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MUSWEN 10th General Assembly: Embrace Economic Opportunities, Tinubu Tells Nigerians

ByOlamilekan Adigun

PublishedNovember 17, 2025

•As Sultan Advocates Peaceful Co-Existence, Asks FG To Deal With Terrorists

President Bola Tinubu has urged Nigerians to look beyond the current economic difficulties and take advantage of emerging opportunities created by his administration’s reforms.

The president made the call on Sunday at the 10th General Assembly of the Muslim Ummah of South West Nigeria (MUSWEN) held in Gbongan, Osun State.

Tinubu who was represented by the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, noted that despite global and national economic challenges, his administration has rolled out several intervention programmes aimed at cushioning the effects on vulnerable Nigerians.

He underscored the urgent need for economic diversification, particularly through improved access to quality and functional education that aligns with the modern, technology-driven global economy.

According to the president, with discipline and focus, Nigeria can chart a new course toward prosperity.

He encouraged citizens to rise above current frustrations and proactively leverage the “vast oasis of opportunities” available within the economy.

The president said Nigerians must become agents of transformational change rather than succumb to despair.

Earlier in his remarks, the Sultan of Sokoto and President-General, Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar, urged Nigerians to be united and not allow division.

The Sultan who decried the killings by terrorists and bandits in the country, urging security agencies to deal
decisively with criminals irrespective of their religion or tribe.

The Sultan said: “There have been a lot of talks about Genocide, but I’ve said it and I keep saying it, I’ve ever seen it, heard a Christian denied his right to worship.

“We are living in harmony and we are not going to allow anybody to come and break us. We should not judge anyone. What we can do is to try to be the best we can be.

“Those killing people are not Muslims and I want to urge the security operatives to apprehend and deal decisively with criminals irrespective of their religion or tribe.”

The monarch congratulated and appreciated MUSWEN for being an umbrella body promoting unity and dialogue among muslims in the southwest and urged other zones to emulate them.

The Sultan also urged Nigerians to pray for the President and other leaders to successfully discharge thier responsibilities.

The Governor of Nasarawa State, Engr Abdullahi Sule who was the guest speaker, said President Tinubu’s reforms were already yielding positive results.

Governor Sule who spoke on the theme: “Nigeria’s Economy: Any Hope for the Masses?”, said food prices and inflation were already going down, urging the Muslim community to keep supporting the president.

“You can see the positive aspects of the renewed hope economic reforms from the prices of food items and inflation. Inflation went over 30 per cent but today, inflation is getting down to about 20 per cent and the target is to go through a one digit inflation figure.

“This is the direction that we are going. You will see the stabilisation of the FX and the price of petroleum products right now. All these are positive indicators that the reforms are working.

“I want to urge the Muslim Ummah to continue to work together, care for each other and do everything possible to support this government,” Governor Sule noted.

•Onigbinde Slams Tinubu’s Govt For Lopsided Budget Implementation

Earlier in his opening remark, the President of MUSWEN, Alhaji Rasaki Oladejo, said President Tinubu’s administration should be commended for its efforts at poverty reduction and improvement in primary healthcare delivery.

He, however, urged the federal government to spend more on roads, railways and housing.

He said, “Tinubu Administration has stabilized the Nigerian economy with the implementation of his bold but painful economic reforms which have attracted global investors. These include the removal of fuel subsidies, merging of the multiple exchange rates windows into a single market rate and implementation of new measures by the Monetary Authorities to strengthen corporate governance and stabilze the Naira.

“On a good note the Federal Government should be commended for its efforts at poverty reduction and improvement in primary healthcare delivery. Pensions for direct benefit recipients have been increased while the number on the National Health Insurance Program has increased dramatically to 60 million people. However, government still needs to spend more on roads, railways and housing.”

During the event, 12 medical students across the six Southwest states were given laptops by the Sultan to aide their studies.

MUSWEN also awarded the 12 medical students scholarship under the Sultan Abubakar Female Medical Students Scholarship Scheme

The MUSWEN president said the organisation plans to give 120 Bursary Awards to deserving students from the region in 2016, adding that the goal is to increase the figure to 600 annually.

Olamilekan Adigun

Olamilekan Adigun is a graduate of Mass Communication with years of experience in journalism embedded in uncovering human interest stories. He also prioritises accuracy and factual reportage of issues.