Bayo Onanuga, special adviser on information and strategy to
President Bola Tinubu, says many Nigerians are benefiting from the policies and
economic reforms of the current administration.
Onanuga spoke on Arise Television’s Prime Time programme on
Tuesday, where he defended the policies of the president and dismissed claims
of widespread hardship and insecurity across the country.
The presidential aide argued that perceptions of widespread
hunger were being amplified by narratives that took root shortly after Tinubu
assumed office.
“We have been pigeon-holed into certain assumptions and
conclusions,” he said.
“It’s like in the early days of this government. Somebody
did a voice-over saying that we are hungry. Since then, people have been saying
that.
“I am a Nigerian; I have people working for me privately. I
don’t see the level of hunger people are talking about because I see them
(workers) and I keep asking them questions. How are things? How are they
adjusting? What are the problems?”
Onanuga noted that Nigerians are already feeling the impact
of the infrastructure projects being executed by the federal government across
the country.
He cited his experience while travelling from Ibadan to
Lagos, saying he was surprised to discover a newly constructed concrete road
through Ijebu-Ode.
“One day, I was travelling from Ibadan to Lagos and Google
Maps told me there was a go-slow as I approached Lagos. So, I decided to take
Ijebu-Ode via Sagamu. What struck me was that I just found myself on a paved
concrete road. I said, ‘wow, when was this one built?” he said.
Onanuga added that the Lagos-Calabar coastal highway had
also reduced travel time to his residence in Ajah.
“Anytime I go to Lagos and ask Google Maps to tell me how
long it will take me to get home, it tells me one hour seven minutes,” he said.
“Before, it used to be two hours 30 minutes. The reason is
because we now have a coastal road that has shortened my travel time.”
He also pointed to the Nigerian Education Loan Fund
(NELFUND) and the Nigerian Consumer Credit Corporation (CreditCorp) as examples
of programmes providing direct benefits to citizens.
“If you are a parent and you have four children in the
university, and they are able to access a federal loan which is interest-free,
are they not benefiting? If you are a civil servant and you can access
CreditCorp, a very cheap loan at a single-digit interest rate, are they not
benefiting?” he asked.
Onanuga also accused the media of exaggerating the country’s
security challenges, saying reports often create the impression that the entire
country is unsafe.
“The media in Nigeria are even creating the problem. The way
they report insecurity is as if the entire country is consumed,” he said.
He cited a recent conversation with the managing director of
NELFUND, who, according to him, travelled by road from Abuja to Kebbi without
incident.
“Don’t let people frighten you that the entire country is
under siege. It is not so. There are security breaches, but the entire country
is not under siege,” he added.
The presidential aide also dismissed recent comments by
Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), on
electricity.
Onanuga accused Obi of being ignorant of Nigeria’s installed
generation capacity.
“Power generation has increased. We are not at the level the
president met it. We already have in Nigeria a stored capacity of 13,500
megawatts,” he said.
He added that the major challenge facing the power sector is
gas supply, which he attributed to over N4 trillion in legacy debts owed by
operators to gas companies.
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