Renowned human rights lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Femi Falana, has criticised the economic policies of President Bola Tinubu, saying they have deepened poverty and completely decimated Nigeria’s middle class.
Speaking on Monday on Channels Television’s ‘Politics Today’, Falana said Tinubu’s “harsh neoliberal policies” have worsened the living conditions of millions of Nigerians despite the President’s own acknowledgment of widespread hardship.
“I have seen the President ask APC governors to ‘wet the ground’ more,” Falana said, “but as far as the masses of our people are concerned, things are getting tougher by the day because of the harsh economic crisis in the country, which the President himself recognises. Nigerians all over the country are complaining that things are getting tougher for them.”
LEADERSHIP reports that since taking office in May 2023, President Tinubu has embarked on sweeping economic reforms, most notably the removal of fuel subsidies and currency liberalisation. While the reforms are aimed at stabilising Nigeria’s economy, they have sparked a cost-of-living crisis marked by soaring inflation, rising food prices, and deepening poverty.
Falana pointed to the religious implementation of policies promoted by international financial institutions as a major contributor to Nigeria’s economic woes. “Because of the religious implementation of neoliberal policies by the government, poverty is on the ascendancy. That will require a review of these policies,” he said.
The senior lawyer also criticised the government’s continued drive toward privatisation, arguing that it contradicts the fight against income inequality. “You cannot be addressing income inequality in a country while handing over the nation’s resources to a few people in the name of privatisation,” Falana warned.
“Most Nigerians cannot afford three square meals a day. The middle class has been wiped out by the neoliberal policies of the government.”
He urged the administration to urgently review and reverse policies driven by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank, warning that failure to do so could further destabilise the nation. “The government must go back to the drawing board and review each of these policies, especially those pushed by the IMF and World Bank, in the interest of Nigerians. It is in the interest of the government to review its policies as soon as possible.”
Falana also emphasised the need for legally-backed social welfare programmes to ease the suffering of Nigerians, particularly in rural communities. He called for the full implementation of the National Social Investment Programme (NSIP), which was codified under the Social Investment Programme Agency Act in 2023.
“To eradicate poverty, we must begin by implementing welfare laws,” he said, pointing to components of the NSIP such as N-Power, the Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme (GEEP), the school feeding programme, and conditional cash transfers to vulnerable households.
Falana urged the President to lead efforts in persuading state governors to follow suit in enacting similar social investment initiatives.
“President Tinubu should be able to persuade the governors to codify social investment programmes and enact them into law,” he added.
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