Onaiyekan Criticizes Tinubu’s Reforms, Warns of Rising Poverty Among Middle Class

• Cardinal John Onaiyekan urges the Nigerian government to reconsider economic policies, criticizing leaders for living luxuriously amid citizens’ poverty
• He highlights the urgent need for policy reevaluation, lamenting the disappearance of the middle class and increasing economic hardship in Nigeria

Cardinal John Onaiyekan, the former Archbishop of Abuja, has urged the government to reconsider its economic policies, stressing the growing hardship in Nigeria. He emphasized that asking citizens to endure poverty while leaders live in luxury is unfair.

Speaking during a Marian Concert marking the 2024 Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Abuja, Onaiyekan expressed his concerns. He noted, “There is a limit to what people can endure. You can’t ask people to be patient with poverty when those responsible for addressing it live extravagantly, with massive homes and fleets of cars, while the rest of us struggle to buy fuel.”

Onaiyekan stressed the urgent need to re-evaluate policies causing this economic distress. He lamented the erosion of the middle class, saying, “The middle class is disappearing. Everyone is now becoming poor.” His remarks highlighted the deepening economic challenges under the current reforms.