…Promises to move youths from palliatives to prosperity
By Eshioromeh Sebastian
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has launched another broadside at President Bola Tinubu’s economic policies, while unveiling an ambitious $100 billion financing programme for Nigerian start-ups and entrepreneurs.
The ADC presidential candidate made the pledge on Saturday during a meeting with a nationwide delegation of N-Power beneficiaries who had come to declare their support for his 2027 ambition.
Atiku did not mince words, declaring that Nigerian youths deserve more than a government that merely teaches them how to endure suffering.
“Nigeria’s young people do not need a government that teaches them how to survive hardship. They need a government that gives them the opportunity to prosper,” Atiku declared.
According to him, the current administration has systematically stripped millions of citizens of their purchasing power, crippled small businesses, and erected barriers that prevent young people from accessing capital and securing meaningful employment.
“My commitment is to change that. We will restore purchasing power, reduce the cost of living and deliberately expand opportunities for young Nigerians, including through a $100 billion financing programme for start-ups and entrepreneurs,” he stated.
He insisted that the way forward lies not in distributing palliatives but in creating an economy that rewards enterprise and productivity.
“Our objective is simple: move young Nigerians from dependence to enterprise, from unemployment to productivity, and from palliatives to prosperity,” he said.
The former Vice President promised that under his leadership, the focus would shift from managing poverty to building prosperity, with the proposed $100 billion fund serving as the cornerstone of that vision.
Atiku used the occasion to restate his broader criticism of the Tinubu administration, arguing that Nigeria cannot build its future by distributing poverty.
“I thanked them for their confidence and reiterated that Nigeria cannot build its future by distributing poverty. We must build an economy that creates jobs, rewards enterprise and gives every young Nigerian a fair chance to succeed,” he said.
He maintained that the 2027 election would present voters with a clear choice between continuing with an economy that shrinks opportunities or embracing one that restores hope, dignity, and prosperity.
“The choice before us is between continuing with an economy that shrinks opportunities and building one that restores hope, dignity and prosperity,” Atiku said.
The former Vice President also reaffirmed his commitment to making Nigeria affordable again, a phrase that has become a recurring theme in his recent public engagements.
“We will make Nigeria affordable again,” Atiku promised.
His latest offensive comes amid an escalating war of words with the Presidency over the removal of petrol subsidy.
Atiku had earlier declared that he would restore subsidy if elected, a position that drew sharp criticism from President Tinubu, who labelled it a display of ignorance about governance and economic management.
Presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga had dismissed Atiku’s proposal as retrogressive, arguing that it would undermine Nigeria’s fiscal stability and reverse progress made in the petroleum sector.
“Political promises must be backed by fiscal arithmetic,” Onanuga said, insisting that Nigeria could not afford to return to policies whose costs eventually emerge as higher debt, reduced public spending and pressure on the naira.
The former Vice President fired back, arguing that the real ignorance lies in believing that suffering qualifies as economic policy.
He has since clarified that his proposed subsidy is not a return to the old open-ended regime but a targeted and budgeted production-support mechanism tied to domestic refining capacity.
“I will restore targeted subsidy and put purchasing power back in the hands of Nigerians,” Atiku had insisted.
Atiku has also challenged the Federal Government to explain petroleum under-recoveries and energy-security costs recorded in NNPC’s audited accounts, which he estimated at approximately N17.5 trillion.
He queried why opacity has survived if subsidy was truly dead and corruption eliminated.
Discussion about this post