Photo caption: President Bola Tinubu and Peter Obi
Peter Obi, Labour Party’s presidential flagbearer in the 2023 election, Peter Obi, has accused President Bola Tinubu of presenting inaccurate statistics to hide the true state of Nigeria’s economic situation.
The former Anambra State Governor, in a post on X (formerly Twitter) on Monday, alleged that Tinubu once ridiculed his emphasis on data when discussing governance.
He said: “In November 2022, while campaigning in Delta State, the then APC Presidential Candidate, Bola Tinubu, now the President, berated the other Presidential Candidate (Peter Obi), he was ashamed to call his name, saying “Na statistics we go chop all I want is to put food on the table of Nigerians”.
“Now, two years into his four-year tenure, Nigeria is classified as one of the hungriest nations in the world, with millions of Nigerians not knowing where their next meal will come from.
“President Tinubu is now overfeeding Nigerians with wrong Statistics from wrong unemployment figures, wrong inflation figures, and now GDP rebasing, all to put a positive spin on our deteriorating economic and household conditions. Governance is not rocket science, it’s not a gamble, like I have always reiterated, it requires sincerity of purpose, character, competence, capacity and compassion.”
However, Tinubu’s economic reforms have been commended by some top Nigerians including business mogul, Aliko Dangote who recently praised the President for his economic reform policies, which he said were restoring investor confidence in Nigeria’s economy.
“I believe we must sincerely thank His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, for ensuring that there have been improvements in the supply of crude oil. His insistence that all crude oil transactions be conducted in naira has been particularly commendable. For us to effectively meet market demand—which we have the capacity to do—it is essential that crude is priced and purchased in our local currency,” Dangote said at the weekend.
He noted that these initiatives, along with other economic reforms, have brought a measure of stability to the naira-to-dollar exchange rate. He expressed optimism that the naira would continue to strengthen in the coming weeks as the effects of the reforms become more visible. According to him, the improved market predictability has helped investors make sound business decisions and restored confidence in the investment climate.
“We are also beginning to see some stability in the naira-to-dollar exchange rate, which has had a positive impact. There is now less fluctuation, and this has brought a degree of predictability to the market
“For those of us in the business sector, this is a welcome development, as it allows us to plan more effectively. Looking ahead, as market conditions continue to improve, we can expect to see a more favourable exchange rate,” he said.
