The Afenifere, under the leadership of Oba Oladipo Olaitan, has declared that Nigerians have been subjected to harrowing pain and anguish in the two years of President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
The pan-Yoruba sociopolitical organisation gave the damning verdict in its mid-term review of the administration, adding that the reforms had deformed Nigerians.
Contained in a statement by Oba Olaitan, and its National Publicity Secretary, Justice Faloye, the group said “No amount of propaganda will erase the hunger and poverty in the land.”
It said, “Rather than take full responsibility for the unmitigated suffering inflicted on Nigerians in the past two years due to its wrong policy choices and wasteful spending, the Tinubu administration has engaged in massive propaganda, claiming false successes, shifting blame to global and historical factors, and showing scant empathy for ordinary Nigerians.
“Basically, due to unforced errors—especially the oversight of the production element of subsidy removal and the floating of the naira without any preparation to cushion the predictable impact—the Tinubu economic reforms have turned out to be Tinubu economic deforms,” the statement read.
In nine key points, the group faulted the Tinubu administration’s economic reforms.
Afenifere cited data from the National Economic Summit Group that over seven million businesses have shut down since 2023, aside from what it described as a “horrific increase in poverty” and a drop in Gross Domestic Product per capita from $3,222.7 in 2014 to about $806 in 2025.
It also condemned the “astronomical rise in public debt,” noting that the nation’s debt has grown by over N100tn in just two years.
The Afenifere faction pointed to a worsening housing crisis, saying “About 30 million Nigerians are without a roof over their heads, while 108 million live in substandard housing, according to Development Aid statistics.
“The Tinubu administration budgeted for the provision of a mere 20,000 houses in 2025, despite our population increase being over six million people (nearly 20,000 a day) in 2025. At 20,000 homes a year, it would take a thousand years for everyone to have a roof over their head.”
Additionally, the group accused the Tinubu government of being “unabashedly profligate.”
Afenifere argued that the government’s failure to implement the Steve Oronsaye report, which recommended trimming down the cost of governance, was further proof of its excesses.
“The tone of government at all levels is one of a profligate jaiye jaiye lifestyle, while the masses are being berated about Nigeria’s wasteful past and the imperative of sacrifice to restore fiscal integrity.
“The government’s first supplementary budget and subsequent budgets were spent not only on preserving but also on increasing the luxurious lifestyle of those in government—new presidential jet, Cadillac limousines, N160m cars for each federal legislator, and scandalous increases in unaccounted constituency projects worth billions to each legislator,” the statement read.
The Afenifere also raised concerns about the worsening state of insecurity across the country, citing a recent Amnesty International report on killings over the past two years.
It insisted on the need for restructuring and the establishment of state police to address Nigeria’s security challenges.
The statement further read, “The Tinubu administration is trading off the lives of Nigerians by refusing to devolve power for the creation of state police. Across Nigeria, there is a resurgence in the activities of bandits, kidnappers and insurgents.
“According to Amnesty International, over 10,000 people have been killed and nearly 1,000 villages destroyed in the two years of Tinubu’s presidency, while two new terrorist groups have emerged. The failure to treat this as an emergency and devolve powers to enable states to create their police forces places the responsibility, if not culpability, for all lives lost since 2023 at the feet of the President.”
The group also alleged that the ruling All Progressives Congress is sponsoring crises in opposition parties to ensure a one-party state ahead of the 2027 general election.
“In the last two years, we have witnessed a marked increase in intolerance of protests by dissenting civic groups. Peaceful protesters, students and labour groups are hounded, destabilized and bullied. In recent times, we have seen a gale of opposition politicians decamp to the ruling party to prevent institutional victimisation.
“Even government sponsorship of internal conflicts in opposition parties and sociopolitical groups is now done in the open. Some recent appointments to the Independent National Electoral Commission are speculated to be card-carrying members of the ruling party. The emasculation of liberal democratic values is now flagrantly displayed, without any shame or restraint,” the statement read.
The Punch
