…Says Tinubu’s reforms are yielding results
Minister of Defence, Mohammed Badaru Abubakar, has called on the organizers of the proposed protest to shelve the idea and come to a roundtable and dialogue with the Federal Government as Tinubu’s reforms have started yielding fruitful results.
The Personal Assistant on Media and Publicity to the Defence Minister, Mati Ali, in a statement issued yesterday, said the nation’s economy is on a gradual but steady path of recovery and assured citizens that this administration will do more to meet their needs.
According to the Minister, the reforms initiated by the President have started improving the lives of Nigerians as the economic growth in Q1 2024 was the second fastest first-quarter growth in the last six years.
He said, “The defence strategy as enshrined in the Renewed Hope Agenda in improving security is yielding result as well. Mr. President is committed to the safety of lives and property through various security interventions.
“There is a serious improvement in security as most of the roads and highways hitherto closed due to insecurity have been opened. Herders and farmers clashes have been solved by the creation of the Livestock Ministry and many farmers have returned to their farms”.
”Mr. President is supporting the farmers and has encouraged State Governors to do the same. Also, there is the massive surrendering of terrorists, and high-profile terrorist kingpins have been arrested”.
While cited an example of President Tinubu’s initiative according to the Minister is the creation of an instrument to support students. This is in addition to the introduction of the Nigerian Student Loan Scheme was initiated to increase access to higher education and reduce financial burdens on students.
Furthermore, he said that another innovation of Mr President is the massive increase in funding for infrastructures like roads, rails, energy, and irrigation (Dams and Channels) through the Renewed Hope Infrastructure Development Fund, (RHIDF).
The Minister opined that the innovation of selling crude oil to indigenous refining companies in Naira is another robust effort by Mr. President and the signing of the National Minimum Wage Act into Law, which is aimed at enhancing the welfare of the Nigerian Workers are all efforts at stabilizing the economy.
He also stated that another bold step taken by President Tinubu is the autonomy granted to the Local Governments for effective accountability, development at the grassroots, and strengthening of governance.
“The President has also given different levels of palliatives to the State Government to support Nigerians to live a better life, in addition to social security intervention to states (sub-Nationals), Post Subsidy Removal Presidential Grant and Loans Scheme, Nigerian Youth Investment Fund (NYIF), 3 Million Technical Talents (3MTT) and Skilled-Up Artisan Initiative (SUPA), he further noted.
The Minister said that since the launch of the compressed natural gas initiative (CNG) by Mr. President, are growing exponentially across the country, creating job opportunities.
With the CNG conversion centers, he explained, it is expected that the cost of transportation will reduce as much as 50%, adding that this has unlocked the nation’s huge potential in the gas sector. He also said the Federal Government has also made available 30,000 kits for the conversion of 30,000 petrol-powered engines at no cost within the next 90 days.
In addressing the high cost of drugs and encouraging local production, the Minister stated that Mr. President has signed an executive order introducing zero-tariffs and duties on imports of raw materials, active pharmaceutical ingredients, and manufacturing equipment. Also, he said, the Federal Government has conducted two rounds of disbursement for primary healthcare revitalisation through the basic Health Provision Fund.
While acknowledging the democratic right to protest, the Minister cautioned against using the protest to cause mayhem, emphasizing that the proposed August 1 protest is poorly timed given the positive economic turnaround.
