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Buhari Can’t Fix Nigeria’s Economy, says PDP
The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP on Monday said the administration President Muhammadu Buhari, could not proffer solutions to Nigeria’s dwindling foreign exchange reserves and other socio-economic and political challenges of the country.
Reports from the Central Bank of Nigeria indicated that Nigeria’s foreign exchange reserves dipped to $38.684bn in December from $39.8bn in November of 2019.
The CBN Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, speaking during a Monetary Policy Committee in Abuja in November had said the drop in the foreign reserves was not enough to create fear in the economy.
But the PDP Deputy National Chairman, Mr Diran Odeyemi, said that Buhari had failed to surround himself with economic and financial experts.
He stated that ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, and ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo, all of the PDP, appointed economic and financial experts, who made the economy grow during their administrations.
He also said Obasanjo’s administration was able to pay off Nigeria’s debt.
According to him, Buhari had a penchant for borrowing, adding that the borrowings had not shown commensurate investment or infrastructural provision.
Odeyemi said, “Nobody is expecting the President to be a financial expert because he did not claim to be one as a retired soldier. But as a President, he is expected to search for experts who could help him to move the country forward. This was what the former President Jonathan did and it is where Buhari has failed.
“The nation’s depleting foreign exchange is expected with the level of corruption in the war against Boko Haram, among others.
“There cannot be a better day under this regime and this is not about being antagonistic. Buhari was part of the late General Sani Abacha’s most indebted regime. What he understands about governance is to borrow and not to generate. It was the PDP administration under Obasanjo that paid off all those debts and in some instances because of his clout had some debts written off. Abacha’s regime was not different from the one that Buhari is overseeing now. The ominous signs are there for Nigerians to see.”
According to him, Buhari surrounded himself with ministers who, as former governors, incurred huge debts for their states.
He added, “How to block those leakages will not be possible under this regime because some people are smiling to the bank on the depletion of our foreign reserves in debt servicing. Until we have a change of government and all these economic marauders are chased out, the solution is not in sight.”
Former lawmaker, Senator Shehu Sani, has described the planned increase in electricity and telecom tariffs as unconscionable.
The statement comes after the telecoms regulator last week approved the increase in mobile tariffs.
The federal government also recently said that plans were ongoing to increase electricity tariffs “over the next few months.”
However, Sani, who said the government’s plan is unreasonable, insisted that it should be halted.
The ex-lawmaker also expressed his support for the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) over the scheduled protest against the government’s proposal, calling it a welcome development.
“The planned increase in electricity tariffs in the midst of poor power supply and the proposal to increase telecom tariffs is unconscionable and should be halted. The scheduled labour union protest is a welcome development,” he posted on X.
The United States President, Donald Trump, has revealed his decision to cut off all future funding to South Africa, citing poor treatment of “certain classes of people.”
Trump made this known on Sunday in a post on Truth Social, his social media platform.
According to Trump, South Africa was seizing land and mistreating some citizens without concern for the violations of their rights.
“South Africa is confiscating land and treating certain classes of people VERY BADLY.
“I will be cutting off all future funding to South Africa until a full investigation of this situation has been completed!” Trump wrote.
Reports suggest that the American leader may be defending White South Africans, some of whom have alleged that the South African policy is unfair to them.
There are indications that the federal government will on Monday meet with the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, to stop the planned Tuesday nationwide protest against the 50 percent telecommunications tariff hike.
A reliable source familiar with the matter, who preferred anonymity, disclosed this on Monday morning, noting that the meeting between the NLC leadership and the federal government is scheduled for 5 p.m. on Monday.
The source said the meeting was a “dialogue on matters of national interest as it affects Nigerian workers.”
According to the source, it will be an inter-ministerial meeting with the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), purposely to resolve issues raised by the NLC concerning the federal government’s approved upward adjustment to telecommunications tariffs, which the NLC, its allies, and others are vehemently opposing.
This comes as the NLC is already mobilizing workers for a mass protest tomorrow (February 4) against the 50 percent tariff hike approval.
On Thursday last week, in a letter to affiliate unions and state councils, NLC General Secretary Emma Ugboaja urged them to mobilize other Nigerians to send a serious message to the government.
The planned protest follows the 50 percent telecom tariff approval by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) on January 20, 2025.
The approval had sparked widespread rejection among telecom subscribers.
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