Politics
Reforms: Atiku asks Tinubu to learn from Argentina, says ‘willing’ to discuss with govt
Former Vice President has called on President Bola Tinubu to learn some lessons from the approach to reforms adopted by President Javier Milei of Argentina.
Atiku said this in a press release Sunday, noting that “President Javier Milei of Argentina was sworn into office on 10 December 2023. He inherited a worse condition than Nigeria’s.
“But what he did to return his country to a place where investors are ‘starting to believe’ should serve as a lesson to Nigeria’s Bola Tinubu.”
Significantly, Atiku said the Argentina’s approach is similar to his reform agenda, adding, “I am more than willing to disclose details of its workings with the current government in order to take Nigeria out of the depth of hunger and anger”.
The full text of the former vice president’s statement titled: Argentina’s Javier Milei approach to reforms should serve as a lesson for Tinubu, says, “I read a recent report in Reuters titled: Argentina’s market double down on Milei as investors ‘start to believe’.
“I took a keen interest in reading the report because I know quite well that Argentina and Nigeria closed the last quarter of the year 2023 on a similar path of economic downturn.
“In the case of Nigeria, a new government was installed at or about the middle of 2023, for Argentina, the new government came on board in December.
“Both leaders inherited a disoriented economy, but both applied different measures to recovery.
Atiku continued, “President Javier Milei of Argentina was sworn into office on 10 December 2023. He inherited a worse condition than Nigeria’s.
“But what he did to return his country to a place where investors are ‘starting to believe’ should serve as a lesson to Nigeria’s Bola Tinubu.
“Nigeria is where we are today simply because of what Tinubu has done or did not do.
Atiku noted that “His shifting the blame on the opposition and, even ridiculously, his predecessor is needless and myopic. Market forces don’t play politics. They respond to your actions and inactions.
He recalled that , “President Milei’s major campaign promise was to reposition the Argentine economy after years of slow growth, high debt levels, triple-digit inflation (160% when he took over the Presidency in December 2023) and 40% poverty rate.
“His first task was to begin implementing measures to achieve greater macroeconomic stability and promote higher global competitiveness.
“He came into the office with a comprehensive stabilization plan, which seeks to implement far-reaching measures within the context of a market-oriented economy.
“He started off cutting government expenditure by cutting the size of government and wastages; blocked stealing of government funds, and attracted Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) through concessions, tax holidays, and improved ease of doing business.
“President Milei flies regular business class for all his travels and does not offer the presidential fleet of Argentina for his son’s birthday.
“Likewise, there is no settlement for his hangers-on and political allies through unwieldy and burdensome appointments to public offices.
“Argentina’s Milei did not build the largest government like Tinubu did at a time when our economy was and still on its knees.
“The examples set by President Milei are the requirement of leadership in a time when the economy has begun to fail the expectations of the people.
“The reforms so far implemented by the Tinubu administration are ad hoc and hurriedly put together without proper review. Ours is unlike Argentina’s Milei, who is sequencing his reforms.
“President Milei anticipates the after-reform shocks and admits that things will be tough for the people. But he is fully prepared for the aftershocks and has in place mitigating pills.
“He walks the talk. He makes sacrifices himself by giving up perks of office.
“It is not business-as-usual for the presidency while the people are called upon to make sacrifices.
“Argentina runs a lean government by reducing the number of ministries, privatizing nearly 40 state-owned enterprises, and reducing wasteful spending.
“Conversely, Tinubu in Nigeria increased the number of ministers and ministries and is spending enormous resources renovating houses for himself, his deputy, and the first lady.
“That is nothing short of Nero playing fiddle while Rome is on fire!
“Worse still, Tinubu has refused to roll up his sleeves and do the work that he signed up for. Instead, he and his team are preoccupied with behaving like Napoleon and Squealer, characters in the satire book Animal Farm, who made it a state policy scapegoating Snowball (the opposition) for their own failures arising from their ill-advised policies.
“I am attracted to the reforms in Argentina because Javier Milei’s stabilization plan bears a similar emblem with my Recover Nigeria Plan.
“It is a plan that I am more than willing to disclose details of its workings with the current government in order to take Nigeria out of the depth of hunger and anger that we find ourselves in.
“The plan includes strategic steps we must take to recover the economy and make it stronger, dynamic, resilient, and competitive.
“We had outlined plans to relax the fiscal constraints facing us to include:
Improving Spending Efficiency and Blocking Leakages
Saving money through:
a. A review of fiscal support for non-performing government enterprises and the privatization of those that can not sustain themselves.
b. Steps to improve spending efficiency through a gradual reduction in government recurrent expenditures, ensuring that those expenditures reflect higher levels of service delivery. Over the medium term, recurrent expenditures should not exceed 45% of the budget.
c. A review of government procurement processes to ensure high levels of transparency, competitiveness, and value-for-money and eliminate all leakages.
