How I almost ran away during my early days as President — Tinubu

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has revealed that he was so overwhelmed by Nigeria’s economic challenges during his early days in office that he nearly withdrew from the media entirely.

Speaking during a visit to Katsina State over the weekend, Tinubu admitted that the wave of criticism and tough realities of leadership made him consider tuning out from newspapers and broadcasts altogether.

“When we started, it was challenging, and I almost ran away from watching or reading the newspapers,” the president said. “I got discouraged but stayed put on my decisions, believing that the ability of a leader to take decisions at the right time is the hallmark of leadership.”

Tinubu, however, maintained that his administration’s difficult economic decisions are now beginning to yield positive results. “Nigeria is a success, the economy is turning around, it has bent the corner,” he assured.

Meanwhile, the President of the African Development Bank, Akinwumi Adesina, painted a sobering picture of Nigeria’s economic standing, lamenting the country’s declining GDP per capita. Speaking at the 20th anniversary dinner of Chapel Hill Denham in Lagos, Adesina said Nigeria has fallen behind countries like South Korea, which once had comparable economic metrics.

He blamed the downturn on inconsistent economic planning and poor implementation by successive governments, adding that more Nigerians are poorer today than they were at Independence in 1960.

He urged that urgent steps be taken to reposition Nigeria as the economic powerhouse of the continent.

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