During a recent interview with Channels Television, Mr. Garba Shehu, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on media and publicity, expressed his belief that Nigerians will yearn for President Muhammadu Buhari after he leaves office, just as they did for former President Goodluck Jonathan.

Mr. Shehu lamented the level of criticisms thrown at the president, stating that leaders are often not loved while in office.

Drawing a parallel to the case of Goodluck Jonathan, Mr. Shehu noted that the former president was persecuted out of office but has now become the favorite of many Nigerians. He believes that a similar yearning will happen after President Buhari has handed over to the next president.

Despite the criticisms that have been directed towards the Buhari administration, Mr. Shehu remains convinced that Nigerians will recognize the positive impact of the president’s policies in the future.

One of the policies that Mr. Shehu spoke about during the interview was the cashless policy, which he affirmed is desirable and irreversible.

He stated that “cashless is the way forward for Nigeria because cashless nations and in fact, all advanced nations of the world have gone cashless”. According to him, the current policy has the potential to significantly improve the efficiency and transparency of financial transactions in Nigeria, while also reducing the opportunities for corruption and financial crime.

However, Mr. Shehu acknowledged that there have been challenges associated with the implementation of the cashless policy, particularly for individuals and businesses that are heavily reliant on cash transactions.

He lamented that the people who should be more pained by these challenges are the ones who are inflicting pain on the lower segment of society.

Nevertheless, he expressed confidence that the benefits of the policy will ultimately outweigh the costs, and that Nigerians will come to appreciate the government’s efforts to modernize the country’s financial system.

YNaija