Former Coordinator of the Obidient Movement, Marcel Ngogbehei, has urged Nigerians to endure the short-term discomfort poised by the ongoing reforms insisting that President Bola Tinubu took courageous and difficult decisions that past leaders avoided for long-term national stability

Ngogbehei, who is now the Director-General of the Tinubu Movement for Sustainable Governance Foundation, (TMS), stated this on Tuesday in Abuja at a press conference organised by the group to educate Nigerians on the administration’s sustainable governance projects.

He said the objective of the press conference was to have an honest, open and transparent national conversation on the complexity of the challenges met by the administration and the impact of steps taken so far.

“Part of what we’re doing is interrogating these reforms, these initiatives of this present administration. We are not defending Tinubu as a person. We are looking at the initiatives he has taken and asking ourselves whether, based on the circumstances in which he got into power, are they the right moves or the wrong moves?” He stated.

“If you say they are the wrong moves, if you were there, what would you do differently? If you say it’s the right moves, then why antagonize him? Why don’t you respect the fact that he has moved in the right direction? He’s bold enough to take initiatives that most leaders have run away from.”

Ngogbehei recalled that as far back as 2013, then Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, warned that if government continued on the trajectory of massive borrowing and Ways and Means, which he described as printing money, it would not be able to pay salaries.

He said Nigeria needed a courageous leader to end fuel subsidy and stop monetary recklessness, noting that while the reforms have immediate short-term pains, citizens must decide whether to bear the pain now or transfer it to the next generation.

“For once, I call upon Nigerians to come, let’s have this discussion openly, transparently. Let’s have sincere, honest and factual analysis of what he met, what he has done, the short-term impact, and what the possible long-term implication is for the country,” he said, adding that TMS is an advocate of freedom of speech, expression and gathering, but also for peace and order.

The National Director of Mobilisation and Data Management of the Foundation, Engr. Ibrahim Said Uba in his remarks said the economic indicators, including GDP, show significant development in the economic sector, and dismissed claims that the administration abandoned Nigerians after subsidy removal.

He cited the ongoing cash transfer programme across the country which he said is touching people at the grassroots, the resolution of incessant strikes in tertiary institutions leading to a stable academic calendar, and the student loan scheme with over 1.5 million beneficiaries.

On food security and national security, he said government has introduced measures to bring down the high cost of food items and has supplied military equipment to address insecurity, which he said is already yielding results.

Uba challenged opposition figures, including former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, to acknowledge that the current administration is implementing solutions that should have been done in the past, adding that road construction projects are ongoing across several states.

The group said it would continue its nationwide sensitisation on the administration’s reforms and urged Nigerians across party lines to engage in constructive dialogue devoid of division.