Plateau State Governor, Caleb Mutfwang, has said President Bola Tinubu inherited an economy on the verge of collapse when he assumed office in 2023, blaming the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari for the country’s economic challenges.
Mutfwang stated this on Monday at the formal inauguration of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Campaign Council in Jos, where he defended the Tinubu administration’s economic reforms and urged Plateau residents to support the President’s re-election bid in 2027.
“Where did President Tinubu meet Nigeria in 2023? He met Nigeria tottering on the brink of collapse, Nigeria that could not service its external debts, Nigeria that would not even allow businesses outside the country to take their proceeds back home,” he said.
The governor attributed the decision by some international airlines to suspend flights to Nigeria to their inability to repatriate their earnings due to the shortage of foreign exchange.
He also claimed that the country’s external reserves had fallen to slightly above $3 billion from more than $40 billion accumulated over several decades.
“Today, by the grace of God, we have a healthy external reserve of over $50 billion,” Mutfwang said.
He further accused the previous administration of resorting to excessive money printing to manage the economy, claiming that more than N30 trillion was printed through the Central Bank of Nigeria.
“When the President took over in 2023, the government that he succeeded had run out of ideas on how to manage the economy, and they resorted to printing money in the Central Bank.
“They printed over N30 trillion, which went down the drain,” he said.
Mutfwang added that the Central Bank had since stabilised and that the deficit had been addressed.
On fuel subsidy, the governor described the system under the Buhari administration as fraudulent, alleging that the government borrowed money to pay claims backed by fictitious documents.
“I say it was a fraud because we were borrowing money to pay people who brought fictitious documents. They never brought any wealth. They brought fictitious documents, claimed monies and subsidies.
“You cannot continue to borrow money to give to thieves. You have to stop it at some point. And when it is stopped, there will be a payback; there will be a recovery time,” he said.
He argued that although fuel prices had increased, availability had improved, recalling the long queues that previously characterised petrol stations across the country.
“Today, by the grace of God, we have solved one side of the equation. Today fuel is available. It may not be cheap, but it is available,” he said.
The governor also alleged that the Buhari administration had sold crude oil in advance, leaving the country to meet obligations arising from the arrangement.
“Part of the problem of the Buhari regime is that they got to a point that they didn’t know what to do, so they sold our future crude. The crude we are yet to dig from the ground has been sold in advance.
“And today we are paying that debt. We are paying that debt. And so we cannot expect things to simply change overnight,” he said.
Mutfwang said his administration had introduced measures to cushion the effects of the economic reforms on residents, including the provision of metro buses and the revival of the railway system within Jos metropolis.
He also cited a 50 per cent reduction in tuition fees for students in the state’s tertiary institutions and a 300 per cent increase in their allowances.
The governor commended the Federal Government’s student financing initiatives, particularly the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), saying Plateau indigenes studying in various universities had benefited from the scheme.
“Today, hundreds of millions have been given to Plateau indigenes who are studying in different universities. Some are getting N20,000 monthly, N40,000 monthly. It has never happened before,” he said.
On the 2027 elections, Mutfwang called for power rotation between the North and South, arguing that the arrangement should be respected.
“We must agree that power should rotate between the North and the South. And if the North spends eight years, which we have nothing to show for, it is only fair that we allow the South to do another eight years.
“Because if we don’t respect that sharing arrangement, it will come back to haunt us someday,” he said.
The governor also declared that the Plateau State Government House would not be vacant ahead of the 2027 governorship election, insisting that the state had agreed on a two-term arrangement for each senatorial zone.
“And that is why in Plateau State, we have already agreed that it is two terms per senatorial zone. Except the northern zone does not want to produce a governor until 2035, then you can toy with my mandate,” he said.
Mutfwang urged APC candidates and members of the campaign council to communicate the achievements of the Tinubu administration to voters, stressing the need for fact-based and honest campaigning.
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“We must therefore go about this campaign with facts, with honesty, and with seriousness. Part of the reason why people are still apprehensive is because we have not communicated the real message, and we have a responsibility to ensure that that message is properly communicated,” he said.
He urged the party’s candidates to lead their campaigns and promote unity, expressing confidence that Plateau residents would support Tinubu in the presidential election scheduled for January 16, 2027, and renew his administration’s mandate in the state two weeks later.
On security, the governor acknowledged that insecurity and hunger remained challenges in the state but said his administration had taken steps to address them.
He argued that tackling insecurity required sustained efforts rather than immediate interventions.
“Insecurity is not like tap water, where you simply turn on the tap and it flows down. It requires concerted, deliberate, intentional, sustained efforts before you get results,” he said.
Mutfwang assured residents of his commitment to protecting communities across the state and disclosed plans to take practical steps to facilitate the return of internally displaced persons to their homes.
“Very soon we are going to be taking practical steps to facilitate the return of internally displaced persons back to their communities.
“And so, all we are asking Plateau people to do is trust us and be patient with us, and by the grace of God, you will not regret it,” he said.
