By Babatunde Ayedoju &
Kayode Olabanji, Okitipupa

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Scholars and eminent Nigerians have described the Monday broadcast of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu as a soothing balm of hope for the citizens.

They said his speech gave hope for Nigerians over the hardship and economic challenges facing the masses.

Professor Simon Ehiabhi from the Department of History and International Studies, Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko said that the address offered a ray of hope, adding that government should be given time between now and March next year.

Dr Harrison Idowu from the Department of Political Science, Adekunle Ajasin University, Akungba-Akoko, described all that the president said in his address as brilliant ideas, “especially the fact that the country has saved over N1 trillion from subsidy removal since the inception of this administration.”

Idowu, while commending the Federal Government for its initiatives to boost farming, expressed concern over the reality of the president’s speech.

He said, “My fear is that in this country, we have very beautiful ideas but the problem is always implementation.”

Mr. Babatunde Iyaomolere, Lecturer in the Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Olusegun Agagu University of Science and Technology, (OAUSTECH), Okitipupa, appreciated Mr President, for being courageous enough to address the nation at this trying time.

As usual, the President has given us a wonderful speech, full of hope and promises. Though the President had outlined great economic strategies to salvage the nation’s hardship, there is no strong proof that these goals will be actualized very soon.

What Nigeria needs is urgent intervention to cushion the adverse effect of fuel subsidy removal and foreign exchange unification.

He, therefore, advised the Government to be proactive in the implementation of the economic policies and mandate that the state and local governments quickly provide palliatives for the masses

In his words, Om’oba Abayomi Adesanya, former Chairman of Okitipupa LG, said the message by the president is captivating because it centered on the economy. The economy thrives when we have a passionate leader that feels the purse of the masses.

“I can see that the president is ready and eager to work and make things happen to resolve Nigeria’s insecurity, reform the economy, and put infrastructures in place. He cannot afford to fail and he cannot fail.

“The speech from Mr president is a message of hope, a reassuring message and we expect to hear from him periodically. We also expect him to quickly announce the pay rise for the workers, whatever he has for them to douse the tension, and pains we are going through.

“Therefore we appreciate Mr president and I know he’s s a working president that stands by his words, Om’oba said.

In similar words, Mr. Abiodun Shittu, an Accountant, said the address by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was full of hope and the prosperity of our nation.

“No doubt that the subsidy removal announcement made by the president on the day of his inauguration has negatively affected the masses but has he said, that after darkness there is going to be light

“I enjoin the president to keep to the promises he made to Nigerians so that the hope and aspirations of the people of the nation will not be dashed”

 “I believe in this government that it has all it takes to deliver his promises to the people, and the palliative rolled out by Mr president on Monday has to be monitored to the grassroots so that people at the rural areas can feel the impact of the government.

“I also enjoin all and sundry supporting this government to develop the nation.

The issue of palliative has to be done with immediate effect to cushion the effect of the subsidy removal announcement by Mr president, the federal government, state government, and local government have to do necessary things to ameliorate the hardship on the masses.

Also, our refineries need to be fully revived to enable the product refined in the country, rather than export our crude overseas and transport it back to the country. Government should act fast to fix our refineries in the country“, Shittu said.

However, a civil servant who pleaded anonymity said that the points raised in the address fell short of her expectation.

Her words: “When I read through the address, I noticed that he didn’t talk about how to boost local production, whereas that is what can bring down the prices of foodstuffs.

“He also didn’t mention how to fix our refineries. We all know that if our refineries are in a good shape, the prices of petroleum products will come down, because petrol affects everything in the country. Are we going to continue refining our crude oil abroad at a huge cost?” she added.