Your Excellency,
With utmost respect and unwavering loyalty, I pen this open letter to you, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. I write as a patriotic Nigerian, a staunch and consistent supporter of your political vision, and a member of civil society organization and economic expert who not only worked fervently for your emergence as President in 2023 but remains committed to the actualization of your second term in 2027.
Your Excellency, I met you with my mentor Dr Beko Ransome kuti in 1998 after he was released from prison , in our shot discussion , you said new Lagos is possible,which you eventually did Today Lagos is a model to other states. I am not a sycophant—far from it. This letter is borne not out of sentiment but of sincere concern for our great nation’s economic destiny. As your loyal supporter, I have attempted on several occasions to seek a direct audience with you to offer my candid advice on pressing economic issues, but in the absence of that opportunity, I consider it a patriotic obligation to present this counsel publicly.
“The friend who tells you the truth is more valuable than the one who only tells you what you want to hear.” So says a Yoruba proverb. I am sorry to dish out this proverb, because according to Yoruba culture a child or a younger one is not expected to speak in parables before an elder, pardon me sir.
Nigeria’s Economic Status: The Reality;
Mr. President, Nigeria stands at a fragile economic crossroad. The most recent figures from the Debt Management Office show that our total public debt has ballooned to ₦121.67 trillion as of March 2025, with external debt constituting ₦42.1 trillion. Now, the proposed $22.7 billion loan, if eventually obtained would be an addition to this burden, may push Nigeria into an unsustainable debt profile with dire long-term consequences.
The implications are ominous!
• Debt servicing now consumes over 90% of Nigeria’s revenue, leaving little for capital projects.
• Inflation remains stubborn at 22.22% as at June,2025, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), shrinking household purchasing power.
• The Naira has weakened to over ₦1,500/$ on the official window, and worse on the parallel market.
• The living standard of the average Nigerian has declined sharply, as food inflation, unemployment, and currency depreciation create unbearable hardship.
A Better Path: Wealth Creation, Not Debt Accumulation:
Your Excellency, Nigeria is not a poor country. We had only been poorly managed by past Leaders. We are blessed by God with an embarrassment of natural riches, from vast arable land to solid minerals, hydrocarbons, and a youthful population ready to work.
Although you have performed brilliantly well since you assumed the prestigious office of the President but, much is still required to move the country from the nadir rubbles of economic doldrums to the Olympian height of economic surpluses and buoyancy as against the current budget deficit that is pummeling Nigeria like a hydra-headed monster.
In essence, rather than deepening our debt dependency, I strongly recommend a paradigm shift from borrowing to aggressive wealth creation by:
1. Eradicating Insecurity: Without security, there is no economy. Farmers are fleeing their lands. Investors are wary. You must crush every form of terrorism, banditry, and kidnapping. A nation at war with itself cannot develop.
2. Unlocking Agricultural Potential: Nigeria has over 70 million hectares of arable land. Imagine what could be achieved with large-scale mechanized farming, agri-processing zones, and export-ready products. We can become the food basket of Africa and indeed the world.
3. Industrialization and Job Creation: Establish functional, export-driven industries across states. Utilize natural endowments to set up bitumen processing plants, petrochemical industries, and solid mineral value chains. With the right policy framework, our bitumen deposits in Ondo, Ogun, and Edo States can make us a net exporter of asphalt and road construction materials.
4. Attracting Foreign Direct Investment (FDI): Investors need policy stability, security, infrastructure, and credible governance. Nigeria should become a magnet for capital, not a beggar for loans.
5. Boosting Non-Oil Revenue: Crude oil alone is not enough. Tap into gold, lithium, coal, iron ore, and rare earth minerals. Also, enhance digital and blue economy frameworks and creative industries.
6. Continue to fight or eradicate corruption without sparing any sacred cow….
“When you are in a hole, stop digging.” — An instructive British Proverb.
Mr. President, we must stop digging ourselves into deeper debt holes.
The Danger of Further Borrowing!
Further external borrowing among many other dire consequences, will only:
• Weaken the Naira further, as repayment obligations rise.
• Lead to a credit rating downgrade, affecting investor perception.
• Push up inflation, as more Naira is printed to meet debt service.
• Reduce capital expenditure, as debt service crowds out development.
• Lead to intergenerational poverty, with unborn Nigerians paying for today’s debts.
Mr. President, Your Legacy Awaits!
Asiwaju, you have a rare opportunity to reverse decades of economic mismanagement. History beckons you. Rather than borrowing endlessly, build a self-sustaining economic fortress powered by innovation, security, infrastructure, and diversification.
Nigeria can become a lender, not a perpetual borrower. Let us be known as the generation that dug wells of wealth and not holes of debt. Let our children inherit surpluses, not sorrow.
Mr. President, I remain your loyal foot soldier in the struggle for a better Nigeria. My loyalty is not blind. It is laced with reason, love for country, and a duty to posterity.
I still seek to see you in person, not for personal gain, but to share practical policy recommendations for economic revival. Until then, this open letter stands as my humble and heartfelt contribution to the national dialogue.
“A stitch in time saves nine.”
“You cannot plant maize and expect to harvest yam.”
“He who wants honey must brave the bees.”
Mr. President, it is time to build, not borrow but to lead Nigeria to the mountaintop of economic greatness.
The world is watching. The people are waiting. History will judge.
Yours patriotically and respectfully,
Signed.
Femi Ajimuda
Executive Director
Open rights group (ORG)
President
Cividesk Alliance
Member of Editorial board of THE standard magazine
Chairman
South West Youth Forum
Senior Special Investigator with Security Monitor
E–mail: femimuda@gmail.com
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