The prominent Southwest socio-political organization Afenifere has released a harsh midterm evaluation of President Bola Tinubu’s administration, describing the past two years as a period of regression across all major development indicators.
In a statement, the group criticized what it characterized as failed economic reforms and authoritarian tendencies within the current government.
Afenifere particularly targeted the administration’s economic strategy, stating that the “Midterm Report shows that every human development and sociopolitical index has regressed since the coming to office of the President Bola Tinubu administration, turning the promise of renewed hope to a nightmare of regressing hopelessness and despair.”
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The group attributed the economic challenges to what it termed “unforced errors,” specifically criticizing the handling of subsidy removal and currency policies. “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 has turned out to be Tinubu Economic Deforms,” the statement read.
The organization accused the administration of favoring connected individuals while ordinary Nigerians suffer from inflation.
According to Afenifere, “Despite the Tinubu administration’s economic policies causing huge inflation that cut real wages in over half, only 4.1% of the Nigeria population in the civil service had their wages increased by 38%.”
The group also criticized lavish government spending, noting that “The government’s first supplementary budget and subsequent budgets were spent on not only preserving but increasing the luxurious lifestyle of those in government – new Presidential jet, Cadillac limousines, N160 million cars for each federal legislator and scandalous increase in unaccounted constituency projects worth billions to each legislator.”
Beyond economic issues, Afenifere raised alarm about what it perceives as threats to Nigeria’s democratic institutions. The group accused the administration of “destructuring instead of restructuring the military imposed constitution, towards true federalism” and showing “increasingly centralizing tendencies.”
The statement also highlighted concerns about civil liberties, noting “a markedly increase in intolerance of protests by dissenting civic groups.
Peaceful protesters, students and labour groups are hounded, destabilized and bullied.”Despite the harsh criticism, Afenifere concluded with a call for change rather than complete condemnation. “If this Midterm Report was an academic exercise, the student will receive an advice to withdraw from the examiner, but we believe there is still room for redemption,” the group stated.
The organization urged President Tinubu and his administration to “reflect and for a change just love Nigeria and Nigerians,” emphasizing that “No amount of propaganda will erase hunger and poverty in the land. Only selfless and empathetic leadership can serve the people.”
This midterm assessment from one of the Southwest’s most influential political groups represents a significant challenge to the Tinubu administration’s narrative as it approaches the halfway point of its first term in office.
, Femi Falana, has criticized the leadership of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) for their disregard for the rule of law and failure to implement rulings of the ECOWAS Court of Justice.){kind=link}