The immediate past President of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari, has rated the performance of his successor, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, barely a year in office.
According to Buhari, the former Governor of Lagos State, has done wonderfully well since the assumption of office nine months ago.
that the former president made this remark when he received the Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi and members of the management team of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) in Daura, Katsina state, at the weekend.
It is no longer news that President Tinubu has faced wide criticism over some of his economic policies, including the removal of fuel subsidies and the unification of the exchange rate windows.
These policies, among others, have brought about untold hardship on Nigerians following the economic hardship, and the naira’s depreciation, which in recent times have led to protests.
Buhari, however, said Tinubu has performed well given the prevailing circumstances, but affirmed that Nigeria is a complex country to govern.
According to him, there is not much anybody can do about Nigeria. Buhari addressed Adeniyi and his team, emphasizing that Nigeria poses significant challenges, urging citizens to persevere through economic difficulties and back the initiatives of the present government.
“I thank you very much for coming. I very much appreciate it. I thought Tinubu has done very well.
“Nigeria is so complex. Really, there isn’t much anybody can do,” Daily Trust quoted the former president saying.
Adeniyi expressed his gratitude towards the ex-president for his exceptional support of the NCS Act 2023.
The CGC also visited the Emir of Daura, His Royal Highness, Dr Farouk Umar Farouk.
“This legislative milestone grants the NCS expanded authority to implement policies aimed at bolstering revenue generation and facilitating trade, thus contributing significantly to Nigeria’s economic growth trajectory,” Adeniyi said.
He also spoke about trucks carrying food items seized at the border, saying, “I will also use this occasion to brief you on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s directives that all trucks of food carrying exports across the border that were seized by Customs be returned to the traders with the hope that they would plough them back into the Nigerian markets.”
It should be noted that this was not the first time Buhari had remarked that governing Nigeria was a tough job for leaders.
In November 2023, during an interview with the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), Buhari said the country was difficult to rule.
“Nigerians are extremely difficult. People know their rights. They think they should be there, not you. So, they monitor virtually your every step. And you have to struggle day and night to ensure you are competent enough,” he had said.
