By Eno-Abasi Sunday
His narrow victory in the last presidential election notwithstanding, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, still looked like he enjoyed a tinge of goodwill from those that elected him. That goodwill appeared to have been squandered by a string of unpopular policies, missteps, and outright blunders committed by the administration. In eight months of his administration, hordes of individuals, professionals, and interest groups have either protested or kicked against some policies enunciated by the government. With grinding poverty and hunger ravaging the land, multinationals leaving, dire forex challenges plaguing manufacturers, and the heavily weakened naira being sold in the black market, ENO-ABASI SUNDAY writes that the recent Idumota Market traders and residents waylaying the president and venting their spleen shows how frustrated and impatient the citizenry is getting renewed hopelessness.
In ancient Rome, the phrase, “Hail Ceasar” was a constant greeting, and acclamation that was meant to show respect and homage to Julius Caesar, the famous Roman general, and statesman. That phrase eventually became a popular expression used to acknowledge someone grandly or respectfully.
During the early Imperial era of the Roman Empire, historian, Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus, commonly referred to as Suetonius, wrote in De vita Caesarum that on one occasion, captives and criminals sentenced to death (better known as naumachiarii, while fighting during mock naval encounters—addressed Claudius Caesar thus: “Ave Caesar! Morituri te salutant!” This means, “Hail, Caesar! Those who are about to die salute you!” all in an attempt to be spared a date with the hangman.
De vita Caesarum meaning, “About the Life of the Caesars,” commonly known as The Twelve Caesars, is a set of 12 biographies of Julius Caesar and the first 11 emperors of the Roman Empire.
Decades after Romans regaled Julius Ceasar with chants of “Hail Ceasar,” history is replete with some political leaders across the world who still bask in such vainglorious lifestyles. Such praise singing notwithstanding, when things go south in such jurisdictions, such leaders are promptly handed the short end of the stick by the same subjects that chanted their praises.
Only 10 months ago, then candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Ahmed Bola Tinubu, took Lagos by storm during his electioneering. He rode the crest and his followers added to the wind in his sail with their intermittent chants of “Jagaban Borgu,” “Asiwaju of the universe,” and “Akanbi,” which appeared to be the newest nickname that his supporters gave to him.
Market women and men abandoned their shops and stalls (even though some alleged compulsion) to facilitate a grand entry of “City Boy,” to Lagos City. Expectedly, major roads turned into a sea of heads, and a morass of colours.
But eight months after he won the presidential election, the scenario is gradually changing and the cheers and praises gradually drying up. The Friday, December 29, 2023, incident, where Tinubu was waylaid and screamed at by traders and residents of the famous Idumota Market, as he glided past them in a more than 20-car convoy lends credence to this.
President Tinubu acknowledged cheers from supporters as Lagosians shout as his convoy drives through Idumota. Photo: angelnetworknews
Yelling at the top of their voices, in Yoruba, the distraught Nigerians repeatedly screamed: “Ebi npa wa o,” meaning “We are hungry.”
In the trending video on X, formerly Twitter, the traders evenly distributed on both sides of the road, even with the presence of fully armed security operatives, shelved the vociferous hailing that they usually shower on Tinubu whenever he drove past in the past.
Besides decrying the pangs of hunger ravaging them, they strongly deplored the hardship and trauma, which they alleged is foisted on them by the policies, and programmes of the eight-month-old APC-led government.
Apart from openly criticising the large convoy of the president, they alleged that Tinubu knew what they had up their sleeves, the reason that the market was flooded with security operatives ahead of his passage.
Tinubu, who was in the state to celebrate the 2023 Christmas was on his way to the Lagos Central Mosque, in Lagos Island, for the Jumat Service.
Interestingly, in the troubling situation that the country has found itself in, Tinubu, his spokespersons, and sundry assigns have intensified trumpeting the supposed dividends that policies so far enunciated have brought to the country. But hard as they try to sell that narrative, evidence on the ground constantly counters their claims.
According to stakeholders, the economic crises that have engulfed the country since Tinubu came on board in May 2023, are beginning to “make the largely horrendous eight years of President Muhammadu Buhari’s tenure” to look like a child’s play judging from unfolding scenarios.
