By Julian Osamoto
President Bola Tinubu has defended his administration’s economic reforms, rejecting calls for the return of petroleum subsidies and insisting that the measures are improving Nigeria’s economic outlook.
Tinubu spoke on Thursday in his 66th Independence Day address, saying the reforms had addressed longstanding weaknesses in the economy rather than creating them.
“Our reforms did not create the weaknesses in our economy. They confronted them,” the president said.
He warned against calls to abandon the reforms and return to what he described as the “abuse of addictive subsidies”, urging Nigerians to remember the reasons behind the measures.
President Tinubu announced the removal of petroleum subsidy shortly after assuming office in May 2023, a decision that was followed by a sharp increase in fuel prices.
Critics and opposition parties have since called for the reversal of some of the administration’s economic policies, including the floating of the naira and removal of the subsidy.
The measures have also been linked by economists to the increase in the cost of living, with households facing higher transportation and other living expenses.
However, Tinubu said the country had made progress more than three years into his administration, arguing that economic indicators showed an improving outlook.
He said Nigeria’s economy had grown by more than four per cent in 2026, with both the oil and non-oil sectors contributing to what he described as a period of stable growth.
The president also said oil theft had declined, inflation had fallen substantially from its peak, while foreign reserves had been rebuilt and the foreign exchange market had stabilised.
President Tinubu further said Nigeria recorded more than six billion dollars in non-oil export revenue in 2025, which he described as the highest in the country’s history.
He noted that international observers, journalists, non-governmental organisations and multilateral institutions had recognised the changes, while foreign direct investment continued to rise.
“My fellow Nigerians, we have reached a turning point,” president Tinubu said.
He said the government’s focus had shifted from correcting the country’s economic direction to achieving “shared and widespread prosperity”.
“The emergency treatment is over. The foundation has been repaired,” the president said, adding that the next phase would focus on creating broader prosperity for Nigerians.
