S.O.S ALIEME

I warmly salute the courage of Nigerians in the past years of democracy for developing thick skin in fighting agony, taxes and darkness in Nigeria despite all odds working against them.  The federal government has been tagged the tax collector by the poor masses. During campaigns to the most exalted position in Nigeria, politicians promised to make life easy for the masses and that the poor will have the opportunity to breathe. But reverse is the case as policies that will kill the masses are being rolled out every day by the government.

Every economic step that Nigerians are taking is attached to one form of tax or the other.  You want to recharge your phone with credit, you must pay tax.  You want to buy data, you must pay tax. You want to buy fuel either for the car or for the generator, you must pay tax. You keep your hard earned money in the bank you must pay tax otherwise you won’t have access to it. Every aspect of human endeavour in Nigeria is taxed.  So, tell me what the government provides as free for Nigerians to enjoy.

Adding to this, the recent introduction of a five per cent fuel tax and the requirement of a Tax Identification Number (TIN) for opening a savings account mark a new era of fiscal reforms. These policies are designed to broaden the tax net, ensure compliance, and reduce the culture of financial evasion.

However, Nigerians remain sceptical: will these taxes actually translate into better infrastructure, jobs, and social services, or will they end up as another revenue stream lost to corruption?

Though, many have gained bountifully from these economic problems but majority have resigned to fate and they have been crippled fast. In this era of insecurity and banditry, Nigerians continue to experience a situation where the few sycophants are employed by the government to deceive the people that all is well. There is practically nothing that cannot happen in Nigeria. This is a country where someone who calls the President a drug baron is being appointed as an ambassador representing the interest of the drug baron. It is well with us!!!

In this new year of 2026, I think Nigerians will want to see a change of heart of the President whose very first goodwill message to Nigerians came in the form of subsidy removal and instant economic agony. Nigerians will like to see a change of heart of a leader who will build a world class hospital in Nigeria and not the President who, after years in office, has still not built a single world-class hospital capable of treating him should he fall ill as President. The President who proudly will commission a 700-kilometre road when barely 30 kilometres of it existed, a remarkable achievement in imagination and optimism. The President who will reinforce the categorisation of electricity supply according to bank balances with higher rate. Nigeria’s power supply has steadily become a luxury item meant for the rich.

Sadly, even the rich are still waiting for steady light. The same President under whose careful supervision of the national grid has collapsed so many times that Nigerians now treat blackouts as a familiar companion rather than an emergency. An acclaimed Cesar of economic management, yet the man under whose leadership Nigeria's economy has quietly slipped from first to fourth place in Africa by GDP.  A President who has generated more revenue, yet has borrowed more money in a shorter period than any of his predecessors. Well, higher income does not necessarily translate to better economic sense.

A President so alarmed by the political squabble between an irresponsible godfather and his puppet godson that he suspended democratic rule in a state for six months, but somehow found no voice when deranged terrorists murdered an army general in cold blood. Nigerians will want to see and experience who seems far more frightened of the vested interests of a few bloodthirsty, privileged citizens than of the daily insecurity threatening over 200 million Nigerians. Nigerians will not want a President, who under his watch, kidnapping has become so normal that being abducted inside your own compound now feels like an expected inconvenience. After months of waiting and endless waiting, I am still searching for one major sector where he has truly excelled. Before you crucify me, kindly educate the world on when last you enjoyed uninterrupted electricity for one full day, I mean 24 hours of non-interrupted power supply not to talk of a month. Also tell the world if public water (I don’t think this exists any longer in this present day Nigeria) flows freely from the taps in your neighbourhood. Do not forget to inform us what treatment is obtained absolutely free at the nearest public hospital to you. Please add by how much criminality has reduced in your area since the present dispensation assumed office. As for me, if there is anything our leader understands deeply and executes flawlessly, it is the art of taxing the poor down to their last kobo. He perfected it before as a governor and has now graciously extended the experience to the entire country.

Before I end this write up, let me remind the President and his accomplices that everything fades; Power fades; Position fades; Wealth fades; Beauty fades; Strength fades. All that remains are your deeds, your character, and the way you treated others. No human being can escape the cycle of life. It is humbling. It is scary. It is a reminder. Once again, I wish everybody including our leaders a Happy New Year. May 2026 bring tangible improvement for all.

God Bless Nigeria!!!