Senator Orji Kalu says President Bola Tinubu is aware of the country’s fluttering economy and is taking steps to address the challenges facing Nigeria.

“The president himself knows that Nigerians are suffering and hungry. He is a street person; he knows the street very well,” Senator Kalu said on Thursday’s edition of Channels Television’s Politics Today.

“The president some nights uses his car to go around and know what is happening in Abuja here. The president goes around with one or two cars and sees what is happening. He is not a president that is locked up in the room.”

The country’s inflation figures hit 32.7 per cent in September 2024, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

Since the removal of the fuel subsidy and the floating of the naira by the Tinubu government, the cost of basic items has moved beyond the reach of millions of Nigerians.

But Senator Kalu argued that the moves were “very courageous” of Tinubu and that the economic hardship is not peculiar to Nigeria. He said the country is also battling from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic which grossly affected the global economy.

“The pressure of COVID-19 has not gone,” he said.

“Let me be honest with you. I know things are not the way they are supposed to be,” the Abia North lawmaker added.

“The economy has not been so friendly; the atmosphere has not been so friendly. But this economic problem is going on almost everywhere in the world.”

Senator Kalu said the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) which he belongs to is doing well in repositioning the economy.

“They are trying to reform the economy. They are trying to bring back the economy where it is supposed to be.”

‘These Things Are Not True’

Nigerians have repeatedly accused members of the National Assembly and the ruling class of being insensitive to the plight of the people, claiming they live in affluence despite the state of the economy.

The Abia North lawmaker, however, says the lawmakers have no official vehicles.

“I am in the Senate and a lot of things are said about the Senators and I sit there quietly and watch, and most of these things are not true. All I know is that committees get vehicles, no lawmaker is given any vehicle,” the Senator said.

Following the recent development in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), senators elected on the platform of the party, on Thursday took a bold step towards quenching the fire burning their party.

Addressing the press after a closed door session, the Senate Minority Leader, Comrade Abba Moro PhD said the PDP caucus acknowledged the crisis in the party and had resolved to work with all the critical stakeholders with a view to ending the crisis and restoring peace.

The caucus appealed to all aggrieved persons to sheathe their swords for the sake of the party, promising to make every effort that’s necessary to bring everybody together and make PDP a formidable party that it’s known for.

The caucus called for withdrawal of all litigations in court to make room for more robust discussions that aim to bring lasting peace in the party.

It charged party members to put the interest of the party ahead of all personal interests and work towards strengthening the party and making it a better alternative to the ruling APC that has brought so much pains and hardship on the country, stating that PDP remains the only hope for the suffering Nigerians.

The Peoples Democratic Party in Ondo State has accused Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa of spending funds on projects that were meaningless to residents in the state.

It said the Governor spent N2.4bn on renovations at a time poverty was ravaging the land.

Spokesman for the Ondo PDP, Kennedy Peretei, in a statement, said Ondo people were unlucky to have a Governor, who approved N1.2bn for the renovation of V.I.P Lodge,

Peretei said the cost of building a new V.I.P Lodge would be less than N1.2b.

He listed the projects to include N293m for the renovation of the Adegbemile Cultural Center, Akure, N90m for the renovation and refurbishing of the office of the Commissioner for Finance and N775m for the renovation of the Government House Gate and perimeter fence.

According to the statement, “How many Ondo State people will benefit from a renovated V.I.P Lodge? Do we need a soothsayer to tell us how unlucky our people are, with Aiyedatiwa?

“Since the International Cultural and Event Centre (The Dome) was commissioned, how many events have been held at Adegbemile? Which sensible government will now commit N293m of the people’s money to renovate a building that does not add anything to their wellbeing?

“All the four approvals were given on the same day, 26th September, 2024. Not one of these projects will benefit the people of the state directly. A man who does not take the welfare of the people as a priority cannot turn round to tell them, they are lucky to have him as their governor. It is an irony.”

But Ondo Commissioner for Information Wale Akinlosotu, said approvals and expenditures were deliberately geared towards the development of all sectors of the state.

Akinlosotu, reiterated the commitment of Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa’s administration to putting in place all necessary infrastructure and maintenance of existing ones in the interest of the people of the state.

He said, “We ordinarily ought not to respond to that attack because we can see the handiwork of the opposition in the report as it is clear that PDP was speaking from the position of frustration owing to its apparent loss in the forthcoming election, but for the sake of the people of Ondo State who we are accountable to.

“For the avoidance of doubt, the approval by the State Executive Council for remodelling of the Government House gate, perimeter fence, and other renovations recently are part of the efforts of the Aiyedatiwa administration to improve on the infrastructure of the state. It is the responsibility of the government to renovate, to beautify, and to ensure state infrastructures are in the best condition at all times.

“The approvals and the fact that project executions are ongoing in all parts of the state the forthcoming election notwithstanding show the commitment of the government not to be distracted by politics and ongoing campaigns.”