Reno Omokri’s latest epistle titled “Ten More Economic Miracles President Tinubu Has Achieved for Nigeria” reads less like an objective analysis and more like the desperate chant of a paid praise singer clutching at straws to justify his rent. Omokri, who now moonlights as an unsolicited spokesperson for a regime trapped in economic chaos, attempts to sell Nigerians a utopia that exists only in his imagination and in the propaganda mills of Aso Rock. His so-called “miracles” crumble when measured against the harsh realities of everyday Nigerians—realities that no amount of cooked statistics can conceal.
Let us start with his claim that the foreign reserves have risen to $42.8 billion. As of the most recent data from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), our reserves hover around $33 billion, a figure that has been fluctuating downward due to incessant forex interventions and dwindling export earnings. In fact, Nigeria’s reserves have not touched $42 billion since 2019. To claim otherwise is either gross misinformation or deliberate deception.
Omokri also boasts that the naira has appreciated to ₦1455 per dollar. But any Nigerian who visits a Bureau de Change or checks online forex trackers knows that the parallel market still trades the naira at between ₦1,600–₦1,650/$ as of October 2025. Even the so-called appreciation is artificial—achieved by restricting access to dollars and threatening traders. Inflationary pressure and scarcity still choke businesses, while importers can barely fund letters of credit. If this is what Omokri calls “economic miracle,” then Nigerians are witnessing a miracle of hunger.
He further claims food prices have decreased and inflation dropped to 20.12%. Another fabrication. The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) reported in September 2025 that headline inflation stands at 31.5%, while food inflation is above 38%, the highest in over two decades. A bag of rice that sold for ₦45,000 in 2023 now costs ₦82,000; a litre of petrol has risen from ₦185 to ₦860, and transport fares have tripled nationwide. The World Bank warned that over 104 million Nigerians now live below the poverty line—an increase of 18 million since 2023. So, who exactly is experiencing Omokri’s “economic miracles”?
The assertion that Nigeria’s debt has reduced by $14 billion is another brazen lie. According to the Debt Management Office (DMO), Nigeria’s public debt stock has risen to ₦121 trillion (about $108 billion) as of June 2025, compared to ₦87 trillion a year ago. Debt servicing alone consumed over 91% of national revenue in 2024. How then can anyone with a straight face call this “reduction”?
In truth, Nigerians have never had it this bad. From galloping inflation to collapsing power supply, from record unemployment to rising insecurity, every sector bleeds. The economy is sustained not by growth but by propaganda. Buhari once warned that Nigerians might miss him after his tenure—and tragically, that prophecy has come to pass. Tinubu’s administration, plagued by policy summersaults and hunger-driven protests, has pushed the nation to a crossroads of despair.
Reno Omokri’s essay is therefore not journalism but paid theatre—a mercenary’s script written for crumbs from the master’s table. His obsession with self-promotion and sycophancy is only matched by his detachment from Nigeria’s suffering masses. While he counts imaginary “miracles,” Nigerians count empty plates, unpaid bills, and lost hope. The truth is simple: no economy thrives on lies, and no regime can deceive a hungry people forever.
Reno Omokri’s Manufactured Miracles and the Bleeding Realities of Nigerians By Barrister Joseph Obinna Aguiyi
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