Mid Term Report: Between Tinubu’s Excellence in Politics and Failure in Governance
Mid Term Report: Between Tinubu’s Excellence in Politics and Failure in Governance
Since May 29 when President Bola Tinubu’s administration clocked two years in office, Nigeria has become one huge marketplace of contradictions. The nation has literally been torn between those who believe that the administration has done well within the short period it has controlled the levers of power and others who think that the APC has failed to deliver on its campaign promises to the people. Of course, for obvious reasons, the Midterm assessment of the APC government today remains the major issue of public discourse.
For the past two weeks, the APC hierarchy, government officials and supporters of President Tinubu’s administration have been in a frenzy, celebrating the second year anniversary of the administration.
A key component of the activities lined up by the administration had been the presentation of scorecards by some ministers and heads of parastatals after going through the ritual of vetting by the Hadiza Bala-Usman-led Central Results Delivery and Coordination Unit burdened with the task of evaluating the performance of various ministries.
The ministers expectedly presented their scorecards amid praises for President Tinubu for embarking on what they perceive as radical reforms. Several projects were commissioned particularly in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory and Lagos which used to be the nation’s capital. However, the project that became a subject of debate was the commissioning of the 30 kilometre out of the 750 kilometre Lagos/Calabar Highway. There are reports that the contractor of the project has only completed 27 kilometres and not even 30 as claimed by the federal government. Many observers were aghast at the celebration of mediocrity.
But among his supporters, President Tinubu has done well as they believe that from inception, he intentionally embarked on a transformative journey to reposition Nigeria’s economy through bold and radical reforms.
The accompanying argument is that he has challenged the status quo in some areas of governance. One of them is the removal of oil-subsidy which had been a cesspit of corruption for decades. Part of the gains, they say is that more revenue is now being shared by the states and local governments.
The nation’s tax system was also long overdue for reforms and the President should be given plaudits for introducing changes in the sub-sector of the nation’s economy.
However, the counter argument trailing the efforts of the APC government is that since assumption of office two years ago, the life of an average Nigerian has gone from bad to worse.
Many insist that the real measure of success is not found in official reports by government officials and apologists but in the grim reality Nigerians endure daily.
The conclusion in many quarters is that President Tinubu has so far, excelled in politics but failed woefully in real governance. For instance, while it appears the ruling party is enjoying relative stability with its ranks swelling from members defecting to its fold from other parties, the same cannot be said of the situation in the opposition parties. There is a conspiracy theory that at least 95 percent of the opposition parties in the states led by their governors would empty into the APC before the next general election in 2027. This is even as many fear the consequences of Nigeria turning into a one-party state under President Tinubu who hitherto, was touted as a progressive politician.
Many commentators agree that one of Tinubu’s strengths has been his ability to hold together a diverse and often fractious political coalition. His background and antecedents pre and post the return of democracy in 1999 attest to that. It is little wonder that the President has maintained relative political stability of the APC, even amid growing public dissatisfaction.
Political observers contend that genuine democratic accountability has been sacrificed for the stability of his party, APC even as authoritarian drift has been a concern due to the concentration of power and perceived unwillingness to give room for opposition tendencies.
FACTS AND FICTION
In the eyes of many Nigerians especially the average man on the streets, the last two years had been one of pain, suffering and lamentation. The facts on ground do not support the achievements being parroted by the APC government.
President Tinubu, many observers, analysts and commentators believe, has scored EXCELLENT in politics but CAPITAL FAILURE, in governance.
The most distinctive feature of Tinubu’s leadership has perhaps been his vigorous pursuit of economic reforms especially his decision to end the decades-old fuel subsidy on his first day in office. However, the development was considered hasty and not only alarmed the masses but also led to inflation, soaring fuel prices, and a cost-of-living crises that disproportionately affected low- and middle-income earners, despite its objective of freeing up public funding for social programmes and infrastructure.
Another significant reform was the floating of the Naira, which was intended to stabilise exchange rates and bolster investor confidence. But it rather deepened the inflationary pressure and currency volatility. Even while some contend that the challenges are temporary inconveniences which will have long-term benefits, the typical Nigerian has not yet experienced the respite.
