know the policy is a good one, but the president should have planned it better. He should look for a way to make things easier for everyone like provide subsidised transportation ,’’ he said.
Brighter days ahead?
President Tinubu still had a long time to smoothen the rough edges of his decisions in the last few days. For starters, he has directed the National Economic Council led by Vice President Kashim Shettima to fashion out ways to reduce the impact of fuel subsidy on Nigerians.
Already, the private sector (major oil marketers) has signified interest in collaborating with his government to bring succour to the masses through donation of fifty 50-seater mass transit buses.
