Barau disputes Osinbajo's gloomy Nigeria verdict, blames poor communication
- Senator Barau Jibrin said Osinbajo's Afrobarometer-based concerns were valid but overstated.
- He blamed poor communication between leaders and citizens for the gloomy picture.
- Barau cited NELFUND, road projects and global conflicts as context for hardship.
The Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Barau Jibrin, has pushed back against former Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo's bleak reading of Nigeria's economy and democracy, saying the government is working on the problems but is not explaining itself well enough.
Barau spoke in Yola, Adamawa State, at a public lecture titled "Democracy and Development: Rethinking the Leadership Question," held to mark the 59th birthday of Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri. Osinbajo delivered the lecture; Barau responded to it, according to a statement from his media office on Wednesday.
What Osinbajo said
Citing Afrobarometer surveys, Osinbajo said that while 64 per cent of Africans prefer democracy, only 38 per cent are satisfied with how it works in their countries. He said 59 per cent rated their national economies as bad, and 51 per cent said things had got worse.
He raised concern about the rising cost of living, unemployment, poor access to healthcare and falling voter turnout, warning that continued hardship could weaken young people's faith in democracy.
Barau's response
Barau called the lecture thought-provoking and described Osinbajo as "a good orator and an intellectual to the core." But he argued that the gloomy surveys partly reflect a communication gap.
"There is no proper communication,"
he said, urging leaders at federal and state levels to do more to tell Nigerians about policies and progress.
On education, Barau said the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) has opened access for students who could not afford school before. On infrastructure, he listed the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, the Badagry-Sokoto Highway and projects in the North-East and North-West as evidence of effort.
He also said the cost-of-living squeeze is not Nigeria's alone, pointing to the Russia-Ukraine war, Middle East tensions and disruption around the Strait of Hormuz, a major oil transit route. Those conflicts, he said, have raised energy and production costs worldwide.
"It is a long journey, but it is being done," Barau said of the government's plans.
What happens next: The exchange puts pressure on the Tinubu administration to explain its economic record more clearly, especially as Nigerians weigh food, fuel and transport costs against promises of long-term gains.
