The 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar, has urged President Bola Tinubu to learn from the economic reform approach taken by Argentina's President Javier Mille for Nigeria's economic reforms.
Reforms led by President Tinubu's All Progressives Congress-led federal government have resulted in an economic crisis, making it difficult for many Nigerians to afford basic necessities.
In a statement titled “Argentina's Javier Milei Approach to Reforms Should Be a Lesson for Tinubu”, Atiku said on Sunday that Tinubu and Milei inherited a dilapidated economy, but each used different measures for recovery.
The former Vice President clarified that both Argentina and Nigeria faced economic collapse in the final quarter of 2023. He also noted that while Nigeria saw a new government in place by mid-2023, Argentina's new government assumed power in December.
He said, “Both leaders inherited a skewed economy, but both used different measures for recovery. Argentina's President Javier Milei was inaugurated on 10 December 2023. He inherited a worse condition than Nigeria. But what he did to return his country to a place where investors 'start to believe' should serve as a lesson to Nigeria's Bola Tinubu.
Atiku, who blamed President Tinubu for the troubles in Nigeria, pointed out that unlike the Argentine president, the Nigerian president has refused to roll up his sleeves and do the job he signed up for.
The former Vice President said, “Nigeria is where we are today because of what Tinubu did or did not do. He shifts the blame onto the opposition and, even ironically, his predecessor is unnecessary and short-sighted. Market forces do not play politics. They respond to your actions and inactions.
„President Miley's main campaign promise was to rehabilitate the Argentine economy after years of slow growth, high debt levels, triple-digit inflation (160 percent when he took office in December 2023) and a 40 percent poverty rate. Measures to achieve macroeconomic stability and promote greater global competitiveness His first task was to start implementing.
Atiku explained that President Miley entered office with a comprehensive stabilization plan aimed at implementing visionary measures in the context of a market-based economy.
„He started reducing government expenditure by reducing the size and waste of government; curbing theft of government funds; attracting foreign direct investment (FDI) through concessions, tax holidays and ease of doing business,” Atiku said.
Part of the statement read: “At a time when our economy was on its knees, Argentina's Mille did not build a government as large as Tinubu's. President Miley's examples of the need for leadership at a time when the economy is beginning to fail people's expectations.
„Reforms implemented so far by the Tinubu administration have been ad hoc and hastily cobbled together without proper review. Ours is not like Argentina's Miley, who is sequencing his reforms. President Miley is anticipating post-reform shocks and admits that things will be difficult for the people. But he is fully prepared for the aftermath and has antidote pills. .He walks the talk.Sacrifices himself by giving up privileges of office.
„On the contrary, Tinubu in Nigeria has increased the number of Ministers and Ministries and is spending enormous resources on renovating houses for himself, his wife and the First Lady. It is no less than Nero playing the fiddle while Rome burns!
„Worse still, Tinubu has rolled up his sleeves and refused to do the work he signed up for. Instead, he and his team are interested in acting like Napoleon and Squealer from the satirical book Animal Farm, who scapegoats Snowball (the opposition) for the failures of their ill-advised policies. made it a state policy.
“I am inspired by the reforms in Argentina because Javier Millay's stabilization plan has a similar symbol to my plan to restore Nigeria. It is a plan that I am ready to share with the current government to detail its activities in order to lift Nigeria from the depths of hunger and anger.
„Unless there are clear policies and paths for economic revival that presuppose leadership-led sacrifice, there will be discontent, especially among the youth, that will manifest in protests and it will be foolish to continue it. Blames the opposition parties.