AKURE — A leading member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Olufemi Bakare, has urged Nigerians to remain patient and steadfast with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration, describing the current economic hardship as “childbirth pains before national rebirth.”
Bakare, who is also the Chairman of the Tinubu Mandate Group (TMG), addressed journalists in Akure, Ondo State on Friday, where he said the ongoing reforms under President Tinubu are “long overdue” and aimed at correcting decades of economic mismanagement.
“The hardship Nigerians are feeling now is like a woman in labour—difficult, painful, but leading to joy,” Bakare explained. “Tinubu is laying a new foundation—economic accountability, structural reforms, and responsible governance. It’s not cosmetic politics; it’s real change.”
According to him, state governments now have greater access to funds for developmental projects due to Tinubu’s fiscal restructuring and revenue reforms.
Bakare also took direct aim at opposition figures Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi, accusing them of being architects of Nigeria’s economic woes. He dismissed their growing coalition—now aligned under the African Democratic Congress (ADC)—as a self-serving political experiment destined to collapse.
“These are the same men who looted Nigeria blind. Now they want to return through the back door with a coalition built on ambition, not patriotism,” he declared. “They will soon fight among themselves. Meanwhile, President Tinubu continues to clean up their mess.”
Bakare praised Tinubu as a “master strategist” who had long prepared for the presidency, unlike previous leaders who stumbled into power. “This is a man who has studied Nigeria’s problems for years. He has vision, he has a plan, and he is executing it.”
He called on Nigerians to endure the short-term discomfort and look to the long-term gains promised by the administration’s tough policies. “The birth pangs are real, but so is the child of progress. Nigerians will laugh again,” he said.
