The Presidency has responded to former Vice President Alhaji Atiku Abubakar’s criticisms of President Bola Tinubu’s economic policies, labeling his remarks as “lacking in substance.”
In a statement released on Sunday, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, emphasised that Atiku’s proposals lack substance and were previously rejected by voters during the 2023 election.
He accused Atiku of hypocrisy, noting his past plans to privatize national assets like the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) for personal gain.
Presidency asserted that Atiku’s leadership would have led Nigeria into deeper turmoil, claiming that had Atiku won the 2023 election, he would have implemented a regime characterized by cronyism and poor governance.
Onanuga said: “If he had won the election, we believe he would have plunged Nigeria into a worse situation or run a regime of cronyism.
“Abubakar lost the election partly because he vowed to sell the NNPC and other assets to his friends. Nigerians have not forgotten this, nor would they be comforted by Atiku’s antecedents when he ran the economy in the first term of President Olusegun Obasanjo’s government between 1999 and 2003.
“As vice president, Atiku supervised a questionable privatisation programme. He and his boss demonstrated a lack of faith in our educational system, and both went to establish their universities while they allowed ours to flounder.
“Talk is cheap. It is easy to pontificate and deride a rival’s programmes even when there are irrefutable indices that the economic reforms yield positives despite the temporary difficulties.
“Despite the futile attempt to hoodwink Nigerians again in his statement, it is gratifying that the former Vice President could not repudiate the economic reforms pursued by the Tinubu administration because they are the right things to do.”
The presidential spokesman added: “His advocacy for a gradualist approach only showed that he was not in tune with the enormity of problems inherited by President Tinubu.
It is so easy to paint a flowery to-do list. It is expected of an election loser.”
The statement defended Tinubu’s reforms as necessary to address Nigeria’s economic challenges, acknowledging short-term pain but promising long-term benefits.
The Presidency urged Atiku to provide constructive alternatives instead of mere political rhetoric.
“President Tinubu met a country facing several grave challenges. Fuel subsidies were siphoning away enormous resources we could ill afford, and there was criminal arbitrage in the forex market.
“No leader worth his name will allow these two economic disorders to persist without moving to end them surgically.
While advocating gradual reforms may sound appealing, Tinubu took measures that should have been taken decades ago by Alhaji Abubakar and his boss when they had the opportunity.
“Alhaji Abubakar calls for empathy and a human face to reforms. We have no problem with this as it resonates well with our administration’s focus. President Tinubu has consistently emphasised the need for compassion and protection of the most vulnerable.
“The administration has prioritised social safety nets and targeted support for those affected by recent economic transitions,” Onanuga stated.
