Former President Olusegun Aremu Obasanjo has criticized President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for his administration's poor handling of the economy, which was exacerbated by the removal of fuel subsidies, the floating of the naira, and a military coup in the Niger Republic.

Obasanjo acknowledged that the intentions behind the subsidy removal and forex policies were good, but he felt the government mismanaged them. He expressed these views during a colloquium titled “Nigeria’s Development: Navigating the Way Out of the Current Economic Crisis and Insecurity” held at the Paul Aje Colloquium in Abuja over the weekend.

Efforts to obtain a response from the President’s Media office were unsuccessful, but a source from the Presidency simply stated, “It is his personal opinion, and he is entitled to that, but we do not wish to engage in a response.”

Obasanjo also criticized those who opposed his stance on the refurbished refinery in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, labeling them as “sycophants and spin doctors.” He emphasized that his decision to partially privatize the refineries in 2007 was based on thorough analysis, giving him a better understanding of the situation before his recent decision.

Regarding his perspective on the first year of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration, the former president also discussed potential solutions to the country’s challenges, proposing a 25-year development agenda.

He said: “Today, the government has taken three decisions, two of which are necessary but wrongly implemented and have led to impoverishment of the economy and Nigerians. These are the removal of subsidies, closing the gap between the black market and official rates of exchange and the third is dealing with the military coup in Niger Republic.

“The way forward is production and productivity which belief and trust in government leadership will engender. No shortcut to economic progress but hard work and sweat.

“Economy does not obey orders, not even military orders. I know that. If we get it right, we will begin to see the light beyond the tunnel in two years. It requires a change of characteristics, attributes and attitudes by the leadership at all levels to gain the confidence and trust of investors who have alternatives.

“TotalEnergy has gone to invest $6 billion in Angola, instead of Nigeria. If the truth must be stated, the present administration has not found the right way to handle the economy to engender confidence and trust for investors to start trooping in.

“They know us more than we know ourselves. And now they are laughing at us, not taking us seriously. We have to present ourselves in such a way that we will be taken seriously. If existing investors are divesting and going out of our country, how do we persuade new investors to rush in?
‘’We can be serious if we choose to be, but we need to change from transactional leadership in government to transformational and genuine servant leadership.

“With change by us, the investors will give us the benefit of the doubt, and security is taken care of on a sustainable, long-term basis, they will start to test the waters. With the right economic policies, attribute of integrity and honesty of purpose, all should be well, with all hands on deck and the government become a catalyst for development, growth and progress.

“Tinkering with the exchange rate is not the answer. The answer is consistency and continuity in policy to ensure stability and predictability. That way, we will be sure to incentivize domestic and foreign investment.

‘’There must be honesty and transparency in government dealings and contracts and not lying with deception about these issues. When the government is seen as pursuing the right policy, the private sector will go for production and productivity.”

Change is possible but it must begin with the leadership
The former president’s reaction to the refinery issue is coming six months after the claim that the refinery would begin operation in January.
He noted that to get out of the current situation of the country, the government and the governed needed to look at the past and the present, and ask: How did we get here?

Obasanjo said further: “Looking at the topic of today’s occasion, the question I would ask is, how do we navigate our way out of these crises and pave the path towards a more secure and prosperous Nigeria?

‘’I believe the answer to this requires a multi-faceted approach that addresses the root causes of these challenges. The central questions are: where were we? And how did we get to where we are today?

“Firstly, we must know where we are coming from. Our economy has consistently suffered from poor policies, lack of long-term, sustainable policies, discontinuity, ad hoc arrangement and corruption firmed on personal greed, avarice, incompetence, lack of knowledge and understanding and lack of patriotism.

“For instance, the statement and proposed actions given forty-five years ago to stop fuel scarcity is the same statement and action being touted today. I recall when I made the statement that the refineries will not work, the sycophants and spin doctors of this current administration went out to castigate me as not being a petroleum engineer and that I did not know what I was talking about.

“They forgot that the attempt that was made in 2007 to partly privatise the refineries was made by me after a thorough study of the situation. But the decision was reversed by my successor and the $750 million paid was refunded.”