Dissecting the administration, the Labour Party candidate in the 2023 presidential election, Peter Obi, believes that the APC government has performed abysmally low.
In a national broadcast in Abuja to mark the June 12 Democracy Day, he took a comprehensive look at the two-years reign of the President and concluded that a lot is not right in governance delivery and policies of the administration.
He urged President Tinubu to stop governing Nigeria by remote control and charged him to go round the country to meet the citizens.
In the broadcast titled, ‘Democracy in Decline: Reflecting on Two Years of Tinubu’s Governance’, Obi gave low ratings to the handling of governance in the last two years.
After a sector by sector analysis of the midterm report of the administration, Obi said that a lot was going wrong.
He regretted that Nigerian businesses have continued to collapse at alarming rates, saying: “within the past two years, approximately 7 million Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) shut down and folded up across Nigeria. Over 80 manufacturing companies have permanently closed their operations. Funding costs, including the cost of raw materials and energy, have surged to an incredible level, forcing these manufacturers to shut down.
“Over 15 major multinationals (including GlaxoSmithKline, Diageo, Procter & Gamble, and Shoprite) have exited Nigeria due to the harsh operating environment.”
He added: “The President should stop touring outside Nigeria and use his remaining 2 years to tour the Nigerian states instead. Mr. President, you have already made over 30 international trips, spending nearly 150 days abroad. If you tour Nigeria’s 36 states and dedicate just 2 days to tour each state, it will take only 72 days for you to do so, less than half the time you have already spent outside the country on foreign trips. You need to go around the country to see.”
On how democracy can be deepened, Obi appealed to President Tinubu “to emulate late President Umaru Yar’Adua who was honest enough to admit the process that brought him into office was wrong and not sufficiently credible and thus insisted on doing what is right to save our democracy. “And similarly, President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan saved our nascent democracy by accepting defeat even before the election results were announced.”
He urged the President to end what he described as the troubling governance era filled with impunity, state capture, and absolute disregard for the rule of law and the checks and balances required of any worthwhile democracy.
Painting a gory picture of the state of democracy in the country, Obi said, “It is most troubling that in its two years in office, the present government has brought the nation to the point where our leaders now celebrate and endorse failure, lies, and propaganda. The government today, rather than show genuine accountability and measurable progress, focuses on manipulating narratives, gaslighting the public, shifting blame and weaponising governance.
“On May 29th, 2023, when this government was sworn into office, Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) stood at $364 billion. As of today, it has declined to $188 billion, a decline of almost fifty per cent (50%).
“Nigeria’s GDP per capita was $1,640 as of May 2023, but today it has dropped drastically to about $835, a devastating decline of about 50%.
“Nigerians living in multi-dimensional poverty increased from 38.9% to 54% within this period, with about 129 million Nigerians now living below the poverty line. “The World Bank reported recently that 75% of Nigerians in rural areas now live in poverty as of 2025, and even more than previously recorded in the urban areas.
“Today, more than 18.3 million Nigerian children are out of school, the highest number in the world.
“The quality of education in Nigeria is also deteriorating rapidly.”
The former Anambra state governor noted that despite the trillions of naira purportedly saved from the removal of fuel subsidies (a policy initially justified as a means to curb borrowing), the government has, within two years, borrowed far more money than the administrations of President Umaru Yar’Adua, President Goodluck Jonathan, and President Muhammadu Buhari combined.
“Today, Nigeria’s overall public debt is estimated at close to ₦188 trillion. Nigerians were informed that these borrowed funds would be allocated to critical sectors of development. Still, there has been no significant improvement in education, healthcare, or poverty alleviation; critical sectors that are vitally important for national development.
“Brazen Corruption is at its worst under this administration. Nigeria has now become a crime scene. Now our national budget is routinely inflated and padded without consequences. One of the most glaring manifestations of this is the extensive padding of the 2025 national budget. BudgIT revealed that about ₦7 trillion was questionably inserted by the National Assembly. These figures suggest a pattern of inflated costs and misappropriation of funds”, he said.
For ormer Vice President Atiku Abubakar, the country is on the precipice, as a one-party dictatorship is allegedly displacing democratic order gradually.
