Former Head of State, Gen. Yakubu Gowon (retd.), has said Nigeria is making progress under President Bola Tinubu, noting that the President is doing his best to address the country’s challenges.
Gowon made the remark on Saturday while speaking with journalists after visiting President Tinubu at the State House, Aso Rock Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The elder statesman said Tinubu was “doing the best he can all round” across different sectors of governance, adding that there was no particular area where the President needed improvement.
According to him, his visit was to thank the President for his efforts and acknowledge the progress Nigeria is making under the current administration.
“As far as it goes, isn’t he doing the best he can all round? So, there is no particular place. Every other area — political, economic, social — and of course the major problem that we have today, security, he is doing everything to deal with those for the good of Nigeria,” Gowon said.
When asked which areas he would like the President to improve on, the former Head of State insisted there was none in particular.
“There is no particular place. He has got to look after the interests of Nigeria in all areas. I came to see him and to thank him for all the good work that he is doing for the country.
“We had to look at all the good work that the President is doing and the progress that Nigeria is making economically and otherwise,” he added.
On the security challenges confronting the country, Gowon expressed confidence in the President’s efforts, saying Tinubu was tackling the situation as best as possible.
“The major problem that we have today, he is doing everything to deal with those for the good of Nigeria and for the good of all Nigerians,” he said.
Asked to speak on recent developments in the country given his reputation as a voice of peace, Gowon insisted that only President Tinubu could rally Nigeria through its current challenges.
He said, “The problem that is happening today, it is only the government today, Mr. President, that can rally and deal with it, and he is dealing with it the best he can without creating any problem for Nigeria and for the country.”
Gowon assured Nigerians that the government was handling the situation appropriately and expressed optimism about the country’s future.
“I can assure you, the government is handling it the best it can to ensure that Nigeria, in the end, achieves the peace that it deserves, that it requires and it deserves,” he stated.
Gowon, who ruled Nigeria from 1966 to 1975 and is the country’s longest-serving head of state, is widely respected as an elder statesman.
The nonagenarian has maintained an active role in national discourse often attending past meetings of the National Council of State virtually.
Saturday’s visit comes amid security challenges in parts of the country, particularly in the Northeast where insurgents have intensified attacks on military formations in recent weeks.
The opposition has criticised President Tinubu over rising insecurity, inflation, and the impact of economic reforms, particularly the removal of petrol subsidy implemented in June 2023.
However, the administration has pointed to improvements in foreign reserves, crude oil production, and revenue generation as evidence of progress.
On Friday night, President Tinubu told media proprietors and executives that Nigeria had been pulled back from the brink of economic collapse and urged them to hold state and local governments accountable with the same scrutiny applied to the Federal Government.