Reported by Ariajegbe Sylvia Esezobor
A former President of the Christian Association of Nigeria, Reverend Samson Olasupo Ayokunle, has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to urgently take decisive action to address the hunger, insecurity and inflation currently bedevilling the country, warning that Nigerians are finding it increasingly difficult to breathe economically and that the removal of the petrol subsidy has compounded hardship without sufficient measures to cushion the impact on citizens.
Ayokunle made the call on Friday, October 2, 2026, while speaking with journalists on the sidelines of the 10th anniversary of the Oritamefa Baptist Model School Cambridge A'Level College, held at Yemetu in the Ibadan North Local Government Area of Oyo State. He said the removal of the subsidy on Premium Motor Spirit had increased hunger and the cost of living across the country, and that the nation required determined leaders who were not complacent about tackling insecurity and other social problems. "The solution is a more determined leadership. When the leaders are no longer complicit in insecurity, it will be a time when Nigerians will breathe a sigh of relief," he said.
The former CAN president questioned the logic of removing the petrol subsidy without a corresponding adjustment to workers' wages, drawing a comparison with other oil-producing nations. "Well, I am not his assessor. The masses are his assessors. But let us speak the truth. There is hunger in the land; the cost of living is too high," Ayokunle said. "Well, it is good that the subsidy was removed, but what is the average earning today in Nigeria? When we remove the subsidy, as it is removed elsewhere in other countries that produce oil, do we pay the same salary? Do we pay the minimum wage that is paid in the US or United Kingdom or elsewhere? What we are paying now, with the complications of the devaluation of the naira, has thrown the workers into abject poverty. It is very difficult for Nigerians now to breathe economically, and that is what a serious government, a government that will not play politics with the life of people, must address".
Ayokunle's intervention adds a prominent clerical voice to a chorus of criticism that has followed President Tinubu's Independence Day broadcast, in which the President declared that Nigeria had entered an era of prosperity and that emergency treatment was over. The CAN president, Archbishop Daniel Okoh, in a separate Independence Day message, told the administration that genuine progress cannot be measured by statistics alone but must be evaluated by whether households can secure adequate food, young people can obtain meaningful employment, communities can be secured and every child has equitable prospects. CAN urged the government to make the reduction of food, transportation and energy costs a demonstrable governmental objective, warning that "prosperity that does not reach the ordinary Nigerian home remains incomplete". The association also stressed that security must receive equal attention, saying "there can be no meaningful prosperity where citizens cannot farm, trade, travel or sleep peacefully because of fear".
The broader economic context of Ayokunle's remarks is one of sustained hardship following the removal of the petrol subsidy on May 29, 2023. Petrol prices have risen from below N200 per litre to between N1,400 and N2,000, with some locations recording prices as high as N2,500. Food inflation stood at 19.57 per cent, and the World Bank has projected that 62.5 per cent of Nigerians could be living in poverty in 2026, compared with 40 per cent in 2019 and 56 per cent in 2023. The National Bureau of Statistics reported that the national minimum wage of N70,000 has been eroded by rising prices, and the Joint National Public Service Negotiating Council has demanded a new minimum wage of N500,000, citing the collapse of workers' purchasing power. The council began a three-day warning strike on October 2, 2026, over the government's failure to address petrol prices and wage concerns, while the Nigeria Labour Congress and Trade Union Congress have announced an indefinite strike.
On insecurity, Ayokunle said the problem was compounded by leadership that he suggested was not sufficiently committed to confronting the crisis. "When the leaders are no longer complicit in insecurity, it will be a time when Nigerians will breathe a sigh of relief," he said. His remarks echoed the CAN president's call for a security architecture that prevents attacks rather than responding only after they occur, with Okoh saying "early warning must lead to early response" and urging the government to involve communities and civil society organisations in identifying emerging threats. The security challenges facing Nigeria include the Boko Haram and ISWAP insurgency in the North-East, armed banditry and kidnapping in the North-West, separatist agitations in the South-East, and farmer-herder conflicts in the North-Central region. In September 2026 alone, bandits killed a village head in Kebbi, attacked communities in Sokoto and Kaduna, and abducted travellers along major highways.
Ayokunle also addressed the education sector, calling for better management of funding. "With more resources available to the government, we expect the authorities to perform better in providing quality education, not only by releasing funds but also by monitoring allocations to ensure they are used for their intended purpose," he said. His comments came in the context of the Oritamefa Baptist Model School's anniversary, which he described as evidence of the church's commitment to education as one of the principal ministries of the Nigerian Baptist Convention, alongside church building and medical provision.
The former CAN president expressed optimism about Nigeria's future despite the current challenges, saying he believed the country would survive. "Concerning 2027, what God revealed to me is that whatsoever happens to this nation, Nigeria will still survive. That His will alone will manifest," Ayokunle said. "That is why we have to believe in Nigeria. Anyone who has given up is not supposed to be in this country". His message was both a rebuke of the current state of affairs and an appeal for hope, framing the solution not in resignation but in a demand for better leadership.
The Presidency has not issued a direct response to Ayokunle's statement as of Saturday. The Tinubu administration has consistently defended its reforms as necessary to stabilise the economy and attract investment, while acknowledging that the measures have imposed short-term hardship. The President has pointed to interventions including the compressed natural gas programme, the Nigeria Education Loan Fund and expanded social investment schemes as evidence of his commitment to easing the burden on Nigerians. Critics, including opposition candidates and labour unions, have argued that these measures are insufficient and have called for more direct relief. Ayokunle's intervention, delivered from the platform of a former national religious leader, adds moral weight to the demands for action, and it places the question of economic relief and security at the centre of the national conversation as the 2027 general elections approach.
📩 Stone Reporters News | 🌍 stonereportersnews.com
✉️ info@stonereportersnews.com | 📘 Facebook: Stone Reporters News | 🐦 X (Twitter): @StoneReportNew | 📸 Instagram: @stonereportersnews
Add comment
Comments