Open Letter: Tinubu One Year In Office Amidst Hardship -By Abba Dukawa

I using this medium with hope the latter will reach your table. With anticipation those responsible with press cut will lay it before you in your table.

Mr. President with utmost respect to you and your office, hope you are well. I pray that Allah to provides you with wisdom to make Nigeria great again.

You are aware this responsibilities bestowed on you by God it is a test on your faith both here and hereafter and definitely you will account for every deed and decisions you make under the oath as a president on the last day of judgement.

Even though becoming a president was your life time ambition which you have actualize it as it’s a rare opportunity for many to achieve their own dream to occupy the president office at one shoot. Unlike former president almost to give off his ambition of becoming a president after being a serial loser at the three consecutive attempts.

It is unfortunate the level of uncertainty in the Nigerian economy and hardship becoming unbearable to the citizens, conditions are not getting any better and the life was little bit better off from pre May 2023.

Within one year of your administration in office the economic policies implementing by your government has triggered more economic hardship to millions citizens one minute have a reason to smile, the very next second, make them feel heartbroken.

In spite you requested the job, and you are not complaining about it with hope that the nation will survive the current economic challenges with your anticipation there would be a light at the end of the tunnel.

The Renewed Hope is increasingly turning into Renewed Frustration for citizens. As Million Household been dehumanised by the economic hardship.

If anyone will tell me that a Nigerian would sought food leftover from eatery and hotels dustbin I would not believe it but I saw different sexes and are looking for food at the garbage.

To understand the situation one may looks at the faces of poor people one will understand the pains and anger their going through let one go to market stale to hear how people venting their anger on the administration policies.

Actually what is happening now, that the entire country is gnashing it teeth that is what exactly is going on? a period of more belt-tightening for citizens whose waists are disappearing? Why the administration constantly reminding Nigerians of the bad times ahead? Is there nothing that can be ingeniously done for the most vulnerable?

29, May, your administration is one year amidst hardship and uncertainty for the future. Let us be very factual and realistic with ourselves; the problem we find ourselves today, originated, was engineered, fabricated and sustained by the former administration as it institutionally, fundamentally and it’s is responsible for the current economic hardship in the country.

In fairness to justice, since 2015 APC-led government fail to address any of the numerous challenges facing the country.But the Policies initiated by your administration have exacerbated existing problems rather than alleviating them.

Even though you are fanatically believer in Economic Liberalism and Market Forces. But forget that US, UK, France and other eastern countries are spends substantial percentage of its public expenditure to subsidies certain essential commodities to alleviate citizens suffering.

Within one year, Tinubu’s policies have clearly thrown to millions of citizens lost hope on seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.

It is disheartening to remind you deteriorating state of the economy, cost of living and rising cases of insecurity, collapse of the foreign exchange windows, electricity tariff hake, highest inflation if not an hyper inflation have resulted to unprecedented hardship for the masses to bear it.

Everyone learnt the heat as citizens have common market the hardship not differentiate between have not and have this resulted for Nigerians to knocked your government for being insensitive to the plight of Nigerians who are still grappling with the economical impact of petrol subsidy removal.

Concerned Nigerians doubtful if the current administration understanding dark cloud in the sky courtesy of it’s overstretching the patient of the citizens by imposing further strangulating measures on them this not only threaten system, may also lead to a public anger against harsh policies that have reduced citizens into beggars and now depend on palliatives for survival.

Clearly the duty of every administration was to improve the well-being and economic prosperity of the country. Not policies that will continue overstretching the citizens with imposing further strangulating measures.
An United States president Thomas Jefferson said
the purpose of government is to enable the people of a Nation to live safely and happiness, government exist for the interest of the governed and not for the governors. Even if the administration had a genuine intention to restructure economic sector, but It seem the policies were not being implemented with a human face because the administration did not feel for Nigerians in this kind of abject hardship.
However,urgent remedial measures needs to dealt with the situation. Taking full responsibility of the economic hardship and other related issues cause by your administration is not a solution but action is most important to alleviate the problems.

What differentiate your administration to pas immediate administration is just blame games as it’s happened up to the last days in office it continued to blamed Jonathan’s government for it’s failures.

Believe me, what you will do from now on as leader will determine whether this nation will be strong enough to deal with challenges of the future, or it will continue going under its cumulative problems left unattended by its leaders.

President Tinubu needs to strive for good governance and ensure progress in five core principles of good governance that cut across transparency, accountability, participation, anti-corruption efforts, and the rule of law.

There is a need for the administration to expedite action to ensure that the food is ready to calm hungry citizens’ nerves.Government should force the local rice, sugar, and spaghetti industries and merchants to stop manipulating the situation and ensure those people who hoard foodstuffs are brought to justice .

Things are harder than poor people can bear. In spite of mis governing of past administration Things were fairb before now. Feeding thrice a day is now difficult and having twice become a luxury to many, many families won’t eat three square meals again. The high cost of living is appalling. Life is increasingly becoming difficult because while your earning reduces, the daily routine expenditure increases and the gap is wide to fill.

Taking personal responsibility for the pains poor people are going through is courageous but offering lasting solutions towards alleviating the problems is most needed.

Mr. President and his appointees should have it at the back of their minds that “A hungry man is an angry man”. Nigerians want to have genuine solace, not the president’s acknowledgment of the hardship the citizens go through.

If the administration has a genuine intention to ease the citizens hardship in the next three years can do it by shifting gears from total economic liberalism and free market forces. The Tinubu’s administration is one year in office amidst hardship and extreme poverty but we are paying the price for the mistake of the past administrations, for the failure of the past and for what we have refused to do in the past, so this is the reality. Technically Nigeria is like in a time of great depression. All the symptoms are here – perhaps a little more than what obtained in German in the 1950s .

Dukawa write in from Abuja can be reached at abbahydukawa@gmail.com