*Government is doing well on all sectors – FG
*This is the worst administration since independence, say opposition parties, Organised Labour, market women
Nigerians reacted differently on the one year in office of President Bola Tinubu, with the establishment praising the administration to high heavens, while ordinary Nigerians disagree, describing the administration as the worst since independence.
While the federal government through the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris Malaga and several Ministers and government spokespersons insisted that President Tinubu has distinguished himself on all sectors, the Nigerian Labour Congress, members of the opposition political parties andthe ordinary citizens, diaagree, expressing the woes brought on them by the administration.
According to them, the Tinibu administration is the worst administration and most insensitive to the worsening plight of the masses.
Idris had used two weeks to address the media showcasing sector-by-sector, achievements of the administration, spanning from infrastructure, capital inflow, political stability and inroads in diplomatic cycles.
The Minister, in his various Ministerial Press Briefings since last week debunked all the allegations that the administration is a colloidal failure, saying the proponents of the notion either missed the point or were pushed by the desire to simply smear the administration.
He said that the removal of fuel subsidy, floating of the naira, the construction of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway were remarkable steps taken by the administration to shore up the economy and make life more meaningful.
He also gave the administration pass mark in the areas of wedging war against insecurity, attracting foreign investors and improving on the healthcare facilities available to the populace.
He maintained that the opposition political parties were hyping falsehood to dent the sterling achievements of the administration.
Presenting the administration’s scorecard through various Ministers and Heads of federal government agencies, the Information Minister maintained that “the President Tinubu administration is the best that has happened to the country”.
However, the Organised Labour led by the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC), lampooned the administration, insting that it is “anti-workers and anti-people”.
The organised labour pointed at the fuel subsidy removal without first addressing the corruption index in it, the floating of the naira and stealing of the nation’s resources by top government functionaries as the greatest malaise that has dented the administration.
They insisted that the deafness at which government is addressing their demand to wage increases, points to the fact that the administration is far removed from reality.
The Organised Private sector did not cheer the administration as they insisted that the cost of production have more than quadrupled, thereby making things difficult for them to continue to remain in production.
They lamented that more than 2,000 companies have shut down or relocated from the country and attributed the development to the harsh policies of the administration.
They pointed at the hike in the proces of petroleum products, tariff, customs duty and costs paid at the ports of entry as negatively affecting industries in the country.
They described the defence of the administration by the ministers as mere sophistry, saying that they have refused to accept the reality because their needs are funded from the public till.
The National Assembly comprising mainly of members of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) insulted the sensibilities of Nigerians when they passed a bill reverting to the old national anthem, stressing that it showed how low the nation had degenerated.
Members of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the Labour Party (LP) and the African Democratic Congress (ADC), lamented that the Independent National Electoral Commission, security agencies and the judiciary have not helped matters in strengthening our Democratic journey as those agencies promoted Electoral fraud than push for sanity in the political process.
They lamented that the President Tinubu’s administration has no plans to embark on Electoral reforms, pointing out that lies ahead would likely sink the nation.
They also criticised the inability of government to tackle insecurity and illegal mining, saying the leadership was promoting vested interests which are largely responsible for the deterioting situations.
Cross section of Nigerians who spoke on the anniversary of the administration, lamented that basic items such as food, medicare and security have been at its lowest ebb due to spiralling inflation and lack of commitment to secure the country by security agencies, particularly the military.
They lamented that in the past ine year, like had been hellish for Nigerians, and called on the administration to look inward and tackle corruption head-on.
It is their belief that more than 50 per cent of the nations resources are stolen by privileged people in government, pointing out that the tendency breeds greater level of corruption and insecurity across the country.
They also lamented that the rate of inflation has made it impossible for the ordinary people to have the means to purchase drugs, stressing that people.now resort to traditional medicine with attendant consequences for medication.
Students at institutions of higher learning and their parents did not spare the administration as they lamented increasing cost of school fees, cost of books, basic items needed to keep them sustained at school and their overall security while on campus and gave a low mark on the administration.
They also lamented poor welfare package to university lecturers and teachers nationwide, saying it accounted for the dwindling academic standard nationwide.
Market men and women lamented that the Tinubu administration failed to tackle inflation and attributed it to insensitivity by political leaders on the true state of affairs in the country and spiralling corruption in high places, including among security agencies who have created roadblocks just for the sake of forcefully collecting tolls from motorists.
They said that illegal taxes they pay at roadblocks across the country contribute to more than 10 per cent rise in the cost of food items.
