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By Sunday Ani
The presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Prince Adewole Adebayo has dismissed President Bola Tinubu’s much celebrated growth of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) as paper statistics, saying Nigerians are currently poorer than they were in 2023
Adebayo described Tinubu’s economic management over the past three years as a failure, insisting that official growth figures cannot conceal the worsening hardship confronting millions of Nigerians. His remarks came amid a broader national debate over the impact of the administration’s economic reforms, with the government arguing that difficult measures are laying the foundation for long-term stability while critics dispute whether ordinary Nigerians are seeing the benefits.
Speaking during a televised interview, he said the administration inherited economic challenges but had made them significantly worse through what he called economic illiteracy.
“The economy is worse than when this administration came in,” he said. “Poverty wasn’t this severe. Fuel wasn’t over N1,300 per litre. More companies were operating. Nigerians are currently paying more for food, transport, rent, school fees and building materials than they did in May 2023.”
He dismissed the government’s reliance on GDP growth and other macroeconomic indicators, arguing that such figures are meaningless if they do not translate into better living standards.
He likened the government’s handling of the economy to “taking a patient to the hospital with malaria and leaving with a broken neck,” insisting that improving statistics after worsening conditions should not be celebrated.
He argued that economic growth must be measured against population growth, inflation, production costs and the government’s fiscal position, maintaining that rising prices, unemployment and the declining purchasing power of Nigerians remain evidence of policy failure.
He also rejected repeated appeals by the administration for patience, saying governments are elected to produce results within their constitutional tenure.
“No government can ask people to spend the rest of their lives being patient while their lives are being ruined. You have four years. Perform within those four years. If you don’t perform, leave office and let someone else take over,” he said.
Outlining what he would do differently if elected president, Adebayo said his first priority would be to stabilize the economy by increasing government revenue, reducing public expenditure, lowering inflation and unemployment and preventing further increases in the cost of living.
He argued that restoring confidence in the economy begins with protecting the purchasing power of Nigerians and ensuring that government policies improve, rather than diminish citizens’ standard of living.
