The Speaker of the House of Representatives Rt. Hon. Abbas Tajudeen, Ph.D, has congratulated President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, on his “remarkable one year in office.”
The Speaker said Tinubu has, in the last year, demonstrated courageous leadership and taken bold decisions in the best interest of Nigeria and Nigerians.
Acknowledging that the President met a lot of challenges in various sectors of the Nigerian society, including insecurity, economic downturn, national disunity, among others, Speaker Abbas expressed delight that the Tinubu administration has been making significant strides in steadying the ship of the state through impactful reforms, policies, programmes and initiatives.
“The President demonstrated his readiness for leadership on the first day in office by stopping the corruption-infested fuel subsidy, which had become a drain to the country. The subsidy regime was already throwing Nigeria into bankruptcy. Though that decision has expectedly caused some pains, it is a necessary economic policy that is key to our economic recovery and growth.
“The fuel subsidy removal and merger of the exchange rates showed his strong political will to prevent the administration from being taken hostage by the bureaucracy. He has equally rolled out some programmes and initiatives to alleviate the pains associated with the subsidy removal, including grants, education loans, distribution of food items fertiliser, and cash transfers,” the Speaker said.
Speaker Abbas added that President Tinubu is repositioning the National Social Investment Fund (NSIP) to deliver maximum value to the intended beneficiaries. To this end, he has established the Nigerian Education Loan Fund and the Nigerian Consumer Credit Corporation, the Presidential Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) initiative to provide cheaper alternatives to petrol and diesel for transporters and consumers.
The administration has also embarked on major policies and actions to attract long-term local and foreign investments to Nigeria ostensibly to create new jobs and ensure increased productivity for local consumption and export, the Speaker added.
Also of note is the relaunching of the Human Capital Development programme, which aims to produce a significant number of healthy, educated, and productive Nigerians for a globally competitive nation through targeted interventions in health, education and labour sectors.
He said the President embarked on several investment drives across the world, which have been successful in securing about $20bn with the potential for more.
Describing Tinubu as “a listening president who is open to criticism,” Speaker Abbas lauded the president’s decision to “engage workers in determining a living wage for Nigerian workers and taking measures to curb corruption in public institutions.”
With President Tinubu, the Speaker added, Nigeria is on the path towards achieving economic recovery, growth, and prosperity
Speaker Abbas lauded the President for maintaining a harmonious relationship with the National Assembly, saying it has been paying off for the Nigerian citizens.
“The National Assembly, since inauguration on June 13, 2023 has been supporting the policies of government with necessary legislative actions to ensure desired results. The 10th House Legislative Agenda was deliberately designed to be in tandem with the eight priority areas of the Executive arm.
“The mutual understanding between the two arns of government is to promote good governance and ensure a peaceful nation. As representatives of the Nigerian people, we will continue to give the President the necessary support to succeed.”