Human rights lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Femi Falana, has declared that President Bola Tinubu’s economic policies have deepened the suffering of the majority of Nigerians while enriching the elite.
Speaking on Politics Today, a Channels Television programme, on Monday, Falana said the current administration’s reforms have mostly benefited top government officials and wealthy individuals, leaving the masses to bear the brunt of harsh economic realities.
His words: “For members of the government, and I’m talking of top officials, it’s been very rosy. One of them was even singing a week ago that things are getting better.
“Of course, for the rich, the bourgeoisie, things are getting better. But for the masses of our people, things are getting tougher because they are going through an excruciating economic crisis.”
Falana dismissed claims by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) that the president has “turned the tide” two years into his administration, insisting that many Nigerians are struggling to survive.
He noted that while Tinubu has repeatedly asked Nigerians to be patient, the impact of his administration’s neoliberal economic policies has pushed millions to the edge.
He said: “In fairness to the president, on many occasions, he has asked Nigerians to bear with him, to exercise patience, that our economic programme will lead to prosperity.
“Whether you believe that or not is another matter, but the government itself realises that there is a crisis in town, that people are hungry, that many are about to withdraw their children from school because of the rigid implementation of neoliberal policies dictated or endorsed by the IMF and World Bank.”
The senior lawyer urged the federal government to prioritise homegrown policies that reflect Nigeria’s unique socio-economic challenges.
“My position, which I have made repeatedly clear, is that the government must abandon the prescriptions of the Bretton Woods institutions and have confidence in Nigeria so that Nigerians can be given the opportunity to run this country in the interest of our people,” he said.
Falana also criticised the government’s decision to devalue the naira, saying it has caused a sharp rise in the cost of living.
“If you devalue the currency of a country that is import-oriented, you are going to have an astronomical rise in the price of goods—and that is what has happened to our country. You devalue the currency, and you lose interest,” he added.
