A lecturer at the Kogi State University, Kabba, Dr Emmanuel John says the President Bola Tinubu’s achievements in his first year in office are laudable.
John, also the Head of Banking and Finance Department of the University, said this in a statement in Lokoja on Tuesday.
“To be frank, the achievements of Tinubu in his first year in office are encouraging.
“The dexterity shown by the president on the day of his inauguration in announcing the removal of fuel subsidy is applaudable even in the face of hardship.
“The avoidance of lopsided appointments in his administration is a commendable strategy to uphold the unity of our country.
“Also, the effort of our President to ameliorate the sufferings of Nigerians by implementing some intervention programmes such as National Social Investment programmes, Students Loan Scheme, salary increments for some workers and working out a new minimum wage for all workers in Nigeria is applaudable, ” he said
The lecturer also said that Tinubu tactically unified the official and the parallel market exchange rates to save Nigeria from financial hemorrhage.
He said that the president’s emergence as the Chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) was commendable as it showed that Nigeria was still a leading country in West Africa.
He said that the way and manner the president was implementing his policies and programmes were also laudable.
“As it’s, Nigerians calmed their nerves with the expectation of a better governance and a breath of fresh air in the second year of the administration.
“However, this doesn’t mean that there are no challenges and lapses that need to be addressed by Tinubu’s government.
“One of such challenges is inflation, whose rate in Nigeria has been increasing geometrically since 2023, especially in the first quarter of 2024, resulting in high cost of transportation and high cost of doing business caused by high cost of fuel as a result of fuel subsidy removal.
,”The attendant hardship, hunger and frustration from these negative trends are overwhelming and desiring urgent steps to address them,” he said.
He said that as at April 2024, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) reported an inflation rate of 33.69 per cent which was far higher than the inflation rate for April 2023 at 22.22 per cent according to CBN Data & Statistics, 2024.
John said that the unfavorable exchange rate also had adverse effects on the domestic economy of Nigeria as it further triggered inflation.
“In spite of the challenges and negative trends of economic indicators, the expectations of Nigerians are still high as the people believe that President Bola Tinubu is capable and will eventually reverse the ugly trends and set Nigeria on the path of prosperity, economic growth and development,’’ he said. NAN
