President Bola Ahmed Tinubu started strategizing from day one. Dismantling the opposition, intimidating Governor’s into submission, whipping the judiciary into line, subduing the National Assembly into servitude and recalibrating the electoral umpire INEC.
He never slept from day one, after he was declared winner , he rather set sail immediately in preparation for 2027.
It is alleged that his chief of staff has the responsibility of pulling the institutional hit , the NSA pulls the individuals hit and the Chairman APC Governors forum pulls the state executives hit .
In other words The chief of staff handles the National Assembly and Judiciary, The Chairman Governors forum brings state Governors under the broom while the NSA handles any irritant person raising an ugly head.
Wike as alleged by Gov Makinde volunteered to do the work of destabilizing PDP , the once major opposition party which has now become a shadow of its former self, thanks to Wike. He is being Supervised by the chief of staff and provided every help he needs to execute this job as rumoured. This is the only way he maintains his relevance despite all baggages surrounding him.
This is the politics of Asiwaju Bola Ahmad Tinubu. An astute politician, but a poor administrator. As a politician , president Tinubu has done excellently well , but has failed woefully as a leader. 3 years wasted on politics with no visible and traceable plan to improve the Nation. it has never happened before since the begining of the 4th Republic.
If you compare Pres Tinubu and APCs 3 years with the first 3 years of his last 2 PDP Predecessors , the difference is staggering and clear.
President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua came with the 7 point Agenda and it was trackable. He wanted to make Nigeria one of the world’s top 20 economies. So he chose seven specific areas to fix
1 . Power & Energy: Fixing electricity so businesses could run.
2. Food Security: Making sure Nigeria could feed itself.
3. Wealth Creation: Focused on jobs and helping people start businesses.
4. Transport: Fixing roads and railways.
5. Land Reform: Making it easier for people to own and use land for wealth.
6. Security: Ending the crisis in the Niger Delta (which led to the Amnesty Program).
7. Education: Improving schools and training
Though he didn’t live long enough to achieve all , but within two years of his administration he achieved nearly 70% of his agenda. Crosscheck the list by yourself and be the judge.
Then came Goodluck Jonathan with his 3Rs and Transformation Agenda . His approach to the economy was very simple , Reconstruction, Rehabilitation, and Reconciliation.
He focused on Reconstructing the railways and airports.
Rehabilitating old systems like the power sector (privatization). And
Reconciling the country through democratic reforms and the 2014 National Conference.
And all these were easy to track. He developed a transformation scorecard where the government published exactly how many kilometers of rail were laid or how many bags of fertilizer were distributed to farmers.
Nigeria became the largest economy in Africa during Goodluck Jonathan’s presidency. Nigeria’s GDP nearly doubled , jumping from about $270 billion to $510 billion. This pushed Nigeria ahead of South Africa to become the number 1 economy on the continent and the 26th largest in the world.
Sadly this was destroyed by APC immediately that incompetent and clueless man Buhari came in and prioritized cow over humans.
Fast forward to 2023, president Tinubu came with what he called 8 point agenda under his Renewed hope banner.
1. Food Security: Tackling hunger by making sure food is available and affordable. This includes supporting farmers and protecting them from attacks so they can go back to their farms.
2. Poverty Eradication: Moving people out of extreme poverty through social welfare programs and direct support for the most vulnerable Nigerians.
3. Growth and Job Creation: Aiming to grow the economy and create millions of jobs, especially for the youth, in sectors like the digital economy and manufacturing.
4. Access to Capital: Making it easier for people and small businesses to get loans. A key part of this is the Student Loan Scheme and providing consumer credit for everyday Nigerians.
5. Inclusion: Ensuring that women, young people, and people with disabilities are not left behind in government appointments and economic opportunities.
6. Security: Using better technology and better-trained security forces to stop kidnapping, banditry, and terrorism so that businesses can thrive.
7. Rule of Law: Strengthening the justice system so that everyone, including the government, follows the law, making Nigeria more attractive to foreign investors.
8. Fighting Corruption: Cleaning up how the government spends money and stopping leakages (theft of public funds) through transparency and digital tracking
None has been achieved , Not even half . instead the situation has been worsened.
Unlike Yar’Adua and Jonathan, Tinubu started by removing the fuel subsidy and floating the Naira. While his 8 point agenda exists on paper, the daily struggle with inflation and the high cost of living makes his blueprint invisible to the average person. There is also a lack of clear targets. Yar’Adua had Vision 2020 but Tinubu’s plan is basically reactive , fixing the problems caused by his own initial reforms, rather than a steady build up.
Mind u , Both Jonathan and Yar’Adua recruited the best brains like Dr Ngozi okonjo iweala, Sanusi lamido Sanusi, Dr Akinwuni Adesina, Dr Oby Ezekwesili, Dr Dora Akunyili etc. Even the senate was led by an astute administrator Gen David Mark.
But what are we seeing today ? We see dull brains , crude , Nasty and Noisy personalities like Nyesom Wike . The other ministers , nobody even knows them. The senate is being led by a Notoriously unserious fellow like Akpabio.
Truth be told , President Tinubu has performed abysmally and this is a constructive criticism. If he couldn’t accomplish even one of his 8 point agenda in 3 years , is it an extra 4 years that he will accomplish it . Be the judge .
We must learn a lesson
Peace and love
I am Emeka Mba, where politics meets truth, I write