The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, on Friday, acknowledged that the reforms implemented by President Bola Tinubu have produced pain.
Idris, however, stated that the reforms were implemented to the benefit of all and serve as the necessary foundation for economic growth and prosperity for Nigerians.
According to the minister, the pain being experienced would only last a short time.
He noted that the removal of the petrol subsidy, envisaged by the Petroleum Industry Act, 2021 was freeing up significant resources for federal and state governments to invest in infrastructure and welfare programmes for the citizens.
The minister said the harmonisation of the foreign exchange regime was to close loopholes that had been exploited over the years, leading to the loss of billions of dollars.
Idris in an interview with Punch said, “The combined impact of these reforms, no doubt, has produced pain for many of our citizens, which the President and the administration have never shied away from acknowledging. No serious government seeks to inflict burdens on its people.
“We are very clear in explaining that these pains being felt are a short-term sacrifice to make for the kind of country that we want and that we deserve.”
He outlined some of the efforts so far made in the short and medium term, including the monthly provisional wage increment of N35,000 for six months, establishment of an Infrastructure Support Fund for states to invest in critical areas that would create an enabling environment for businesses; launch of a N100bn CNG bus rollout programme to deliver CNG-powered buses and establishment of a presidential committee to drive implementation.
