Tinubu On Economic Reforms: ‘With Patience And Determination, We Will Succeed’

President of Nigeria, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, acknowledged the hardship Nigeria is going through, especially following fuel subsidy removal, assuring that with "patience and determination," Nigeria will succeed.

Speaking with members of the Board and Management of the Nigeria Economic Support Group (NESG) on Thursday, the president reaffirmed his support for robust public-private sector partnership to grow the country's economy.

During the meeting, the president noted that the country is blessed with rich human and natural resources. However, he mentioned that there are deficit opportunities, which can be quickly leveraged into new prosperity with the help of new think tanks in the agricultural sector and the establishment of a commodity exchange.

President Tinubu further shared that the past is gone and he is not looking at it, adding that his focus is completely on the future of the country.

"We have an abundance of knowledge and untapped mineral resources and an agricultural sector that is God-given, but we tend to shy away from taking those gigantic steps that will result in prosperity for our people," he said.

He continued, "We are not exploiting our diversity for prosperity. We are at each other's throats, arguing about unnecessary things, instead of thinking and doing for our people. Looking backwards is retrogressive for any reformer."

The president assured that looking forward, he will guide the country in the proper direction. "I don't see why we have not used consumer credit to build the purchasing power of our people and the capacity of our very own manufacturing sector," he added.

Tinubu went on to praise the NESG for believing in his ideas to reform the country's administration, explaining that it might seem like a "bitter pill" but eventually it will help the country to grow.

Olaniyi Yusuf, who serves as the Chairman of NESG, pledged that the group will ensure that it will work on the new administration's agenda, considering Tinubu's "track record in the effective implementation of bold economic reforms as the Governor of Lagos leaves those of us in the private sector without doubt that you will achieve much greater feats as our nation's president."

The NESG Chairman also formally requested the President to declare open the NESG Summit in October as it will ramp up local and foreign direct investment in Nigeria.

Nigerians are going through a difficult time since the government announced fuel subsidy removal, which increased fuel and food costs. In fact, the country is also dealing with the oil thieve issue, which recently led to long queues at fuel stations in Lagos alongside a few more locations in South-Western states.