By SALIF ATOJOKO

The Presidency on Tuesday said the statement by a factional Afenifere group on the mid-term performance of the President Bola Tinubu administration was deceitful.

Mr Sunday Dare, Special Adviser to the President on Media and Public Communications, said the Afenifere statement raised serious concerns about a penchant and deliberate attempt to find faults and trade in deceit instead of objectivity.

He said the group found it challenging to accept that under the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Tinubu, Nigeria?s comeback story was firmly underway.

?The rebellious Afenifere claims that President Tinubu?s administration?s performance over the past two years has witnessed a regression in human development, economic mismanagement, and democratic backsliding.

?This is a jaundiced view, echoing the view of opposition politicians, one of whom the group supported in the 2023 election.

?A balanced assessment based on available data reveals a more objective and progressive picture, with significant achievements amid the challenges expected from a country like Nigeria with decades-old problems,? Dare stated.

He faulted Afenifere?s claim that the removal of fuel subsidy and the floating of the naira led to ?unmitigated sufferings? and ?economic deforms.?

He said these claims were meant to draw attention to some of the challenges but overlooked the macroeconomic gains.

Dare was emphatic that the removal of the fuel subsidy saved the government over 10 billion dollars in 2023 alone, reducing fiscal strain and redirecting funds to other sectors.

He added that unifying the foreign exchange market and the naira?s floatation aimed to address distortions in the currency market, boosted foreign reserves to $38.1 billion by 2024 and achieved a trade surplus of N18.86 trillion for the country.

Dare stated that under the Tinubu administration, annual inflation rate fell to 23.71 per cent in April 2025 from 24.23 per cent in the prior month.

Food inflation, the most significant component of the inflation basket, he said, remained elevated but moderated to 21.26 per cent from 21.79 per cent.

He said while these figures indicated stabilisation, the immediate impact on ordinary Nigerians was not lost.

?The government?s cash transfer programme, which provides funds to the poorest households and benefits over 5.7 million households, is a credible outreach.

?However, dismissing the twin policies as ?unforced errors? ignores the unsustainable nature of the previous subsidy regime and multiple exchange rate systems, which were draining public finances.

?A more balanced critique would acknowledge the necessity of reform while emphasising the need for better-targeted social safety nets,? said the presidential aide.

According to him, as of today, the Tinubu administration has recorded over 900,000 beneficiaries of the Presidential Loan and Grant Scheme, over 600,000 beneficiaries of the Students? Loan Scheme, NELFUND, and increased the NYSC monthly stipend increase from N33,000 to N70,000.

He said the government had also implemented the N77,000 new minimum wage, free CNG kits distributed to thousands of commercial drivers across Nigeria with CNG buses rolled out in partnership with state governments, leading to a significant drop in transport costs.

?The administration also recorded over 10 billion dollars FX debt cleared, federal account allocation to states growing by 60 per cent, enabling more local development projects, N50 billion released to end the perennial ASUU strikes, and over 1,000 PHCs revitalised nationwide with an additional 5,500 undergoing upgrades.

?The administration also disbursed N75 billion in palliative funds to states and LGs for food distribution and cash transfers, over 150,000 youths are being trained in software development, tech support and data analysis under the 3 Million Technical Talent (3MTT) project.

?Over 20,000 affordable housing units are under construction under the renewed Hope cities programme launched across Nigeria, and N200 billion in Loans to farmers and agro-processors,? said Dare.

He said other gains were that over two million Nigerians were connected to new digital infrastructure and community broadband hubs and public WiFi projects, 3.84 per cent GDP growth in Q4 2024 (highest in 3 years), over 50 billion dollars in new FDI commitments.

He stated that Net Foreign Exchange Reserves increased from 3.99 billion dollars (2023) to 23.11 billion (2024), over 8 billion dollars in new oil and gas investments unlocked, and over 800 million dollars realised in processing investments in solid minerals in 2024 and inflation as at April was down to 23.17 per cent.

?It is now pertinent to inquire from opposition leaders about alternative strategies they would propose in contrast to this administration?s extensive list of significant achievements currently benefiting Nigerians in real-time,? he said. (NAN)

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