Yemi Obafemi
Anambra State Governor, Chukwuma Charles Soludo has described the economic reforms introduced by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, as bold and necessary measures that have pulled Nigeria back from the brink of economic collapse.
Speaking on the theme “Rebuilding Our Nation,” Soludo urged political actors across the country to abandon politics driven by ethnicity or personal gain and instead realign along ideological lines to promote an issue-based political culture that can transform the nation.
“The audacious structural reforms embarked upon by the current administration of HE Bola Ahmed Tinubu have rescued the economy from the tipping point.
“The endorsements by the World Bank, IMF, London Financial Times, rating agencies Fitch, Moody’s, are well deserved.
“Many people know that I made a living criticising the World Bank and the IMF. As Governor of Anambra, I have even rejected a World Bank loan because of the terms. On the trajectory of the current economic reforms, the World Bank, etc, are largely right. Funny enough, when these institutions criticise the government, some people use them to validate their criticisms, but when the same institutions give a positive report, they are derided as “neoliberal, out-of-touch institutions
“In 2023, I had described the state of the economy when this government assumed office as akin to a standing dead horse, and public finance was about to tip from solvency, with potentially catastrophic consequences, including possible mass retrenchment of workers and/or arrears of salaries and pensions. Public finance is back on a solvency path, and macro fundamentals are recovering positively.
Many analysts have interesting ‘opinions’, but I urge them to go deeper: conduct rigorous counterfactual analysis and provide credible alternatives! As a friend said recently, the task is always easy, especially if you are not the one doing it,” he said.
“We must deliberately create a critical mass of ‘new Nigerians’—who believe in her and are ready, if necessary, to die for her.
“The struggle for liberation from colonialism would not have been possible without the nationalists of the time, and the current struggle to liberate her from underdevelopment cannot be sustainable with ‘neo-nationalists’ of today.
“No nation has prospered sustainably without a critical mass of patriotic, vigilant and actively participatory citizenry,” he said.
Soludo called for a national conversation to address what he described as a “national emergency” he erosion of values and civic responsibility.
“We must break this vicious ‘culture’ and intentionally promote ethical-value rebirth,” he ssaid
“The shortest answer is to give the citizens stakes in the society by investing in their future.”
