President Bola Tinubu has said he is not indebted to anyone nor institution, allaying fears of manipulation by any interest group in his ongoing economic reforms.
Tinubu stated this on Thursday when he received a delegation of Islamic leaders led by Sheikh Bala Lau at the State House, Abuja.
“I have no cabal. I have no sponsors. The money I spent on the elections was my personal fortune. At some point, the odds were against me; banks were locked. But Allah, the Almighty God, said I will be the president. Mine is to now follow the leading and teaching of the Almighty God,” he said.
“One of the most potent elements of defence is a good conscience. It is also a defence against corruption.
“What should be uppermost in our minds is the future of our children. We have a lot to teach them on what it takes to be a good citizen and what it takes to be a responsible citizen.”
Tinubu said protests fuelled by anger and hate could degenerate into violence and set the country backwards.
“We are reworking the social welfare scheme to reach the ward level, which is the closest to our people. We are going to ensure that we re-establish connection with the wards, again, so that we can give allowances to the poor and the vulnerable.
“The student loans will pay for school fees. There will be monetary support for the education of our children. The consumer credit will support citizens to buy cars and houses, and they can repay gradually. We have increased the minimum wage by more than 100 percent,’’ the president said.
Tinubu said the sponsors of protests place their selfish ambitions above the national interest.
“The sponsors of protests do not love our country. They have no love for the nation. They do not understand citizenship. They have alternative passports. They are in different parts of the world holding meetings virtually.
“We do not want to turn Nigeria into Sudan. We are talking about hunger, not burials. We have to be careful. We should be careful with premature politics; politics of hate, and anger,” he said.
