During the last presidential elections, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, now president, pledged to follow in the footsteps of then-President Muhammadu Buhari, a pledge that earned both Buhari and Tinubu the butt of jokes from Rivers State’s immediate past governor, Mr Nyesom Wike. Tinubu took office as President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria on Monday after the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, certified him the winner of the election. However, prominent Nigerians have advised the president to be mindful of some of his predecessor’s erroneous steps, which he must avoid to heal the harm done to the country.
Buhari’s Mistakes Tinubu Must Avoid. Photo Credit: @officialasiwajubat Mazi Sam Ohuabunwa, former President, of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria President Bola Ahmed Tinubu must avoid his predecessor, ex-President Muhammadu Buhari’s, tribalistic and nepotistic tendencies. In his nominations, he must unite Nigeria by prioritizing merit, equity, and geopolitical spread over ethnic sensitivities. Buhari’s nepotism shattered Nigeria. We expected Buhari to break with the tradition of a leader surrounding himself with individuals who look and sound like him. That is not the way to bring Nigeria together. Tinubu should not follow in Tinubu’s footsteps. Also Read: Presidential Tribunal: Obi tenders 136 exhibits from 6 States Including Lagos and Edo He should demonstrate a comprehension of the economy’s workings rather than engaging in policy somersaults or economic management incompetence, as his predecessor did. He should not believe that it is OK to continue borrowing and printing money. This devalues the Nigerian naira and promotes inflation. Tinubu must be authentic and honest in his fight against corruption. Buhari pretended to be combating corruption, but there was no proof to back him up. There were more corrupt persons and corruption cases in Nigeria under his watch. Nigeria’s ranking in the corruption index has also deteriorated. Tinubu is expected to be present and not absent. In contrast to Buhari, he should demonstrate that he is in command. I applaud Tinubu’s prompt intervention in the recent standoff between the EFCC and the DSS. He gave orders quickly and calmly, unlike Buhari, who glanced away. This devalues the Nigerian naira and promotes inflation. Tinubu must be authentic and honest in his fight against corruption. Buhari pretended to be combating corruption, but there was no proof to back him up. There were more corrupt persons and corruption cases in Nigeria under his watch. Read More: “Nigerian politicians are ‘Big time thieves’ compared to Ghanaian politicians” – Pere Nigeria’s ranking in the corruption index has also deteriorated. Tinubu is expected to be present and not absent. In contrast to Buhari, he should demonstrate that he is in command. Ambassador Yemi Farounmbi Former President Buhari’s major footstep that President Tinubu should follow is infrastructure development. There have been attempts to develop infrastructure, such as the second Niger bridge, the establishment of the University of Medicine and Nutrition, Polytechnics and Technical Colleges of Education, the Lagos-Ibadan express road, the Enugu-Port Harcourt express road, and the Oyo-Ogbomoso-Ilorin express road. But I hope President Tinubu does not follow in Buhari’s footsteps in terms of security, because security in Nigeria degraded or completely disintegrated under his watch. What began as a North-East catastrophe evolved into a national tragedy and headache. We also hope that he will not follow in the footsteps of Buhari in his fight against corruption. We didn’t witness the active campaign against corruption that we expected to see. We hope he does not follow in Buhari’s footsteps by reducing the people to poverty, because it will appear that the people were economically healthier when he arrived eight years ago than when he left last week. We hope that the new President takes a more sensible, objective approach to dealing with the economic situation. We hope that the growing inflation is slowed so that the naira’s value rises, poverty is lessened, new jobs are created, or a favourable environment is established for people willing to work. That is what we anticipate from this President. Former General Secretary of the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG, and APC Chieftain, Chief Frank Kokori If Bola Tinubu says he will follow in Buhari’s footsteps, that does not mean he will be like Buhari. He was striving for power, thus those were merely political discussions. Tinubu will pursue his approach, and you will notice changes from now on. Tinubu would not follow Buhari because he has no philosophy or achievements to be proud of. Tinubu is a clever man with his agenda, and one of the first things he should do is ensure that Nigeria operates under a truly federal system. Nigeria is being managed falsely as a result of what the military did, thus he should properly decentralize the government. Every Nigerian understands the value of security. Buhari talked about security, but he couldn’t do anything about it; he was a security failure. Tinubu should battle corruption and revive the economy. Buhari was isolated, taciturn, and surrounded himself with a clique. Buhari did not have control over his government; his ministers did. Buhari’s ministers were lords who could do whatever they wanted. No government in the world gives its ministers carte blanche.
