Will Tinubu’s omnibus bill be Nigeria’s New Deal?, By Majeed Dahiru

President Tinubu’s omnibus bill is by far the most progressive and imaginative economic stimulus plan in Nigeria’s recent history. But for his omnibus bill to be Nigeria’s New Deal will be for the new President to assemble a team of patriotic, competent and courageous Nigerians with rich integrity credentials to help covert his vision into reality. If President Tinubu’s profound words are matched with necessary actions, a renewed hope will be inspired in the hearts and minds of the Nigerian people, that indeed a new dawn has arrived..

Just as the 2023 presidential election was the most consequential in the history of Nigeria’s Fourth Republic, so was the inauguration address of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Nigeria’s sixteenth head of state and government since independence in 1960. In February when the presidential elections held, Nigeria’s fourth democratic cycle, which has endured for 24 years so far was like an underachieving young adult who had failed to live up to the full expectations of his age, hence requiring urgent help and rehabilitation from better mentors and caregivers. Since the transition from military to civil democratic rule in 1999, the much anticipated dividends of democracy in the form of improved citizen welfare and security, has remained elusive to the extent that the legitimacy of democracy as the best form of government and its relevance in national development, has come under serious interrogation.

After much debates arising from this interrogation, Nigerians appeared to still believe in the virtues of civil democratic rule, but this time they decided to take their democratic destiny into their own hands by getting rid of the many vices of democracy in Nigeria. From its outset, the 2023 presidential election was bound to be a fierce contest for power between the ruling political establishment and an armada of anti-establishment forces determined to take back the country from the stranglehold of misrule, leadership ineptitude and moral bankruptcy. Represented by Ahmed Bola Tinubu, the candidate of the ruling APC and Atiku Abubakar of the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party, the establishment faced the strongest challenge for power by the anti-establishment through the candidacy of Peter Obi of the Labour Party in the 2023 presidential election, resulting in a decimation of the former by the latter, in a manner never seen before in the history of Nigerian elections.

Despite attaining a close third position behind APC and PDP, the LP won an equal number of states (12) with the two establishment parties and emerged the third largest party in the National Assembly, through the biggest upstage and disruption that were never envisaged. Although Bola Tinubu of the APC managed to secure the winning votes in the tightly contested presidential election due to his mastery of establishment politics in Nigeria, the decimation of the old order, which saw him losing his home state of Lagos to the opposition LP candidate, was clearly not lost on him. And as he assumed the mantle of leadership as Nigeria’s 16^th head of state and government, President Bola Tinubu’s inauguration address seemed to adequately encapsulate the grim reality that time is running out for the establishment in Nigeria, hence the need to prioritise good governance, even if he has to commit class suicide, ultimately as a means of preservation of the ruling class.

 His vow to administer the country with principles of the rule of law, to secure and defend the lives and properties of Nigerians, to introduce an elaborate credit scheme to ease the burden of financial insecurity and as a disincentive to corruption, to grow the economy, activate agro-commodities exchanges in order to enhance food security, guarantee returns on foreign direct investments, and remove subsidy on petrol, are all in line with the fulfilment of his campaign promises.

In getting ahead of the Nigerian people in setting an agenda for his administration, President Tinubu delivered an inauguration address that was hearty, bold, conciliatory, forthright, honest, reassuring, and one which spoke to the integrity of his Renewed Hope manifesto and campaign promises. In his inauguration address, Tinubu did not only re-affirm the core components of his manifesto, he also used them to lay the philosophical foundation of the direction of the political economy of the “Ideal Nigeria” of his vision, with such clarity as indicative of a deep and fertile mind. His vow to administer the country with principles of the rule of law, to secure and defend the lives and properties of Nigerians, to introduce an elaborate credit scheme to ease the burden of financial insecurity and as a disincentive to corruption, to grow the economy, activate agro-commodities exchanges in order to enhance food security, guarantee returns on foreign direct investments, and remove subsidy on petrol, are all in line with the fulfilment of his campaign promises.

Most importantly, his inauguration address was devoid of divisive rhetoric and the blaming of past administrations for the problems he was about to inherit, which registers a first impression in the hearts of many Nigerians that President Tinubu is a leader who is ready to take full responsibility for the enormous burden of turning around a nation whose people, in his words, “have endured hardships that would have made other societies crumble.” While restating his commitment to the eternal unity of Nigeria in the following words, “as citizens, we declare as one unified people devoted to one unified national cause, that as long as this world exists, Nigeria shall be one”, President Tinubu’s further declaration that “our constitution and laws give us a nation on paper. We must work harder at bringing these noble documents to life by strengthening the bonds of social cohesion, and cultural understanding. Let us develop a shared sense of fairness and equity”, conveys his deep understanding of the essential elements of nation building as conditions precedent for national security and economic development. The president’s reassurance that “whether from the winding creeks of the Niger Delta, the vastness of the northern savannah, the boardrooms of Lagos, the bustling capital of Abuja, or the busy markets of Onitsha, you are all my people. As your president, I shall serve with prejudice towards none but compassion and amity towards all” signals the beginning of national healing after an election that left Nigeria most divided in its entire 63-year history.

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…while the nation awaits the President’s detailed policy plans, with specifics on the sources of funding, methodology of implementation and timeline on deliverables, his first legislative agenda, which he described in his inauguration address as an “omnibus Jobs and Prosperity bill” is noteworthy and reminiscent of President Franklin Roosevelt’s “New Deal” economic stimulus plan that was implemented from 1933…

And while the nation awaits the President’s detailed policy plans, with specifics on the sources of funding, methodology of implementation and timeline on deliverables, his first legislative agenda, which he described in his inauguration address as an “omnibus Jobs and Prosperity bill” is noteworthy and reminiscent of President Franklin Roosevelt’s “New Deal” economic stimulus plan that was implemented from 1933 to resuscitate an ailing American economy that was devastated by the shocks of the Great Depression of 1929. Just like President Roosevelt’s New Deal, which created federal programmes like the Civil Works Administration, Civilian Conservation Corps, the National Industrial Recovery Act and the Social Security Administration, in order to stimulate economic growth and development through a financially empowered populace, President Tinubu has pledged to work with the National Assembly “to fashion an omnibus Jobs and Prosperity bill” that “will give our administration the policy space to embark on labour-intensive infrastructural improvements, encourage light industry and provide improved social services for the poor, elderly and vulnerable.”

President Tinubu’s omnibus bill is by far the most progressive and imaginative economic stimulus plan in Nigeria’s recent history. But for his omnibus bill to be Nigeria’s New Deal will be for the new President to assemble a team of patriotic, competent and courageous Nigerians with rich integrity credentials to help covert his vision into reality. If President Tinubu’s profound words are matched with necessary actions, a renewed hope will be inspired in the hearts and minds of the Nigerian people, that indeed a new dawn has arrived and his vision for an “Ideal Nigeria” will be realised.

Majeed Dahiru, a public affairs analyst, writes from Abuja and can be reached through dahirumajeed@gmail.com.