Prof. Abdullahi Liman, a senior lecturer in the Faculty of Social Sciences, Nasarawa State University, Keffi, has asked Nigerians to be patient with the President Bola Tinubu-led Federal Government.
“Nigrians should be patient with the Federal Government; we must give the present administration time to make things right,” Liman told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Keffi.
According to Liman, Tinubu means well and has come with good intentions for the country, going by what he did in Lagos.
“You know he was not the one that actually removed the subsidy. It was the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari that did.
“He inherited it and he is trying to manage it; why can’t Nigerians give him the benefit of the doubt? why is everyone looking at the negative impact?
“My own problem is with our leaders; sometimes they allow things to get worse before we start rushing to fix them. It shouldn’t be like that.”
Liman urged Nigerian politicians to always strive to make life easy for the citizens and do everything possible to minimise hardship.
“In the case of Tinubu, I know that a politician like him does not need money again because ‘he is already loaded’.
“This man really means well as far as I am concerned. And I am sure if he is given the chance, he can make Nigeria better.
“To condemn somebody before you give him the chance to work, that is what I do not like.
“Most people are not happy; it means Tinubu himself knows he has to be extra careful and ensure that his plans benefit the masses,” Liman said.
Mr Chris Ochayi, an Abuja-based journalist and public policy analyst, who also spoke with NAN, said he was impressed with the President’s recent broadcast, but had issues with him not saying anything about subsidy and local refineries.
“The President’s broadcast, to some of us, did not come as a surprise. It is his responsibility to keep Nigerians informed about government policies and implementations
“The area I am disappointed with, is that he failed to speak on the removal of the subsidy.
“Why did Tinubu not mention anything about the local refining of the crude? We have four refineries in Kaduna, Port Harcourt and Warri.
“My opinion is that he would have declared a state of emergency on the local refineries.
“Every other palliatives in the agricultural and manufacturing sectors or even the provision busses would not offer much until we resuscitate the local refineries,” Ocheyi said.
On his part, Mr Muhammed Abba, an economist, said the President’s broadcast was commendable if the government would ensure that all the promises are implemented.
“Palliatives are things that are meant to cushion hardship when a policy is newly introduced, so government should implement them.
“In Nigeria, we are used to initiating good policies, but along the line, you find out that they are implemented partially or never implemented at all.
“But, I believe the government has a good intention to actually bring relief to the people. We must all support it to do that,” Abba said.(NAN)
