Opposition presidential candidates Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi yesterday faulted President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Independence Day address, rejecting his claims that hard times are over and economic prosperity has begun.

Atiku said claims of falling inflation and economic growth do not reflect the reality for millions of Nigerians trapped in a severe cost-of-living crisis.

Pointing out the drastic fall in purchasing power, he noted that while the N30,000 minimum wage bought roughly 118 litres of petrol in April 2023, the current N70,000 wage purchases only about 50 litres.

“A President may announce a new chapter in a speech. He cannot announce food onto a family’s table,” Atiku said.

He proposed capped production subsidies for domestically refined petrol, criticised student loan programs as insufficient, and demanded transparency regarding the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway contract, conditional cash transfers, and Nigeria’s N166.79 trillion public debt.

Citing widespread poverty, unemployment, and displacement, and referencing a recent visit to an IDP camp in Sokoto State, Obi urged leaders to focus on measurable governance and citizen welfare.

“My message today is not one of despair. It is a message of hope, determination and responsibility,” Obi said.

He pledged that if elected president, he would spend all his holidays within Nigerian states rather than abroad. (The Nation)