A media practitioner and public relations expert, Alhaji Kehinde Olaosebikan, has lauded the various interventions of the President Bola Tinubu-led administration toward repositioning Nigeria.
Olaosebikan, in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Ibadan on Wednesday, noted that the various measures would result in generating common wealth for all.
According to him, any serious effort or programme aimed at fighting poverty and want must first all reduce the burden on the common man.
‘The first major one is the Students’ Loan Scheme recently launched by the Federal Government, aimed at providing financial assistance to qualified Nigerian students.
‘This covers tuitions, other fees and upkeep during their studies, while vocational skills acquisition would ease the burden on the parents and guardians.
‘It is the most visible and reasonable way to combat poverty. The policy must make education, health, power and employment accessible,’ he said.
Olaosebikan stated that the yoke on the masses’
necks must be made light by the government.
According to him, the new students’ loan scheme initiative is laudable and must be supported to make it work.
He also commended the efforts being made by government to improve electricity supply across the country.
‘Also commendable is the concerted effort being made toward steady electricity supply; it will generate more employment and enhance development in both the urban and rural areas.
‘The government has also come up with implementable programmes on health, housing and small-scale business development,’ he said.
The public affairs analyst, while speaking on the one year in office of Tinubu, described the administration as a strong and well-focused one.
‘Being a very strong leader himself, the president has brought strength, vigour and a great deal of pragmatism into governance, especially against the lackluster and inertia style of his predecessor.
‘Without any equivocation, I will say that President Tinubu is running the precise type of government we r
equire at this point in time in Nigeria,’ he said.
On the removal of subsidy, Olaosebikan said that whether it was removed by Tinubu on his inauguration day or any other day, the subsidy needed to go, though not without some unpalatable consequences.
‘Like most Nigerians, personally I am feeling the pain of the removal, but I am very optimistic that Nigeria and Nigerians will be better for it. It is just the normal experience in growth.
‘The truth is that, it is difficult to see the impact of palliatives in big societies and countries like ours. For a nation of over 250 million people, gauging the impacts of palliatives is usually very tough,’ he said.
Olaosebikan stated that palliatives were introduced to bring immediate relief to those worst hit by the adverse effects of the removal.
‘But, are they really feeling the impact? The answer is ‘No’. The president did well by increasing allocations to states and direct allocations of essential items to them.
‘However, what the states are doing to the increa
sed allocations is another thing entirely. The responsibility of the government is to create a common wealth that will be enjoyed seamlessly by all.
‘The president has come out with measures that will lead to generation of common wealth for all,’ he said.
Source: News Agency of Nigeria