The Allied Peoples Movement (APM) has called on President Bola Tinubu to apologise to Nigerians and withdraw from the 2027 presidential race over the hardship the party attributed to the Federal Government’s economic reforms.
The opposition party said remarks by the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Abubakar Bagudu, acknowledging that the reforms had contributed to cost-of-living pressures amounted to a validation of concerns it had previously raised over the government’s economic policies.
The APM’s National Publicity Secretary, Abubakar Yusuf, made the demand in a statement yesterday,, reacting to Bagudu’s remarks at the Federal Appointees Strategic Summit in Abuja earlier on Wednesday.
Bagudu had acknowledged that the government underestimated the scale of the economic turbulence that followed its reforms, according to reports of his remarks at the summit.
The APM said the development vindicated its earlier warnings against the removal of petrol subsidy, floating of the naira and introduction of what it described as harsh taxes without adequate measures to cushion their effects on households and businesses.
The party alleged that the policies had contributed to worsening living costs, business closures and unemployment, among other economic difficulties.
“Right from onset, well-meaning Nigerians had cautioned that the abrupt removal of subsidy on petroleum products, floating of the naira, imposition of harsh taxes and other anti-production policies in an economy such as Nigeria would precipitate untold hardship on the people,” the party said.
It further alleged that the policies had contributed to the departure of some multinational companies, closure of businesses and increasing difficulty for households to meet basic needs.
The APM also claimed that more than 60 per cent of Nigerians were unable to afford daily meals, medication and other necessities, although the figure was presented as the party’s own claim.
“Now that the administration has admitted that it has failed and that it is responsible for the woes of the citizens, it is expected that President Tinubu should take responsibility, apologise to Nigerians and quit the 2027 presidential race,” the party said.
The APM argued that Nigeria required a leadership with what it described as a coherent economic blueprint, policy foresight and safeguards capable of protecting citizens from the effects of major policy changes.
The party also used the statement to promote the presidential candidacy of Oyo State governor, Seyi Makinde, presenting what it described as his record in Oyo State as a model it wanted replicated at the federal level.
It claimed that Makinde had helped grow the Oyo economy and said the governor possessed a blueprint for tackling economic and security challenges.
The party urged Nigerians to support Makinde and said it would mobilise ahead of the January 16, 2027 presidential election.