With headline inflation standing at 28.20 per cent, and food inflation at 32.84% per data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBC), as well as, the World Bank raising Nigerians’ hopes that the economic crises would gradually ease this year, many are still peeved that while citizens are highly impacted by atrocious happenings in government circles, the president, until Tuesday, January 10, appeared unbothered travelling the country and the world with an army of aides.
It was amid widespread insecurity, and shrinking jobs that NBC revealed that the country suffered a 33 per cent investment decline to $1.03 billion in Q2 of 2023 compared to the $1.54 billion recorded in Q2 of 2022. In-country production fared no better as the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), in its half-year economic review said that its members spent over N60.4 billion to ensure the availability of alternative energy between January and June 2023, a development that was 21.25 per cent lower than the N76.7 billion it incurred within the same time in 2022.
The pathetic power situation in the country contributed immensely to the operating loss recorded last year by MultiChoice, a South African broadcasting services provider, which last November announced a $72.4 million operating loss. It blamed the loss largely on exchange constraints and prohibitive energy costs.
The harsh operating environment has not spared the scalp of many outfits, including multinationals that are either lamenting or have packed their baggage to depart the shores of Nigeria. Among those hit by the inclement business environment are telecommunications companies, MTN Nigeria, and Airtel, both of whom have announced $ 232.8 billion, and $247.3 billion setbacks in forex-based transactions in that order.
The ruptured interior of the country’s economic milieu, experts also say, is already costing the country about 6, 000 jobs from the confirmed departures, scaled-down operations, or change of business modules so far announced by the following pharmaceutical outfits- GlaxoSmithKline, and Sanofi-Aventis, as well as, Jumia Food and Bolt Food, which are the food subsidiaries of online ride-hailing outfits. Other outfits that are in this category are consumer goods giants, Procter & Gamble PZ Cussons, and Equinor, a Norwegian oil and gas concern.
President Tinubu. Photo:Twitter
Grief, hopelessness, and frustration persist across country
Since taking the reins, ululation has continued to emanate from different parts of the country with individuals and groups wailing over the soaring cost of living, worsening quality of life, in addition to mindless killing of innocent Nigerians by non-state actors.
Barely one week ago, the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) told President Bola Ahmed Tinubu that Nigerians are yet to experience the Renewed Hope Agenda of his administration, asserting that their hopes have been dampened in the face of the current parlous economy.
The TUC in a 10-point demand from the current administration this year, which was contained in its New Year statement, signed by its president and secretary general, Festus Osifo, and Nuhu Toro, stated that the outgone year was one long, excruciating litany of lost opportunities and dashed hopes.
Among the demands, it said all agreements between labour and government, including payment of monthly N35,000 wage award to public servants in local, state, and federal services, must be implemented until a new national minimum wage is implemented.
The union demanded that inflation, which is currently at 28.20 per cent, must be drastically reduced to sub-Saharan Africa’s regional average of 9.4 per cent.
It said government at the state and federal levels should stop the “unnecessary, economically unwise and unpatriotic tradition of taking loans, especially when the loans only end up being used to purchase expensive jeeps for legislators, pamper members of the executive and their spouses, or in building unnecessary offices and purchasing mundane and sundry things, including stationeries.”
The TUC, which urged the government to end “its ill-advised devaluation of the national currency that is the precipitating collapse of local industries, which need foreign exchange to import raw materials,” also advised that the high price of PMS at N617 per litre should be drastically reduced to undo the harm to the national economy.
Before the latest TUC stance, it had alongside other professional groups protested the rising cost of living in the country.
One of the earliest groups of protesters to kick against economic hardship in the country was a group of women in Kano who insisted that their existence was threatened by the alleged Federal Government’s insensitivity to the gnashing of teeth in the country.
‘We’re not politicians, but suffering traders anguished by systemic rot’
Shortly after the Idumota Market ambush, some APC apologists insist that the traders’ actions were politically motivated to embarrass the president, but Ruth Adeyemi, a trader at the market said that hypocritical comments like that explains why the country is today in a quagmire.
She said: “We are not politicians, political appointees or party men or women that take delight in keeping the truth away from the president. Of course, those that were yelling at him are disappointed with his performance in office so far. His appointees, who feed fat at the country’s expense are the ones that are not scandalised by the president’s poor performance, and the proliferation of hunger and hardship.
