Tinubu’s economic reforms will secure 2027 victory, Says APC Kwankwaso ally
Kola Oyelere Kano
A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr Musa Illiyasu Kwankwaso, has expressed confidence that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will secure a second term in office, citing what he described as the administration’s achievements in rebuilding Nigeria’s economy and reducing inherited financial obligations.
Kwankwaso, in a statement made available to journalists, said the country’s foreign reserves had risen to $54.13 billion, while the Tinubu administration had cleared more than $7 billion in inherited foreign exchange and foreign loan backlogs.
He said the foreign reserves had grown from about $32.29 billion—or approximately $38 billion, depending on the measure used—when Tinubu assumed office in May 2023, describing the current level as the highest recorded since September 2008.
According to him, the administration had also addressed several major financial obligations inherited from the previous government.
He listed the payment of an additional $3.5 billion COVID-19 loan and the clearance and securitisation of more than N30 trillion in Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Ways and Means advances among the major steps taken by the Federal Government.
Kwankwaso further claimed that the administration inherited more than $6 billion in unpaid petroleum import bills and had made significant progress in resolving the obligations.
He said the measures had also contributed to a reduction in the country’s debt-service-to-revenue ratio, which he put at 97 per cent under the previous situation, compared with between 64 and 68 per cent currently.
Beyond financial reforms, Kwankwaso said the administration had also focused on agriculture and food security, resulting in what he described as a significant reduction in the prices of food and other essential commodities.
He argued that the achievements would outweigh criticisms from opposition political parties ahead of the 2027 general elections.
“The criticism of the opposition could not stop Tinubu from securing a landslide victory because Nigerians are not blind to the realities of the efforts aimed at improving their livelihoods by the Tinubu administration,” he said.
Kwankwaso expressed confidence in the president’s support base in northern Nigeria, saying the region would deliver a significant number of votes for Tinubu in 2027.
“We believe that the President has done marvellously well. That is why we are 100 per cent loyal to his government, and we are assured that in the North, for example, he will secure the largest votes,” he added.