WHAT IS PRESIDENT BUHARI DOING WITH
THE ECONOMY?
LET me start by asking an important
question: who wants to kill racy introspection?
There is a cacophony of voices
telling the Muhammadu Buhari administration to close its eyes to the past; that
given the enormous tasks that lie ahead, history and its consequences for our
nation should be the least of the government's preoccupation at this juncture.
I disagree. Let us keep a fiery
memory of the past so that we don't repeat its mistakes. Look back, look ahead.
The future must of necessity be built on the foundations of the past.
The Conservative Party took power in
Britain six years ago from Labour. Check the British press, they are talking
about Labour 24/7, is anyone complaining?
Japheth Omojuwa, one of Nigeria's
top three influencers seemed tasked in his patience reacting to calls that we
must stop talking about the immediate past administration in this country.
"People are still talking about who ran governments in 1865 you want us to
forget those who left government last year? (Expletive)"
Music icon, Fela Anikulapo Kuti, who
many agree was a philosopher disguised as Afro-musician taught in one of his
songs that without knowing where you are coming from, you won't know where you
are going. Wise men say that the empty can doesn't disappear by simply kicking
it down the road.
To avoid repeating the past
mistakes, Nigerians must come to terms with what went wrong with the past, how
bad were things, what was done wrongly, what the past government should have
done, before we come to what needs to be done to right those wrongs. Believe
me, episodes from the Jonathan era can fill books, and other possibilities such
as courtroom drama thriller.
Against this backdrop, I sought to
hear our erudite Finance Minister Kemi Adeosun on where we are coming from,
vis-a-vis the administration's chosen path to recovery and accelerated growth.
What is the administration doing to revitalize the economy? She spoke at length
on the many measures being put in place, many of which are not glamorous. They
of necessity come with pain. Why should Nigerians be asked to endure pains? Why
should they be asked to make adjustments?
The simple explanation is that the
economy was broken, and just as they do the broken leg, you must bear the pain
of fixing it. The current situation was caused by years of mismanagement and
corruption.
As explained by President Buhari
again and again, trumpeted by Madam Adeosun and other senior officials, we
solely relied on oil, the price of which was as high as US$140 per barrel.
Government simply reticulated oil revenue through personal spending by corrupt
leaders, wasteful expenses and salaries. This was done rather than investing in
what would grow the economy. Economies grow due to capital investment in assets
like seaports, airports, power plants, railways, roads and housing. Nigeria has
not recorded a single major infrastructural project in the last 10 years. In
short the money was mismanaged.
In addition to failing to spend
money on what was needed, no savings were made by Government unlike other
countries like Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Norway.
To compound the problem, the
previous government was borrowing heavily and owed contractors, and
international oil companies. When this government took over we had accumulated
debt back to the level it was before the Paris Club Debt Forgiveness.
All these factors were building up
to Nigeria heading for a major crisis if the price of oil fell. Nigeria did not
have fiscal buffers to withstand an oil shock.
The oil shock should and could have
been foreseen. These are matters that
both the Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II and Professor Chukwuma Soludo, both
of them eminent former Central Bank Governors had occasions to warn the
government of the day about, but they were clobbered. The dire warning was
written all over the wall, but they were ignored by Nigeria’s economic
managers.
What should they have done?
They should have had the courage and
vision to do as the present administration is doing through the Economic Team,
the Ministry of Finance under Madam Adeosun and the various agencies of the
state to envision a better future by first of all fighting corruption. Look at
what a civilian administration is today doing to the military, investigating
their finance and accounts that the military could not do to themselves.
See what the current administration
is doing sanitize the huge salary bill by eliminating payroll fraud. So far,
the federal payroll has been rid of about 40,000 ghost workers. More than eight
billion Naira stolen monthly has been saved.
We are also saving on wasteful
expenses like First Class Travel and Private jets for official trips.
