- Labels them failed politicians desperate for power
- Says Tinubu has demonstrated political will to tackle barriers to Nigeria’s economic growth
The ruling All Progressives Congress has described as baseless the claim by the trio of the presidential candidates of the People’s Democratic Party and Labour Party in the 2023 poll, Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi, as well as the former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, and former Kaduna state Governor, Nasir Ahmad El-Rufai, that the APC government of President Bola Tinubu was “weaponizing” poverty to score political goals.
The APC, in a statement on Monday by its national publicity secretary, Felix Morka, argued that the criticisms variously leveled by the quartet at an event held in Abuja last weekend to mark the 60th birthday anniversary of Amaechi mask a shameless attempt to perpetuate and cling to the old rent-seeking economy that enriched them at the expense of the Nigerian people.
APC asserted that as beneficiaries of the corrupt and inefficient economic system, they are discomforted that Tinubu’s reforms are dismantling the insidious and permissive system that enabled and sustained their reckless plunder and exploitation of the economy.
APC particularly insisted that Amaechi lacks the moral latitude to make such a claim, having served for a total of 24 years as Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, eight years as Governor of Rivers State, and eight years as Minister, “freeloading” on state resources, with absolutely no record of attempting to combat poverty in his Rivers State or the country.
APC contended that Amaechi’s open admission of hunger barely two years out of office simply underscores the depth of his self-serving motivations and his coalition partners in their quest for power for selfish exploitation, and not for the interest of the people.
“When Amaechi declared, ‘I am hungry,’ he must mean, and must be understood to mean, that he is hungry and desperate to return to his felt entitled dependency on state resources and patronage,” it noted.
“Nigerians see right through their disruptive politicking. Amaechi and his cohorts are losing their grip on the economy. Accustomed to fleecing the economy, they are now compelled by Tinubu’s unprecedented reforms to adapt to a new reality where hard work, productivity, and innovation are rewarded.
“Their criticisms of President Tinubu’s reforms are decidedly self-serving, driven by a desperate quest for power to satiate their voracious rent-seeking appetite, which has long stifled and denied progress to the economy.”
The APC argued that, on the contrary, it was the failure of previous administrations, particularly 16 years of PDP administrations, to allow the Naira to find its real value that created the economic conditions of poverty that the present administration is now addressing.
The APC referred to Amaechi and members of the anti-Tinubu coalition, which includes Atiku and Nasir El-Rufai, as displaced rent-seekers bent on grabbing power purely for their self-aggrandisement.
The ruling party argued that in all 24 years, the trio, individually or collectively, could not and did not eradicate poverty in their states or the country, adding they did not even attempt to address, let alone tackle, the structural challenges and distortions that stifled the economy and worsened poverty over the years.
According to APC, they reveled in mindless rent-seeking behaviour, sold national assets to their cronies for a mere pittance, engaged in corrupt and wasteful expenditures in their states, and relentlessly sponsored state violence against their own people.
To APC, in two years, President Tinubu has demonstrated the political will to tackle structural barriers to the country’s economic growth and development far more than any other President in Nigeria’s modern history.
The party added that by the bold economic reforms, President Tinubu is systematically building the most potent bulwark against poverty and positioning the economy to deliver sustained and sustainable growth and prosperity for all Nigerians.
It noted: “Nigerians in productive sectors are reaping the benefits of reforms that have increased opportunities and income. Entrepreneurs, farmers, and service providers are thriving, while rent-seekers like Amaechi and his coalition partners are left seething with rage at the disruption of their ability to milk the system for personal gain as before.
“The removal of fuel subsidies has been a game-changer. It ended massive corruption that plagued the fuel subsidy enterprise, eliminated perennial shortages and queues at petrol stations, and sparked a surge in investments in the oil and gas and other sectors of the economy, further expanding opportunities for businesses and individuals.
“The harmonisation of multiple exchange rates has further bolstered Nigeria’s competitiveness in the global market for goods and capital. With increased revenue, the federal, state, and local governments are now investing more in critical infrastructure, education, health, security, and social welfare.
“Importantly, states that previously struggled to pay N30,000 minimum wage are now paying a significantly higher minimum wage of N70,000 per month. This is a testament to the administration’s commitment to improving the welfare of Nigerians.
“The President’s reforms are dawning a new day for Nigeria, now witnessing economic transformation never before seen in our country’s history, driven by proper pricing of the Naira and fuel, and steadily transitioning the country from a consumption-laden to a production-oriented economic powerhouse.
“Our trade balances are seeing a drastic improvement, with a sharp decline in imports and a steep rise in exports, reporting impressive trade surpluses and an economic growth rate of 4.6 percent in the last quarter of 2024, representing the highest growth rate in a decade, amid a significant decline in the global price of crude oil.
“This turnaround is a direct testament to the government’s steadfast efforts to promote local production, entrepreneurship, and economic diversification, ultimately paving the way for a more sustainable, resilient, and prosperous economy.
“Indications of a steadily rebounding economy are now manifest in all sectors of the economy. Local industries are booming, and our reliance on imports is plummeting. The Dangote Refinery is revolutionising the market with its products in Nigeria, while manufacturers in the South East are producing top-notch products in unprecedented quantities, generating thousands of jobs and stimulating economic growth. This progress is a monumental step towards achieving food security, industrialisation, and sustainable economic growth.
“President Tinubu has genuinely prioritised the best interest of Nigerians over any political electoral calculation. The administration’s reforms may have transient higher cost-of-living implications challenges, but they are indispensable to securing a more sustainable economy that rewards hard work, innovation, and entrepreneurship.
“Mr. President is on course, and will not be distracted by the selfish partisan rambling of some hardened political opportunists and economic exploiters only bent on preserving the old inefficient and permissive economic system that fed them at the expense of the common good of all.
“The best strategic interest of our economy and the good people of Nigeria must continue to trump any and all political or electoral calculations.”