For some years now, especially after Buhari’s electoral victory in 2019, we have been made to believe that Tinubu is a smart politician. The way he handled Atiku and Obi during the last presidential election also strongly supported that view. However, recent events have brought that to question.
First, his statement, ‘fuel subsidy is gone’, which was not in his prepared speech, was a tactical blunder. He failed to foresee the consequences of that statement.
Second, he failed to see the need to take drastic actions to check inflation, especially food inflation and that this could lead to crisis of unpredictable levels. Instead, he embarked on some provocative projects and allowed flamboyance in govt to continue in the face of extreme hardship.
Third, since inception, he failed to adequately interface with the people when they needed it most. A smart politician surely should know more than that.
Fourth, after some people promised a 10-day nationwide hunger protest, he failed to see the need to promptly make moves to stop it despite the ample notice.
Fifth, having allowed the protest to commence, he did nothing to check it until the fourth day. The belated speech on day 4 of the protests failed to address critical issues in earnest, not even playing politics.
Sixth, rather than make corrections to his mistakes, he began to focus more on political enemies and foreign mercenaries. He and aids speaking ‘grammar’ on treasonable felony forgetting that a hungry man knows anything but where patriotism ends, and treason begins.
The recorded message of the president today contained virtually nothing but pleas to be patient which Nigerians have heard a thousand times.
The colour the protest acquired in the north is a clear reminder to us all that the sustained ineptitude of our leadership will come hunting all of us. If the trend is not quickly checked, it won’t be long before these hungry youths begin to visit the known political leaders in their houses to teach them the lessons they should have learnt in peace a long time ago. We haven’t seen anything yet.
Genuine political wizardry should have steered us better!
