Nigeria, blessed with an abundance of mineral resources, stands as one of the richest nations in the world. Yet, in a cruel twist of fate, it seems that when destiny endowed the country with these gifts, it overlooked the crucial element of commensurate leadership, leaving Nigeria to struggle to harness its vast human and mineral resources to achieve its rightful place as a great nation and giant of Africa.
Since Nigeria’s return to democratic rule in 1999, each successive administration has brought its own unique set of frustrations. Rather than building upon the progress of their predecessors, each president’s performance has been marked by a decline from the previous administration, with every government leaving the country in a more precarious state than when they took office.
When President Bola Tinubu campaigned on ‘Renewed Hope’ in 2023, Nigerians expected a leader who would revitalise their faith in the country. Given his successful tenure as Lagos governor from 1999-2007, many anticipated similar success nationwide. However, just over a year into his presidency, he has led Nigeria into one of its worst periods of hardship since the civil war, contradicting the lofty expectations that followed his inauguration.
The economic crisis has become suffocating, leaving citizens gasping for air despite the President’s promise to let the poor ‘breathe’. Hunger, anger, and hopelessness are strangling the nation, as everything that brings discomfort continues to rise. Workers can no longer feed their families, and unemployment is skyrocketing. The National Bureau of Statistics’s last Labour Force Survey shows a surge in unemployment, from 4.2% to 5.0% in just one quarter. With businesses collapsing and jobs being lost daily due to harsh economic policies, this is projected to continue to rise.
The private sector has, however, tried to bridge the gap, but it’s not been enough, as a large chunk of people are still struggling to survive because of unemployment or underemployment. The cultural reliance on relatives for support is also being stretched to the limit due to an inflationary economy. Today, the concept of social class that assumes three general economic categories is utopia, as the middle class is going extinct. The powerful rich upper class and the helpless lower class are the two categories that exist now in Nigeria.
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Besides, before the enactment of the new national minimum wage act of N70,000, about fifteen states failed to implement the old one of N30,000. It is unlikely that these states that could not pay N30,000 would be willing to pay the new one which represents a 134% increase. Workers at all levels have become vulnerable because prices of goods and services keep rising while their pay remain largely stagnant.
The recent fuel price hike would only exacerbate the situation, with prices of building materials, rents, transport fares, food, and other essentials increasing overnight. It’s hard to see how workers, as well as people without a steady income or viable business, can survive in this environment. Even when the new minimum wage is fully implemented, it value will be limited; already a bag of rice, for example, is heading towards N100,000, a loaf of bread is over N2,000 while a basin of Garri costs around N50,000. How can Nigerians afford these necessities?
According to the Statista 2022 report released a few months ago, 88.4 million Nigerians are living in extreme poverty. These numbers have not improved since the last report, and the government’s policies seem to be making things worse as the poverty level has deepened in the last year. Rather than finding solutions, the government seems to be interested only in raising revenue that is likely to be mismanaged or revolve around the pockets of a few greedy individuals.
However, as some people have said, there’s still enough time for the President to turn things around, as he’s just a year and a few months into his four-year term. But the decisions to drastically improve things must be taken urgently. For instance, there’s an urgent need to reduce the price of petroleum products, lower taxes on individuals and food items, reduce the cost of unavailable electricity, suspend COVID-19 loan recovery, and defend the naira against foreign currencies, amongst others.
The psychological, emotional, social, and mental pressure on the poor masses has become unbearable. If more effort is not put into addressing the crisis and urgently too, the country may completely collapse. Section 14 (b) of the 1999 constitution says government exists purposely for the security and the welfare of the people, not the other way round; therefore, President Tinubu must allow the poor masses to breathe.