UPDATED: Buhari, other past presidents refused to take tough decisions

President Tinubu took a jab at his predecessors on Thursday, saying their inaction worsened Nigeria’s economic situation and led to his policies.

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Mr Tinubu made the remarks on his Independence Day address to Nigerians, in which he defended the economic reforms introduced by his administration, particularly the removal of petrol subsidy and the unification of the foreign exchange market.

“For too long, the promise of Nigeria was undermined by choices that postponed difficult decisions and allowed deep economic distortions to grow,” the president said.

“By 2023, poverty was rising, and hope was nearly gone. The country’s situation was darker than ever. We had no choice but to act.”

The president said his administration inherited an economy burdened by an unsustainable petrol subsidy regime and an opaque foreign exchange market.

He said the government, therefore, had to take difficult measures to stabilise the economy, despite the immediate hardship they caused.

Mr Tinubu has repeatedly defended the removal of petrol subsidy and the liberalisation of the foreign exchange market as necessary to address longstanding distortions in the economy.

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Previous administrations under Goodluck Jonathan and the late Muhammadu Buhari had also attempted to reform or remove petrol subsidies, but those efforts were reversed or abandoned amid strong public opposition. Mr Jonathan’s 2012 attempt was followed by nationwide protests, while the Buhari administration reinstated subsidy payments after initially removing them.

Mr Tinubu’s administration removed the petrol subsidy on 29 May 2023, shortly after he was sworn in, while the Central Bank of Nigeria subsequently collapsed the country’s multiple official foreign exchange windows into the Investors and Exporters window.

The reforms triggered sharp increases in petrol prices and a significant depreciation of the naira, contributing to higher transportation, food and production costs.

PREMIUM TIMES has previously reported that the measures contributed to Nigeria’s worst cost-of-living crisis in a generation, even as the government and international financial institutions have pointed to improvements in some macroeconomic indicators.

In a 2026 assessment, the International Monetary Fund said Nigeria’s reforms had improved macroeconomic outcomes and strengthened resilience, while poverty remained high and living conditions remained difficult for many Nigerians.

Mr Tinubu, however, said the resources previously spent on petrol subsidies were being redirected towards development priorities, including education, healthcare, security, agriculture and infrastructure.

He also said the reforms had created more fiscal space for the federal, state and local governments to address development needs.

The president’s argument echoes his administration’s longstanding position that maintaining the old subsidy and foreign exchange regimes would have imposed greater costs on the country.

In May, marking three years in office, Mr Tinubu said Nigeria had been spending as much as N18.4 billion daily to sustain petrol subsidies at their peak, with more than N4 trillion spent in 2022 alone. He also said multiple exchange rates and forex arbitrage had cost the country more than N8 trillion over three years.

The government has also faced questions over how the savings from the reforms have been used. In July, Finance Minister and Coordinating Minister of the Economy Taiwo Oyedele said the savings had largely gone into debt servicing, higher public-sector wages, student loans, and other government obligations.

Mr Tinubu urged Nigerians to continue supporting the reforms, saying they were necessary to address the country’s infrastructure deficit and create the conditions for long-term economic growth.

He said the government was using the additional resources to fund roads, power, broadband infrastructure and social investment programmes, alongside spending on education, healthcare and national security.

The president’s Thursday address was his fourth Independence Day speech since he assumed office in May 2023.