Nigeria Has Collapsed Under Tinubu — Babachir Lawal

 

Former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Engr Babachir Lawal, has said Nigeria collapsed after the swearing of President Bola Tinubu on May 29, 2023.

Lawal said the shocking announcement of fuel subsidy removal by Tinubu on the day of inauguration plunged the country into economic malady, stating that the policy was launched before the cabinet was assembled.

The ex-SGF said this while discussing state of the nation on Trust TV’s Daily Politics.

According to Lawal, the announcement of fuel subsidy removal led to increase in the transportation which is basically the engine of business for both the rich and common man in Nigeria.

Describing the action taken on May 29, Lawal said the non-existence of the cabinet and the Federal Executive Council to address the consequences of such a harsh policy was the undoing of Tinubu, leading to a total collapse of the country.

“I can only repeat what I said before. I’ve spoken on this before. First of all, I did say one time you came into government on the day you were inaugurated,” he said.

“After swearing in you embark on the first major policies that are very impactful on the lives of the society. It is like a cowboy, or macho man removing subsidy. At that time, he didn’t have a minister of planning, that should plan the outcome, the consequences to take care.

“You don’t have a minister of finance who will calculate the impact of this society. You did not even have the federal executive council that will approve that, you have nothing. As at that time, nobody to advise, nobody to break out ‘what ifs’”.

Speaking further, he said, “So immediately after that inauguration, Nigeria collapsed. It is like a balloon. Nigeria fell down. It deflated completely. Immediately transportation (fare) tripled,” he noted.

“That week! I used to buy animal feed for my cows from Zaria, I used to pay N270,000 per truck. Immediately that week, I couldn’t buy anymore, because transportation alone was going to cost me N1 million,” he explained from his personal experience as a farmer.

“I couldn’t afford it because the cost of fuel just jumped up. Everything. Last week I bought some equipment for my farm. I wanted to transport it from Kano, they were asking me to pay N3 million to transport three tractors and only to be put in a trailer. One trailer carrying three tractors!. Everything has gone up. So that policy alone crashed everything.” 

Tinubu Asked Us Not To Vote For Any Igbo During APC Primaries – Babachir Lawal

 

Babachir Lawal, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, has revealed the disdain his party’s presidential candidate, Bola Tinubu, has for the South-East, asserting that it would be difficult for the latter to get enough votes from the region in the 2023 election.

 

“During the convention, he (Tinubu) did not even allow us to go to the South-East. He said it is a waste of time and money. South-South is not his territory, so where is he going to get the vote,” Mr Lawal said on Thursday on a Channels television programme as he continued his rundown of Mr Tinubu.

Mr Lawal was a strong supporter of Mr Tinubu until the APC candidate ignored his advice against picking Kashim Shettima, a Muslim from Mr Lawal’s North-East zone as running mate. The former SGF and a group of northern Christian APC chieftains have since vowed not to support their party’s Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket.

Mr Lawal’s latest slam on Mr Tinubu came barely a few hours after he declared support for Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Labour Party. It also coincided with Mr Tinubu’s visit to southeastern Ebonyi, in continuation of his presidential campaign rally.

The APC presidential candidate during his visit to Ebonyi on Thursday said he would protect the businesses of the Igbo people if supported and elected next year.

“I believe in the entrepreneurial spirit of the Igbo. I encouraged a lot of Igbo businesses and investments in Lagos and will even do more if I become president.

“If elected, there will be no discrimination. Igbo interests will be respected and protected. I will also encourage policies to aid commerce and support South-East states to reach their full potential,” Mr Tinubu said.

Positing further on the programme, Mr Lawal said the APC presidential candidate refused to listen to advice despite warning on his choice of running mate.

The former SGF added the “APC is not on the ballot”, reiterating that Mr Tinubu’s choice of a joint Muslim ticket would cost him the election, and the northern Christians will not support the such decision.

According to him, it would also be difficult for the APC presidential candidate to garner enough votes in the northern states considering that Atiku Abubakar, the PDP candidate is from the zone.

“I told my friend (Tinubu) before the ticket came up…(sic). I said if you’re going for a Muslim/Muslim ticket, the consequence is that every Christian all over Nigeria, would feel slighted. Not only in the country but every Christian all over the world would feel slighted and their religion insulted.

“So, my thinking is that Bola (Tinubu) would not get 25 per cent votes in Kebbi, Sokoto, Zamfara, Kano, Yobe, and Borno. In all the Hausa-Fulani states, he goes nowhere,” he added.

 

I’m Not Supporting Tinubu, He Won’t Win 2023 Presidential election – APC Chieftain, Babachir Lawal

Former Secretary to the Nigerian Government and chieftain of the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC), Babachir Lawal, has said that APC will not win the presidential election in 2023 as a result of the Muslim-Muslim ticket.

 

Babachir in an interview with BBC, said he and others supported the APC presidential candidate, Bola Tinubu, to win the primary election, but they later realised he had been hiding his decision to pick a Muslim running mate from them.

Babachir said he was no longer supporting Tinubu and APC would lose the presidential election.

He said, “I am not for Bola Tinubu now. I am not for a Muslim-Muslim ticket.

“It is Bola who did not want to go with us, he chose where he wants to go, and we told him that we will not vote for him if he did a Muslim-Muslim ticket.

“PDP (Peoples Democratic Party) discussed with us and they agreed to do what we want if we support them and we agreed to support them.”

PDP is fielding a Muslim-Christian ticket, with Atiku Abubakar as its presidential candidate while Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State is his running mate.

Babachir added that the Labour Party tried so much to convince him and other aggrieved members to work for the party.

He added, “You see the problem of the northerners, if you say you are a Christian, it is difficult for us to get a job. You see, of the 27 universities in the north, there are only two Christian VCs and of 27 polytechnics; there are only two Christian rectors, that’s federal, but not to talk of state-owned.”

Babachir complained that the “discrimination” shown to Christians in the North was too much for them, “and you still went ahead to do Muslim-Muslim ticket; that is double blows on us.”

When he was asked whether they tried to reach Tinubu to discuss the issue, he said, “No, he is the one to look for us now, I will not look for him. We have a place to go and a place to stay. But he didn’t look for us.

“If he sees that he will win the election, let see how he will win the election.”

He maintained that he was still in the APC but he and his people would not support Tinubu.

Regarding the fact that he might be accused of anti-party conduct, Babachir said he was bothered even if he would be insulted.