Tinubu Didn’t Save Nigeria, He Deepened Economic Crisis – ADC Hits Back at Shettima

The African Democratic Congress Presidential Campaign Council (ADC PCC) has challenged Vice President Kashim Shettima’s claim that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu rescued Nigeria from an economy that was on the brink of collapse.

The council argued that Shettima’s description of Nigeria as being on the path to “Caracas” before Tinubu took office amounted to an indictment of the All Progressives Congress (APC), which governed the country for eight years under former President Muhammadu Buhari.

Shettima had on Saturday defended the Tinubu administration’s economic policies, saying the president inherited a severely weakened economy and took difficult steps to prevent the situation from deteriorating further.

The Vice President made the remarks while speaking with journalists after visiting Tinubu at his Lagos residence.

He defended major reforms introduced by the administration, including the removal of the petrol subsidy and changes to the foreign exchange system.

While acknowledging that the measures had caused hardship for many Nigerians, Shettima maintained that the reforms were necessary to stabilise the economy.

According to the Vice President, the country was facing a serious economic crisis when Tinubu assumed office.

“The economy was actually teetering on the verge of collapse; he saved the economy. I want Nigerians to understand this fundamental truism. We were on the road to Caracas. He saved our economy. He saved the nation from falling to pieces,” Shettima said.

Shettima also claimed that the administration inherited foreign reserves of approximately $3.9 billion, which he presented as evidence of the difficult economic circumstances facing the new government.

He said Tinubu demonstrated the political will to implement unpopular measures, including ending the fuel subsidy and restructuring the foreign exchange regime.

However, the ADC PCC rejected the Vice President’s assessment.

In a statement issued on Sunday, the council’s Director of Media and Publicity, Kola Ologbondiyan, said Shettima’s remarks raised questions about the performance of the APC government under Buhari.

Ologbondiyan argued that if the country was already heading towards an economic crisis before Tinubu came into office, the APC could not completely separate the current administration from the record of the previous government.

He described Shettima’s statement as “self-indicting”, questioning why Nigerians should trust another APC administration if the party had allegedly left the country in such a difficult economic position.

The ADC PCC spokesman also recalled that Tinubu had previously defended the Buhari administration and expressed support for building on some of its policies and achievements.

According to Ologbondiyan, this makes it difficult for the current administration to distance itself from the previous APC government.

He said Nigerians largely identify both Buhari and Tinubu with the APC and therefore expect the party to take responsibility for its overall record in government.

“But Nigerians do not know Buhari as an individual; Nigerians know APC. It is the APC, on whose platform President Tinubu is seeking a second term, that has failed Nigerians for almost 12 years and is undeserving of another four years,” he said.

Ologbondiyan further criticised the government over infrastructure, electricity and the state of public institutions.

He argued that the immediate concern for most Nigerians was the rising cost of food and other basic necessities rather than political arguments over the country’s economic history.

“Our roads are no longer motorable, there is no electricity, our institutions have collapsed. But what concerns ordinary Nigerians today is food, food and food, not baseless propaganda,” he said.

The ADC spokesman also disputed the claim that the Tinubu administration had rescued Nigeria from economic collapse.

Instead, he accused the government of worsening the economic difficulties faced by citizens, citing rising living costs, naira depreciation, unemployment, insecurity and increasing hardship.

“President Tinubu has not saved Nigeria from collapse; he has pushed the country deeper into economic ruin, marked by unprecedented hunger, hyperinflation, naira devaluation, insecurity, mass unemployment and excruciating cost of living,” Ologbondiyan said.

He also rejected Shettima’s reference to “Caracas”, arguing that Nigerians were already experiencing severe economic conditions within the country.

“Nigerians are not heading to Caracas; under the APC, Nigerians are already living the Caracas experience in their own country,” he said.

The ADC spokesman also questioned the administration’s latest announcement of plans to introduce 10,600 electric tricycles, 300 buses and electric taxis under an e-logistics programme.

He recalled the government’s earlier promise that transportation costs would decline by October 1, 2026, urging Nigerians to judge the administration by its actual delivery rather than new announcements.

The campaign council subsequently called on Shettima and the APC to focus on the economic and social challenges facing Nigerians rather than attempting to reshape the country’s political narrative.

The ADC PCC said it remained committed to presenting an alternative to the APC and urged Nigerians to support what it described as a government capable of reducing the cost of living and restoring economic stability.