Falana Blasts Tinubu’s Economic Reforms, Says Policies Have Wiped Out Nigeria’s Middle Class
Prominent human rights lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Femi Falana, has sharply criticised President Bola Tinubu’s economic reforms, warning that the policies have decimated Nigeria’s middle class and worsened poverty nationwide.
Speaking during an interview on Politics Today, aired on Channels Television on Monday, Falana described the current administration’s economic strategy as a “religious implementation of harsh neoliberal policies” that have failed to deliver relief to ordinary Nigerians.
Despite President Tinubu’s recent admission of rising economic hardship and his appeal to All Progressives Congress (APC) governors to “wet the ground” and ease citizens’ burdens, Falana argued that these gestures had produced no tangible impact on the lives of the people.
He called for a comprehensive review of the government’s economic direction, warning that continued reliance on IMF and World Bank-style policies would only deepen the crisis.
“Most Nigerians cannot afford three square meals a day. The middle class has been wiped out by the neoliberal policies of the government,” Falana said. “You cannot be addressing income inequality in a country while handing over the nation’s resources to a few people in the name of privatisation.”
Since assuming office in May 2023, President Tinubu has launched sweeping economic reforms, including currency liberalisation and the removal of fuel subsidies policies that, while intended to stabilise the economy, have resulted in widespread inflation, rising transportation and food prices, and a surge in poverty levels.
Falana also urged the federal government to implement and legally entrench social welfare measures to support vulnerable Nigerians. He referenced the National Social Investment Programme (NSIP), codified under the Social Investment Programme Agency Act in 2023, as a viable tool to fight poverty.
“To eradicate poverty, we must begin by implementing welfare laws,” he said. “President Tinubu should be able to persuade the governors to codify social investment programmes and enact them into law.”
The NSIP includes initiatives such as N-Power for youth empowerment, the Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme (GEEP), the National School Feeding Programme, and conditional cash transfers.
Falana’s remarks add to growing calls for the Tinubu administration to reassess its economic framework and focus on delivering meaningful relief to millions of struggling Nigerians.
