Two years of Tinubu president: two stories behind positive numbers, by Tunde Rahman

Economists and commentators have written and said a lot on the positive trajectory and the indicators that report the economic growth of Nigeria.
These indicators indicate that the reforms undertaken by President Bola Tinubu since they took the assignment two years ago began to generate positive results.
The reforms are opening the way to the economic recovery. The facts are evident and also speak for themselves.

According to a World Bank report, GDP grew by 3.4% in 2024, the highest in a decade. Inflation has collapsed and is currently 23.7%. The government is respecting its debt obligations. After Nigeria’s central bank has eliminated the Backlog Forex of $ 10 billion, the debt-service-service-service ratio dropped from about 100% to 60%. The foreign reserves, which instill trust in investors to enter and exit their profits as they wish, are now $ 38 billion.

Equally remarkable is the way in which national revenues have increased exponentially, resulting in unprecedented increase in allocation to secondary. This growth was a significant shot in the arm, giving them the tax impulse so necessary to finance projects and satisfy the well -being of their people. The increase in revenue also helps to financially finance key infrastructure projects such as the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Road and the SuperHighway Sokoto-Badagry. Last week, President Tinubu inaugurated phase 1 completed, section 1 (30 km for six lanes) of the 750 km Lagos-Calabar coastal motorway.

These steps have been phenomenal. But there is more work to do for the government. The administration also has some challenges to face. Macroeconomic earnings highlight the need to have an impact on microeconomics. Positive economic statistics must affect the life rules of our people’s most significant number. They must influence their living standards, in particular the cost of essential goods and services. The government must significantly reduce unemployment, just as the country has to make much safer.

However, as I have often supported, the results of President Tinubu in two years are not simple. They did not come from the pious desire. They produce from a bold vision outlined in its renewed agenda of hope, in unusual courage and in hard unstoppable work.

This piece explores only two stories that speak of the courage, audacity and determination of President Tinubu do things differently. The first took place a day before the journey of President Tinubu in Rome, in Italy, on May 17, 2025, for the inauguration of Pope Leo XIV. Invited by the new Pope, the president’s decision to participate in the event, accompanied by Catholic bishops, was remarkable in the context of the president’s religion and that of his vice -president. In the accumulation in the 2023 elections, the opposition stated that the two leaders would transform the country into an Islamic state. This did not happen. Instead, they are managing a blind administration to religion. Christians, Muslims and followers of other religious tendencies get their shares.

I was in the residence to see the president around 14:00 immediately after carrying out the diplomatic ceremony to receive credibility letters from some ambassadors. Since that period, he was in his office at home, he worked on files and received governors, the best government officials and other guests who had visited until around 23:00. The gusa busa ways in the Valent in the Hope of the Hope of the Hope of the Hope, Secretary to the governation of the federation of the federation of the Generator Gegeral akume, the actornes-gery and the minister of Justice as the health (San), minisier of solid minerals Deverge Mr Governor, Alhaji Adegboyega Oyetola, AS Well As Top Businessmen Including Alhaji Samad Rabiu of Bua Group. In that long term, the only one other thing that went to that office was his lunch. It is not an isolated scheme. The fact deductible from all this is an ethics of disconcerting work. President Tinubu works unusually long hours. He devotes practically all his time to the Nigerian project. So its success is a product of hard work.

His unusual courage and audacity are well known. His political options, in particular the removal of the unsustainable subsidies on fuel and forex, were the things that before him found appropriate and desirable if the country had to go on but the courage to implement was missing. The fuel subsidies were full of corruption, while the multile foreign versions in return encouraged the arbitration. For example, between January and June 2023, the subsidies for the fuel only they swallowed N3 trillion and the mass entered the pockets of the oil cabal.

An important subtext of this story could be glimpsed by Mr President’s response when I asked him for the influx of governors, legislators and better leaders of other parties in the All Progressives Congress. He replied: “Yes, they are coming because they saw the success of our policies. The economy is practically bounced, and the country has shot the corner. Do you think they would be drawn to our party if I was not well and the policies have become stories?”

President Tinubu hardly allows any opportunity to crogue in moments of glory deserved to escape it. He often says: “I have a pride right here. It’s my turn to boast on this”.

The president, however, is not disconcerting for the fact that the macroeconomic gains obtained from his administration so far have not had an impact on the fully of the roads and pockets of our people. He also spoke about it. At the inauguration of phase 1 of the Lagos-Calabar coastal road mentioned above, President Tinubu appealed to the Nigerians to be patient with him.

“I know that your expectations are still very high at this stage, and our people are still going through difficult moments. I take the opportunity to appeal to all the Nigerians that hope is here, and is achievable,” he said, adding: “You would be proud of the benefits; there is light at the end of the tunnel. You are reducing the cost of production and encouraging production at local level.

*Rahman is a special senior assistant of the president for the media and special functions.