The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has delivered a scathing assessment of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s two years in office, describing his administration as “a massive disappointment” that has subjected Nigerians to unprecedented hardship.
In a statement issued by the party’s National Publicity Secretary, Hon. Debo Ologunagba, on Wednesday, the opposition party characterised the period as “nightmarish,” claiming that “Nigerians have gone through hell under the insensitive Tinubu-led All Progressives Congress (APC) government.”
The PDP’s criticism centres on what it describes as catastrophic economic policies that have devastated the country’s productive sector. The party particularly condemned the administration’s handling of fuel pricing and currency devaluation, arguing that “any government that cares for the well-being of the people and has an idea of macroeconomic policy management would have reckoned that an abrupt increase in petrol price and devaluation of the naira, as executed by the Tinubu administration, would cripple the productive sector.”
The opposition party presented stark economic comparisons, noting that the naira has plummeted from ₦167 to the US dollar under the previous PDP administration to “over ₦1,600” currently. Similarly, petrol prices have skyrocketed from ₦87 per litre to “over ₦1,000 per litre,” according to the PDP’s figures.
“With a nearly 40% inflation rate, over 42% youth unemployment rate, acute food shortage, and a frightening rise in criminality and social vices, the situation in Nigeria has become so unbearable that many talented citizens are now fleeing the country, with others resorting to suicide,” the party stated.
The PDP raised the alarm over the security situation, claiming that “more than 600,000 Nigerians have been killed by terrorists and bandits” since President Tinubu assumed office in May 2023. The party attributed this to the “APC administration’s apparent negligence and failure to ensure the safety and security of the nation and her citizens.”
The opposition linked the deteriorating security situation to broader governance failures, noting that “multinationals are leaving Nigeria in droves for neighbouring countries where governments are alive to their responsibilities.”
The PDP criticised the administration’s fiscal management, highlighting what it described as “reckless foreign borrowing accumulating to ₦182.91 trillion,” with an additional request for “$24.14 billion (₦38.24 trillion) with no corresponding development project or programme that benefits the people.”
The party contrasted the government’s borrowing with what it characterized as lavish spending, stating that “while Nigerians suffer, the APC is obsessed with turning our country into a one-party state, while frittering the nation’s scarce resources on the acquisition of jets, pricey yachts, luxury mansions, expensive foreign trips, and a lavish lifestyle.”
Despite its harsh criticism, the PDP offered recommendations for the remaining two years of Tinubu’s presidency. The party urged the president to “address the issue of insecurity, review all suffocating policies to bring down the price of petroleum products, and shore up the value of the naira while engaging more skilful hands to manage the nation’s economy.”
The opposition party also advised President Tinubu to “avoid the usual APC’s resort to rhetoric and false performance claims that are at variance with the realities of life in Nigeria” in his second-year anniversary address.
Looking ahead to the next election cycle, the PDP concluded its statement with a call to action for Nigerian voters: “Our party urges Nigerians not to give up hope at this trying time but to continue to rally on the platform of the PDP in preparation to vote out the APC and its woes in 2027,” Ologunagba stated.
The statement represents the PDP’s most comprehensive critique of the Tinubu administration to date, setting the stage for what appears to be an increasingly contentious political landscape as Nigeria approaches the 2027 elections.
The Presidency has not yet responded to the PDP’s allegations at the time of this report.
