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By Oluseye Ojo
National Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Ajibola Basiru, has hailed President Bola Tinubu’s economic revival in Nigeria.
He said there is a significant shift in Nigeria’s fiscal landscape under Tinubu’s administration.
He made the disclosure during a media roundtable in Ibadan, Oyo State, organised by the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Zone B, comprising all the six states in the South West.
Basiru, who painted a picture of hope and progress after years of fiscal strain, stated that gone were the days when state governments scrambled to secure loans just to cover salaries and pensions.
“You may also fact-check me. Before the advent of President Bola Tinubu administration, many state governments were heavily indebted, even to pay salaries, allowances, and pensions,” he said.
He credited the government’s key reforms, including the removal of fuel subsidy and the unification of the naira, for a staggering increase in revenue, which saw an inflow of N9.1trillion in the first half of 2024.
“We now have a situation where no state government needs to borrow for salaries again,” Basiru stated.
He added that the development signalled a newfound financial resilience among the 36 states in the country as a result of increased allocations to the sub-national governments within the past two years that Tinubu took over the reins of power.
Basiru pointed to the completion of over 4,000 infrastructure projects nationwide and the rollout of N250billion manufacturing support fund, designed to bolster the private sector and protect jobs.
According to him, initiatives, such as the Agricultural Mechanisation Project, which aims to distribute 10,000 tractors across the country, are already well underway, with 2,000 tractors being dispatched to 15 states.
He emphasised the government’s commitment to rural development. He mentioned the unveiling of a N120billion support package for livestock development.
Basiru noted that Nigerian banks now empower citizens to conduct international transactions with naira cards, which he described as a clear indicator of growing confidence in the economy.
On the oil front, he stated that Nigeria has ramped up crude production to 1.7million barrels per day and attracted over $500million in investment in the oil and gas sector.