“Unless, and until there are clear-cut policies and pathway to economic rejuvenation predicated on a leadership led sacrifice, there will be discontentment, especially among the youths, which may find expression in protests and for which it will be silly to continue to blame the opposition for.”
Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, has criticised the state chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC), warning against what he described as threats to deploy “federal might” to influence the upcoming governorship election in the state.
This was contained in a statement by the governor’s spokesman, Olawale Rasheed.
Speaking at a meeting with leaders and ward officials of the Accord Party across the 332 wards in the state, Adeleke said federal power should be used for good governance rather than electoral manipulation.
The governor accused the APC of dragging the name of President Bola Tinubu into partisan rhetoric by repeatedly claiming that federal institutions would be deployed during the poll.
According to Adeleke, the President has instead been using federal authority to deliver governance programmes, citing infrastructure projects and policy initiatives.
“The President is using federal power to deliver good governance… not for election rigging,” the governor said, urging the opposition to stop what he described as attempts to undermine democratic principles ahead of the election.
He also called on residents of the state to remain vigilant and ensure their votes determine the outcome of the poll.
“Our people are passionate about free and fair elections. Only electoral bandits boast of rigging in a democracy,” he said.
Support For Gov’s Re-Election
At the gathering, several political leaders voiced support for the governor’s re-election bid.
Among them were the Speaker of the Osun State House of Assembly, Adewale Egbedun, former deputy speaker of the House of Representatives, Lasun Yusuf, and Senator Olu Alabi.
They urged party leaders to intensify grassroots mobilisation and defend votes during the election.
The chairman of the Imole Movement, Wale Oladipo, alongside Osun Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chairman Sunday Bisi, also reaffirmed their support for Adeleke, calling on party structures across the state to work toward his re-election.
Political Realignment
The build-up to the governorship contest has been shaped by significant political realignments in the state.
In December 2025, Adeleke announced his defection from the PDP to the Accord Party after weeks of consultations with stakeholders, citing the leadership crisis within the PDP as the reason for leaving the party.
The governor later emerged as the Accord Party’s sole candidate for the 2026 governorship election in Osun State, positioning himself to seek a second term under the new platform.
His defection triggered political reactions from opposition figures, particularly within the APC, as the party declared its intention to reclaim the state in the forthcoming election.
The contest is expected to be closely watched in the South-West political landscape as parties intensify preparations for the poll scheduled by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to be held on August 15.
Confusion erupted on Saturday (today) during the Taraba State congress of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) after members of the congress committee reportedly announced two different individuals as the party’s consensus chairman.
The development sparked outrage among delegates and party faithful, triggering heated arguments and protests at the congress venue.
The drama reportedly began when a member of the congress committee announced Victor Samuel Falack as the consensus chairman of the party in the state.
Party members present at the venue were said to have applauded the announcement and affirmed Falack’s nomination, believing the process had been concluded.
Observers at the congress said the declaration was initially received with excitement, as many delegates appeared satisfied that the party had reached a consensus.
However, the situation took a dramatic turn moments later when another member of the committee, reportedly arriving from Abuja, interrupted the proceedings and announced a different individual as the party’s chairman.
The sudden reversal created confusion among delegates, many of whom began questioning the development and demanding clarification from the congress committee.
The conflicting declarations immediately sparked heated exchanges among party members and supporters at the venue.
The disagreement soon degenerated into chaos as some aggrieved delegates and party faithful stormed out of the congress venue in protest.
Witnesses said the protesters chanted slogans and insisted that the earlier declaration of Falack as the consensus candidate be respected.
Some party members also described the newly announced chairman as “unknown” within the party’s structure in the state.
They accused members of the congress committee of attempting to impose a candidate on the party against the wishes of delegates.
Efforts by some party officials to calm the tense situation reportedly failed as tensions among supporters continued to rise.
As of the time of filing this report, the final outcome of the Congress remained uncertain.
Concerned party members have since called on the national leadership of the PDP to urgently intervene and clarify the conflicting announcements in order to prevent further crisis within the party in Taraba State.
The African Democratic Congress, ADC, has announced the official schedule of activities for the conduct of its 2026 nationwide congresses and national convention.
In a statement released by the party, the ADC said the exercise forms part of its constitutional responsibility to renew leadership structures across all levels of the organisation.
According to the party, the process will begin at the grassroots level and progress through the various tiers of the party structure, starting from polling units and wards, through local government and state levels, before culminating in the National Convention.
The party explained that the congresses are aimed at strengthening its internal democratic processes and repositioning the party ahead of future political activities.
The timetable approved by the party leadership is as follows:
Polling Unit and Ward Congresses: Tuesday, 7 April 2026
Local Government Area Congresses: Thursday, 9 April 2026
State Congresses: Saturday, 11 April 2026
National Convention: Tuesday, 14 April 2026
The ADC urged members across the country to participate actively in the process to ensure a smooth and transparent exercise.
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