Nigeria was like a cancer patient requiring treatment and must now endure the “discomfort” that comes with recovery.
This was part of President Bola Tinubu’s remarks during his broadcast marking Nigeria’s 66th Independence Anniversary on Thursday, where he defended his administration’s reforms to address the challenges facing Nigerians.
“Nigeria was like a sick patient who receives the terrible news that he has cancer. His doctor explains that the treatment will be difficult and painful, but that it offers a strong prospect of recovery,” he told the nation in the early morning address.
“The patient has a choice. He can begin treatment, endure its discomfort and fight the disease. Or he can ask only for morphine, dull the pain and leave the cancer to spread.”
Tinubu’s government announced an end to the fuel subsidy regime upon assumption of office in May 2023. It also introduced other reforms, including floating the naira, to reposition the economy.
Although opposition figures and critics have accused Tinubu’s administration of throwing Nigerians into hardship with the reforms, the president maintains there is no going back on the policies.
“For too long, Nigeria’s leaders chose morphine while praying for a miracle that never came,” Tinubu said in defence of the reforms. “They focused on symptoms while allowing the disease to take hold deep within the fabric of our society. We spent enormous sums sustaining inefficient arrangements that were never intended to last. We hid from difficult truths and passed the consequences from one generation to the next.
“When this Administration assumed office, we resolved to do things differently. We chose to excise the cancer. The reforms that followed were difficult. The side effects were real. Yet, we must never confuse the medicine with the disease.
“Our reforms did not create the weaknesses in our economy. They confronted them. Now, as certain influential but regressive voices would have us abandon the treatment and return ourselves to the abuse of addictive subsidies, we must resist their siren song. We must remember why we began this journey and how far we have already come.”
President Tinubu said three and a half years later that “the evidence that Nigeria’s economic outlook has improved is undeniable”.
“Our economy has grown by over 4 per cent this year. Both oil and non-oil sectors have contributed to the renewed period of stable growth,” he said, citing a decline in oil theft and reduced inflation figures among other metrics.
“Our foreign reserves have been rebuilt, our foreign exchange market has stabilised, and in 2025 this country recorded its highest revenue from non-oil exports in its history, exceeding $6 billion. This is real money being made by real Nigerian businesses,” the former Lagos State governor said, arguing that “these are not idle claims”.
“International observers, journalists, NGOs and multilateral institutions can see the change. Each has concluded that our reforms have strengthened Nigeria’s economic stability and resilience. The private sector has long since delivered its verdict, and foreign direct investment continues to rise each year. My fellow Nigerians, we have reached a turning point,” he said.
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