Bayo Onanuga, the Special Adviser on Media and Information Strategy to President Bola Tinubu has made a promise to Nigerians.

He stated that Tinubu's economic reforms will soon lower the cost of living.

He stated this while speaking to journalists in Lagos on Sunday, June 1, Onanuga said the positive effects of President Tinubu’s policies would soon be evident across various sectors of the country, emphasising that the government has been addressing long-standing challenges previously ignored by past administrations.

“The President’s years in office began with clear policy directions and implementation. A lot of reforms have taken place across sectors. The President has laid down many fundamentals that would ensure growth,” he stated.

Onanuga stressed that evaluating the administration’s performance within two years does not provide a complete picture of its achievements, arguing that policy experts typically assess the outcomes of major reforms over a decade or more.

He pointed to the initial crisis surrounding fuel subsidy removal and the near-collapse of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) as an example of the dire conditions the Tinubu administration inherited.

“There was no fuel. Many stations were saying no fuel, no fuel. What was happening at that time was that the NNPC had reached the bottom point. It had no money to import fuel, it claimed that it was owing suppliers about six billion dollars and the government was owing it about four trillion dollars. So, it could not import any more,” he said.

On borrowing, Onanuga explained that the practice is not unique to Nigeria and is widely adopted even by developed nations.

“Nigeria has abundant resources that we are harnessing, but not as much readily available money as people might think,” he explained, adding that borrowed funds were being utilised effectively, particularly in infrastructure development such as the coastal roads project.

On currency devaluation, Onanuga reiterated that it is a standard economic practice globally, defending the administration’s decisions in this regard.

“Even UK and the US at some point devalued. These are economic principles that are universal and cannot be changed because it is Nigeria,” he asserted.

He noted that alongside difficult policy decisions, the administration had opened new opportunities for economic growth, citing several ongoing infrastructure projects that were not originally included in the national budget.

Onanuga said that production levels in Nigeria had risen and that disposable income was gradually improving. He highlighted examples of companies such as Nestle and Nigerian Breweries, which he said had recovered from initial operational difficulties by sourcing materials locally and returning to profitability.

“This economy has opened up opportunities in many forms for Nigerians. Those who can really exploit it. And they are making money,” he said, referencing individuals benefiting from the export of agricultural products like cocoa and Zobo.