Toba Owojaiye Reporting
Abuja , Nigeria
Renowned journalist Dele Sobowale questioned the viability of the Tinubu government’s promise to create a $1 trillion economy in ten years. He criticized the recurrent trend of electing leaders aged seventy and above, arguing that they belong to a generation making empty promises without deep economic understanding.
Sobowale drew parallels between Tinubu’s $1 trillion pledge and Buhari’s unfulfilled vow to lift 100 million Nigerians out of poverty. He dismissed both promises as laughable and points out the lack of easily demonstrable analysis behind them.
The author expressed skepticism about Tinubu following a similar path as Buhari, stubbornly clinging to unrealistic commitments.
To support his argument, Sobowale highlighted the reappointment of Dr. Shamsudeen Usman, a key figure in the failed VISION 2020 initiative, as evidence of a recycled approach. He predicted a potential committee, headed by Usman, tasked with driving the illusion of a $1 trillion economy in six years, likening it to the futile efforts of VISION 2020.
Truth Live News reports that the veteran journalist anticipates a flood of suggestions from various groups and professionals but remains critical, citing the history of false promises, such as the unfulfilled commitments from the early 1990s to deliver housing, education, and employment for all by 2000.
Sobowale concluded by asserting that Nigeria, under Tinubu, will not reinvent economic principles. He emphasized that ambitious economic goals should be approached with caution, pointing to the past failures of promises like “Housing etc for All by 2000” and “VISION 2020.”
The words of Dele Sobowale serves as a cautionary tale against repeating history and placing undue faith in grand economic pledges and they hardly fail.