President Bola Tinubu on Friday said the removal of fuel subsidy in the first minutes of his presidency saved Nigeria from imminent bankruptcy and that the difficult reform period was now yielding visible dividends for states and citizens alike.
“It was challenging at the time, but we survived. We faced litigation and accusations. We survived them. Instead of bankruptcy, Nigeria has survived. The economy has recovered. It is growing. Agriculture is booming,” the President said when he received state governors who gathered at his Ikoyi residence in Lagos to celebrate both the Sallah festival and the third anniversary of his administration.
Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, disclosed details of the meeting in a statement he signed on Friday titled, ‘Fuel Subsidy Removal Saved Nigeria From Bankruptcy, Says President Tinubu.’
In attendance were the governors of Lagos, Nasarawa, Jigawa, Sokoto, Kebbi, Taraba, Niger, Ekiti, Delta, Ondo, Edo, Adamawa, Benue, Enugu, Ogun and Kogi states, as well as the deputy governors of Borno and Kano states.
Tinubu argued that the subsidy regime had for years consumed enormous resources that benefited only a small fraction of Nigerians while depriving critical sectors of needed investments.
He said ongoing reforms in infrastructure, agriculture, social investment, foreign exchange management and fiscal discipline were beginning to restore investor confidence and improve economic prospects.
The President acknowledged the role state governors played in managing public expectations through the most turbulent phase of the reforms, saying, “I’m glad governors are no longer borrowing from the federal government and asking for interventions and not knowing how to survive, how to pay salaries, no more. You kept the spirit, you kept the hope. You persuaded our people to be patient and endure these three years of painful reform, during which we put the economy on a reset. Today, the benefits are showing.”
He added, “The economy has recovered. Macroeconomic indices are doing very well. Construction is ongoing on roads and infrastructure; the ones abandoned have been rehabilitated.
“The housing industry is coming on very well. Agriculture will prosper again. We will achieve food sovereignty if we utilise the land that is in your possession and in your various states effectively,” he said.
The Nigerian leader also referenced the Sokoto-Badagry highway corridor, describing its potential for irrigation infrastructure.
According to him, “Today, I was watching some clips of the Sokoto-Badagry axis. Imagine how many dams on that corridor for irrigation, for farmland, for electricity. Many of you have survived and promoted the perseverance of many of our people, asking them to trust this government, and you have built that trust around one person: my leadership. I thank you very much.”
In his address, Vice President Kashim Shettima described Tinubu’s economic decisions as acts of historic courage that ended five decades of policy evasion.
The Vice President said, “Your Excellency, Mr President, this is the essence of your leadership. You did not come to power in the season of ease. You came at a time when the house required more than a painter.
“It required a builder with the courage to examine the foundation you inherited. In that defining hour, you chose not to postpone the surgery. You chose not to massage the wound. You chose to confront the contradictions that have held this country hostage for 50 years. That is the miracle of your courage.”
“What you have done is not simply to administer a government. You have begun the difficult work of re-engineering a nation. You have reminded us that reform is not a banquet; it is a battlefield. It is not a picnic for the chicken-hearted. It is a covenant with the future,” Shettima added.
Kwara State Governor, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, who spoke on behalf of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, said the subsidy removal and fiscal reforms had delivered a tangible transformation in states’ capacity to meet their obligations.
He said states that had previously been forced to issue bonds and borrow money to pay salaries were now reducing their debt profiles.
“I think the nation was shocked by the audacity of Mr President to implement that serious policy, but today, it has benefited immensely from that policy.
“Many states were subject to issuing bonds and borrowing money. Today, states are not going to borrow money; they’re not going to issue bonds. In fact, we’re reducing our debt,” he said.
AbdulRazaq also used the occasion to advocate an upward review of the national minimum wage, urging the President to consider raising it to at least N100,000.
Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodinma, chairman of the Progressive Governors Forum, said the governors had conducted their own assessment of the President’s performance and arrived at a unanimous verdict.
“We are the frontline beneficiaries of the innovative approach you brought to bear in governance.
“We came to join you in thanking Almighty God who made this thing possible. You have virtually recovered Nigeria from the brink of collapse to a state of stability and survival.
“We have assessed your performance, Mr President, and I’m happy to announce that we have scored it 100 per cent,” Uzodinma said.
For his part, Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, welcomed his colleagues and thanked them for their continued support for the President, urging them to sustain the political and governance momentum into the 2027 election season.
