Presidency Counters Atiku, Highlights Tinubu’s Economic Gains

The Presidency has said that the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has achieved significant progress across all sectors of the economy.

According to a statement issued by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, Nigeria’s foreign exchange reserves have risen to nearly $42 billion, compared to $32 billion when President Tinubu assumed office.

Onanuga was reacting to remarks credited to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, who claimed that hunger was ravaging Nigeria and likened the situation to the unrest in France before the 1789 Revolution and Russia’s 1917 Bolshevik Revolution. The Presidency described the comparison as grossly misleading and disconnected from current realities, stressing that available data paints a different picture.

He pointed out that figures released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) for August showed headline inflation declining for the fifth consecutive month. Over the weekend, the NBS also reported a record trade surplus, with non-oil exports contributing almost equally to the trade balance as crude oil at a ratio of 48:52 percent.

Under President Tinubu, Onanuga noted, Nigeria is recording unprecedented revenues, enabling states to pay salaries and gratuities promptly while still having surplus funds for capital and social projects — a development rarely witnessed at this scale.

Contrary to Atiku’s claims, the Presidency insisted that Nigeria is moving in the right direction, adding that many of the present challenges stem from economic mismanagement during the PDP years when Atiku was Vice President.

The statement emphasized that President Tinubu and his team are working tirelessly to correct past errors through bold reforms. After two years and five months in office, the Presidency expressed pride in the progress recorded under Tinubu’s leadership.