By HAFSAT MUSA, an advocate of social justice
musahafsat@yahoo.com
Nigerians are beginning to express shock and disappointment that an APC government headed by PBAT elected on May 29 this year is reversing key policies and programmes executed by its successor APC government led by PMB. It’s very difficult to believe that the same party, APC, is turning upside down major party policies formally planned and executed by the previous government.
The first signs that the PBAT administration was up in arms with the PMB administration emerged in his speech at his swearing in when he amnnounced the withdral of fuel subsidy. Indeed many Nigerians saw it as the beginning of the war against PMB in particular and the common man.
This was followed by the restructuring of some MDAs and giving them new names. Notable among them are Ministries of Finance, National Planning and Budget, Ministry of Humanitarian affairs, Social Development and Disaster Management, Ministry of Aviation, Environment, science and technology, information, housing, water resources, health, agriculture, and Ministry of Digital communications among others.
A few months later came the National Economic Council, NEC resolution that the National Social Register, NSR lacks credibility. This was followed by the suspension of the N-Power programme. For the avoidance of doubt, the N-Power, which was a key component of the PMB administration effort to reduce poverty in the country, suffered this hammer of the PBAT administration.
Hiding under the cover of invoking the Principle of the Presidential Prerogative of Mercy, President Bola Tinubu had approved the partial waiver of the “No Work, No Pay” Order that was instituted against striking members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU by the PMB administration, following the commencement of their eight-month industrial action which began on February 14, 2022 and was terminated on October 17, 2022.
Only God knows where the next axe from PBAT will hit at.