“I import lace from Switzerland, and I have six shops in this market, but what we are facing in this country is a tragedy. Nigeria charges about the highest amount of money to clear a single 40-foot container, yet you scarcely would find where all these monies are going. How do you encourage businesspeople, especially SMEs? Because of the hunger in the land, the mouths that I need to put food in have quadrupled, while sales have plunged because the populace has been financially emasculated by the government.”
But does Adeyemi believe that the actions of the traders can change anything? Adeyemi said: “It may not, but it will open a new window for Tinubu to view the plight of traders in particular and citizens in general because we the masses bear the brunt of the shenanigans committed by those in government.”
Mr Ejike Ugonna, another trader in the market, who deals on household utensils said that no country should condone the unnecessary display of wastage exhibited over time by past and present Nigerian leaders. “The action of the traders and residents, for the umpteenth time, reechoed the hunger that has continued to afflict the people since Tinubu got into office. During the campaign expressed worries when Tinubu said that he would continue with the legacy of the General Muhammadu Buhari-led administration. How do you say such when you knew what Nigerians were going through, especially in the horrific management of the country’s economy, security, and diversity among others? What is going on should not surprise us all because we all witnessed him make the promise.”
Ugonna continued: “Till today, gunmen are still slaughtering thousands of innocent Nigerians in Kaduna and Plateau states; the Nigeria Air Force, which Buhari commanded bombed innocent Nigerians from time to time. This is still happening with Tinubu as the commander-in-chief. To the shame of the giant of Africa, Nigerians were buying naira in the black market and banks. The situation is the same under Tinubu. So, tell me what exactly has changed. The country endured a largely horrendous eight years of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration. Sadly, it may not be different under Tinubu. So, for those that are thinking that traders were sponsored to tell Tinubu the truth, many of such scenes could be playing out if the political class continues to take citizens for a ride.”
Adebayo
While the presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in the last general election, Prince Adewole Adebayo, believes that the Federal Government has what it takes to ascertain whether the Idumota incident was sponsored to embarrass the president, he stressed that none of the views expressed by the traders is false.
He stated: “Nothing chanted by the Idumota crowd is false, insulting, or should be strange to Mr. President who ought to know already that people are quite hungry, especially given the economic numbers we see daily, and the long queues of people at the private residence of the president seeking basic nutritional and other help. I’m not the President yet, but I must have received a minimum of 5,000 people in my residence in Ondo who came uninvited for help and nutrition during the holidays. The message has been passed. Those that made up the Idumota crowd are not even the hungriest. Those who came to my home in Ondo and others who sent messages to me would like President Tinubu to know that people are truly hungry. How the President chooses to respond to the message might be a positive turning point or the ultimate embarrassment. There is nothing more embarrassing than a hungry stomach. Saving a presidential face or soothing his ego is secondary.”
For the National Publicity Secretary of Youth Party, Ayodele Adio: “To suggest that traders were paid to express their grievances is to make a mockery of the pain that many of them are coping with. I’m not sure most people in government realise how difficult it is for people to survive with food inflation at over 30 per cent, close to a 300 per cent rise in the cost of transportation, etc. Most people can no longer afford medicines and food and have zero disposable income or savings.
“The future for many appears bleak, and people in government can’t appreciate this reality because the state takes care of their immediate needs. So, it is uncharitable to suggest that they were paid. We are lucky that all they did was cry out because, in many other countries, it would have gone beyond just crying for help especially if their leader appeared insensitive and live in opulence.”
Adio
Most Nigerian politicians, highly venerated, poor in delivery
For the entire period that the country has experienced a downward slide, members of the political class have been living with aplomb. Sadly, their hapless followers are the ones who suffer from the sheer ineptitude displayed, looted resources, and horrible policies that have brought the country to its knees.
The President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Joe Ajaero, aptly describes the scenario as “a harvest of woes and betrayals for Nigerian workers and people. This is essentially because Nigerian politicians have largely not lived up to expectations. Most of the time, it is more hype and propaganda than effective action to perform and deliver benefits to the citizenry.
“Leadership is about putting the interests and desires of Nigerians at the heart of governance effort. Anything short of this is voodoo. Only very few political officeholders are committed to making the lives of Nigerians better and that is sad. Everything is therefore sacrificed at the altar of politics, propaganda and driven by unfortunate primordial sentiments.”
