ABUJA — Renowned academic and former Executive Secretary of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), Professor Usman Yusuf, has issued a scathing assessment of President Bola Tinubu’s “Renewed Hope” agenda, accusing the administration of driving Nigerians into unprecedented penury through a combination of aggressive taxation and “ill-timed” fiscal policies.
Speaking on the worsening cost-of-living crisis, Yusuf argued that the government has systematically stripped the populace of their financial dignity. He questioned the morality of imposing a heavy tax burden on a citizenry already reeling from the triple impact of subsidy removal, the floating of the naira, and hyper-inflation.
‘A Triple Blow to Survival’
Professor Yusuf highlighted what he described as a predatory approach to governance, where the government extracts revenue from a population it has already weakened economically.
“You cannot overtax your citizens to a point that they cannot pay,” Yusuf stated. “You have removed subsidy by making them poorer, you floated the naira by devaluing their currency, thereby reducing purchasing power. After all these, why are you still taxing them?”
He warned that the administration’s policies have effectively “choked” the middle class and pushed the vulnerable into survival mode, creating a fertile ground for social unrest. The Professor’s remarks come as food inflation continues to soar, largely driven by the security crisis in the North and the high cost of transportation for essential goods.
The Legitimacy Crisis of the NRS
The critique coincides with the controversial takeoff of the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS), which officially began operations on January 1, 2026. The agency has been under fire following revelations by Daily Trust that its executive appointments allegedly flouted the NRS (Establishment) Act 2025.
The Act mandates that directors be appointed alphabetically by state within each geopolitical zone—a provision critics say was ignored in five out of six appointments. This perceived lack of “rule of law” at the top of the revenue agency has further fueled the public’s resistance to new tax measures.
Rising Resistance and “Naked Protests”
The economic despair described by Yusuf is manifesting in increasingly desperate forms of protest. Across various markets, women have threatened “naked protests” to shame the government into action, while N-Power beneficiaries and other aggrieved groups have scheduled a massive “hunger march” to the National Assembly on Wednesday, February 4, 2026.
While the Defence Minister, General Christopher Musa (Rtd), insists that the security situation is improving, analysts like Yusuf argue that no amount of military force can suppress the “insurgency of hunger” if the government does not pivot toward more compassionate economic management.
The Presidency has yet to issue a formal rebuttal to Yusuf’s latest critique, but officials have repeatedly urged Nigerians to endure the “necessary pains” of reform for a better long-term future.