Speaking on June 12, Thursday, he accused the APC and the federal government of allegedly governing with an intent to dominate and silence the opposition. He stated that what presently obtains in the country is a conquest and not governance.
“Today, Nigeria teeters on the edge of a dangerous precipice — a creeping one-party dictatorship is replacing the democratic order we bled for. Those who laid down their lives did not do so for Nigerians to groan under the yoke of authoritarianism and economic suffocation.
“The ruling party and its federal government now govern with the unmistakable intent to dominate, subdue, and silence. Their tactics are not subtle. Opposition voices are being systematically erased. Contracts for multi-billion-naira infrastructure are funnelled to cronies and family associates of the president. National institutions, once symbols of unity, are being brazenly renamed in honour of a sitting president — as though the country were a private estate.
“What we are witnessing is not governance — it is conquest. This government represents the lowest ebb in our democratic journey. Institutions have been weaponized. Policies are crafted not to empower the people but to entrench fear, obedience, and control. The common Nigerian has been abandoned at the altar of elite comfort.”
A former National Vice Chairman (North-West) of the All Progressive Congress (APC), Salihu Lukman, resigned from the party in revolt against what he described as its failure to reform and return to its founding vision.
He had said the party had fallen short of all key promises it made to Nigerians while campaigning for office in 2015.
Mr Lukman announced his resignation from the APC on June 12, citing a lack of internal democracy and the inability of the party’s leadership to allow reforms.
INSECURITY
Despite claims of success in the fight against insecurity, the present administration has lost the battle to secure Nigeria. Many would agree that no part of Nigeria is secure today. In recent time, Benue, Plateau and Borno states among others have literally turned into mass graves from the activities of bandits, kidnappers and other criminal elements.
Yes, President Tinubu’s supporters would argue that he inherited banditry in the North-Wes and insurgency in some parts of the North, separatist agitations in the South-East but many observers insist that two years is enough time for the administration to perfect its strategies to curb the challenges. Though some analysts argue that military response times and coordination have slightly improved, but millions of people still face everyday threats from insecurity. There are still frequent incidents of kidnappings, rural violence, and conflicts between farmers and herders.
Even in the week of President Tinubu’s second-year anniversary, there were reports of suicide bombing at a military barracks in Abuja; and in Borno State, one of the main centres of the Boko Haram terror attacks in 2014.
Many observes fear that the return of suicide bombing, a rarity since 2015, illustrates the worsening insecurity situation in the country. Despite frequent assurances by the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, results show that the Tinubu administration has not developed and deployed sufficient strategic initiatives to limit and overcome the manner insurgents, terrorists and violent criminals ravage the nation. From terrorism to kidnapping or urban banditry, Nigeria today is more insecure than it was in 2014, prior to APC coming to power. Not a few attribute it to the lack of competence, at the level of leadership coupled with the transactional nature of the administration to pursue set goals.
Failure in Nation Building
The country is divided, more than under Buhari, touted as the most nepotistic Nigerian president. Many wonder why and how Tinubu, succeeding a divisive President like Buhari failed to prioritise national unity? Today, the greatest obstacle facing his second term ambition is his perceived extreme nepotism in federal government’s appointments, contrary to the constitutional stipulations of the Federal character principle. Even the Northern power elite that brought him to power feel alienated, and the Southeast that was marginalised by President Buhari, hardly feel any sense of belonging in Nigeria today.
It is not in doubt that one of the sore points of the administration is that Tinubu has undeniably exacerbated Nigeria’s fragile unity, by appointing people from his Yoruba extraction into virtually all key institutions. All eight of Nigeria’s most powerful positions—Central Bank, NNPC, Police, Army, Customs, EFCC, among others – are now held by the Yoruba. The development has alienated some people and not only fuels ethnic tensions but reinforces the fault lines of a deeply divided nation. Critics, including voices from his own party, warn that the lopsidedness in appointments undermines national cohesion and sets a dangerous precedent. Many had expected him to be different from his predecessor, Muhammadu Buhari but the reverse has been the case as Tinubu has excelled in nepotism.
The expectation therefore is that he should squarely face governance than politics in the remaining part of his four year tenure.