According to the Youth Party publicity scribe, Adio: “In less than a decade, at least 13 multinationals have folded up, leaving behind job losses across a long value chain because it is not only their direct staff that are usually affected, but several other companies that provide critical services like law firms, tax and audit firms, marketing agencies, security agencies and so on. The job losses are enormous, just as the loss in technical and managerial capabilities. These multinationals often transfer skills and know-how that develop our human capital and expose them to global best practices. Unfortunately, as these organisations leave, a huge capacity void is created that is difficult to replace. These job losses are dangerous for a country with high unemployment and poverty rates, and we must do all we can to reverse this ugly trend.
“Worth mentioning is that the reason for these job losses is obvious and redeemable. On the one hand, the cost of doing business (especially the cost of energy) is making it difficult to many organisations to remain competitive. Equally, the dwindling purchasing power of citizens has greatly affected consumption, and so these companies are left with unusually high levels of unsold goods. Hence, if we can fix local productivity, then there is a good chance that we would attract more factories and multinationals, create high-paying jobs and grow the economy.”
Incessant outcry by groups, and individuals as telltale signs of poor governance
For the former SDP flag bearer, Adebayo, macroeconomic stabilisation is the most important paradigm that government policies must provide for business growth.
According to him: “The Nigerian economy lacks that because we lack a government that understands the economic landscape enough to recognise the need for stable growth and appreciates the opportunities that are begging to be harnessed. Therefore, factor price instability, hyperinflation, runaway devaluation, and unpredictability will serve businesses and their consumers short. Many companies will be forced to shut down, especially in the absence of robust infrastructure. However, economic cycles and dynamic market realities would still lead to be closure of some businesses as a result of the realities of global market conditions and competition. It appears as if the majority of business difficulties relate to macroeconomic instability whilst a minority is due to global market conditions.”
NLC President, Joe Ajaero
Ajaero aligns with Adebayo in affirming that, “creating the right environment for businesses to thrive is a critical factor that encourages both foreign and local investors to plough more of their resources into the nation’s economy. Any measures, therefore, by the government, which ought to have that as one of its major responsibilities is a step in the right direction and it does not matter whether it is in the short term or the medium term.
Unfortunately, most of the policies of the government negate this principle, which has made it difficult for Nigeria to attract new critical investments, which would have created new workplaces, and new jobs and help reduce unemployment. The creation of an effective and positive business environment is a deliberate and strategic action that ought to be weighed and driven to achieve the desired objectives.”
However, the trio of Adio, Ajaero, and Adebayo, think that Tinubu announcing a 60 per cent reduction in his entourage, that of his vice and the First Lady during local and international trips is a step in the right direction, but not enough to curb the significant wastage in government.
Said Adio: “Anything to save cost, cut waste and make the government be prudent or appear so, is a positive development, and should be commended with a caveat that such modest changes are not enough and more should be done. Government spending needs a holistic overhaul…”
Adebayo said: “I think it is a step in the right direction. Government trips should not be turned into excursions, especially when citizens are bearing the cost. I must also commend the president for listening and demonstrating a willingness to make amends where there’s a genuine public outcry, or in the face of a superior argument. The cost savings from a reduced entourage might not be as significant but the symbolism is important – because if the president says we are in this together, then he must show that we are truly in it together.”
On his part, Ajaero said: “The announcement of the reduction is an admission of the inherent error in making such humongous provisions for travels in the first place. We have talked of the need for the government to take deliberate steps to reduce the cost of governance, which we believe will improve the government’s fiscal position freeing more funds to be used to serve the citizens. Reduction in travel expenses is therefore a welcome development if it is genuinely pursued as it speaks to the quest to lower the cost of governance. However, the worry is that what the government seeks to do amounts to a drop of water in the ocean as it does not make any significant impact. Moreover, these funds have already been appropriated for in this year’s budget so, it may just be the usual hot air that may not be implemented at the end of the day.
Regarded by his followers as the master strategist behind Buhari’s last-ditch success at the polls after a string of failures, Tinubu appears to have dug himself so early into a hole that he is presently gasping for both ideas and breath hence the need to deploy a magic wand before his followers, and indeed Nigerians replace “Hail Ceasar” with “jail Ceasar.”
Story written by Eno-Abasi Sunday and published by The Guardian of 12 January, 2024
