Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, has strongly defended the federal government’s economic restructuring, commending President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for taking bold and decisive actions most notably the removal of the petrol subsidy and the floating of the naira to address Nigeria’s deep-seated fiscal challenges.
Speaking on Wednesday, July 22, during an official state engagement with regional leaders and stakeholders in Abakaliki, Governor Otti emphasized that while these structural policies have triggered short-term inflationary pressure and public hardship, they were mandatory steps to prevent a complete collapse of the nation’s financial system.
”It takes a leader with immense courage to make the call Mr. President made—discontinuing a petroleum subsidy regime that was crippling our national balance sheet and allowing the market to determine the foreign exchange rate,” Governor Otti stated. “These were non-populist choices, but leadership demands doing what is right for the future rather than what is easy for today.”
Reflecting on his background as an economist and former banking chief executive, Otti reiterated his long-held view that the petrol subsidy had degenerated into an unsustainable drain on public resources. He noted that the policy shifts, though painful initially, are laying the groundwork for a transparent, market-driven economy.
Alex Otti highlighted that by eliminating federal subsidy burdens has boosted statutory monthly allocations sent to states and local government areas, allowing sub-national administrations to fund critical public works and social welfare programs.
He added that by correcting years of distorted fiscal spending requires enduring transitional shocks before economic stability returns. State governments can now channel capital toward infrastructural regeneration, rural development, and local enterprise growth.
Addressing public discontent over rising costs of living, Otti urged citizens to stay resilient, assuring them that economic adjustments typically undergo a phase of pain before self-correcting and yielding broad-based prosperity.
”Every severe distortion requires tough medication,” Otti remarked. “When you clean up decades of fiscal mismanagement, it will take its toll in the short run. But as market forces stabilize, the national economy will recalibrate, and Nigerians will reap the benefits of these reforms.”
