In a spirited defence of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration, the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, has stated unequivocally that Nigeria was on the verge of bankruptcy before the president took office, and that the difficult economic decisions taken early in the administration saved the nation from collapse.
Speaking during an interview on Channels Television with Seun Okinbaloye, Dr. Alausa countered the criticism that the Tinubu administration is responsible for Nigeria’s current economic hardship. He emphasized that what critics view as the government “plunging Nigeria into crisis” is a misunderstanding of the real financial state of the country before Tinubu assumed office.
“It is false that our government plunged Nigeria into the issues we have today because our country was at the verge of bankruptcy,” Alausa declared.
“We were spending money we didn’t have by subsidising fuel to the tune of $1.2 billion a month, in addition to foreign exchange subsidies of $500 million a month. We were borrowing this money with significant amount being leveraged by frontal selling of our petroleum products.”
Dr. Alausa argued that President Tinubu made tough but necessary choices by ending fuel and FX subsidies to prevent total economic collapse and to lay a foundation for future growth.
“President Tinubu saved Nigeria from bankruptcy by taking those short-term decisions for long-term benefits,” he said.
Responding to critics who describe the administration as being led by “theoretical professionals without practical evidence,” the Minister dismissed the claims as politically motivated rhetoric.
“What are you talking about? Let me tell you. There’s the policy framework and theory about it here. But what are the evidence? There’s no single sector for you now. People just are blind. Let’s get out of this political rhetoric. Let’s see the facts. We’ve seen it. The country is much better. It’s more safer. There’s increased prosperity in the country. I’m telling you.”
Citing economic metrics, Alausa highlighted the growth in the agricultural sector, improved GDP numbers, and higher contributions from non-oil sectors. He said these developments are backed by data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and international institutions such as Goldman Sachs, which now see Nigeria as more investment-friendly.
“Our microeconomic indicators are much better. I didn’t make it. The president did not make it. Look at the GDP growth. Look at the report that came out from the National Bureau of Statistics… More increased significant improvement in agriculture. We now have more agriculture contributing more to the GDP than oil sector.”
The Minister also pointed to increased budgetary allocations for key sectors, such as health, education, social protection, infrastructure, and security, as further evidence of the administration’s priorities.
He concluded with a passionate analogy, likening Nigeria’s past economic strategy to a household surviving on credit cards, unable to repay its interest.
He said, “Now, you look at yourself, look at your household today. If you had to use your credit card to pay your electricity bill, to buy your foodstuff, to pay your rent, and the money you were getting in every month is not enough to even service the interest on those credit cards — what will happen to you? Month over month, you get deeper and deeper and deeper.
And this president decided that he would take those difficult decisions… short-term pain for long-term benefit.”
Dr. Alausa concluded by asserting that investor confidence is returning, capital is flowing back in, and the country is seeing “dramatic” improvements — even if critics are unwilling to acknowledge the progress.
“The country is getting better day by day. But people, the naysayers, will never see it.”