The federal government is not
limiting the reforms to the centre but forcing State Governments to reform
their spending and build savings or investments.
Government is also increasing
spending on capital projects especially on infrastructure needed to make
Nigerian businesses competitive and create jobs. The administration is at the
same time blocking leakages that allowed government revenues to be siphoned
into private hands.
Currently, there is focus on key sectors
(apart from oil) that can create jobs and or generate revenue such as
Agriculture, Solid Minerals and Manufacturing. If these things had been done
when the oil price was as high as US$140 per barrel, Nigeria would not be in
the current predicament. We would not be suffering now if we had no cash
reserves but we had regular supply of power, a good rail system, good roads and
good housing.
Now that the oil has fallen as low
as US$28 per barrel, it is very difficult to do what is needed but they must be
done to save Nigeria. There is no other way if we want to be honest.
If PDP were still in power they
would have continued deceiving people, by borrowing to fund stealing and
wastage and the problem would have simply been postponed for future generations
to face.
There are many who say that this
Government’s economic strategy is unclear whereas the previous government
seemed well co-ordinated. I will make the confession that we, the officials
hired to communicate government policies, that includes myself, have not done
as well as we should have.
The truth is that more than any
other time before, there is a clear direction and strategy for achieving growth
and development. Revisionists may not agree, but the truth of the matter is
that the previous administration only had one issue, which was how to spend
money (oil revenues and borrowed money).
As mentioned earlier this spending was focussed on the wrong things and
even though the economy seemed to be growing it was not sustainable, it was, as described by Minister Adeosun,
a classic “boom and bust”’ driven solely
by the oil price.
Unemployment was and remained high
(never forget the NIS jobs that
exploited thousands of desperate graduates in a scam that was used to fund
house purchases in high brow areas and claimed so many lives)
Inequalities were growing (our then
President boasted about the highest number of private jets when most Nigerians
could barely afford to eat).Terrorism and social unrest were growing. Real
development was lacking. As soon as the oil price fell, these vulnerabilities
were exposed.
From its records so far, this administration
is trying to reset the Nigerian economy and ensure that it attains its
potential and is diverse and resilient. We are doing this at a time when the
global economy is in crisis due to the oil price collapse. Even rich nations
like Saudi Arabia are experiencing problems
The Government is people-focussed
and wants the economy to grow in a way that will create a more stable future
which is not dictated by world oil prices (over which we have no control). No
more boom and bust (thanks Minister Adeosun).
Nigeria wants to take responsibility
for its own destiny, therefore our policies will ensure that Nigeria returns to
growth in a sustainable manner. No more dependence on oil. Every part of
Nigeria has a role to play in contributing to our growth. We will create an
environment where people can thrive and where business can grow.
To this effect, all relevant
agencies have been reoriented to:
· Focus government spending on
infrastructure which will create jobs and opportunities for Nigerians across a
number of sectors (not just oil).
· Ensure that we reduce our reliance on
oil by developing other revenue streams such as taxes, efficient customs
collections and other government revenues.
· Develop key sectors in which we have
comparative advantage.
· Encourage development of agriculture
to ensure food security for our huge population.
· Develop petro-chemical industry on the
back of the oil industry.
· Develop solid mineral extraction and
· Develop light manufacturing to provide
locally made basic needs and reduce importation.
If you are an official of this
administration and a mixer, that is someone who mingles with citizens high and
low, a charge you are forced to defend is that this Government seems to be
bringing austerity and suffering to the people. Blame not, Buhari.
The current pain is due to the
mismanagement of the past. What Nigeria is currently experiencing was
inevitable. This government is simply being honest with the people instead of
piling up debts and concealing the truth by pretending all was rosy. This
government believes that Nigerians deserve to know the truth.
People stole unbelievable amounts of
money. The kind of money some of these ex-officials hold is itself a threat to
the security of the state. Since it is not money earned, they feel no pain
deploying just anyhow to thwart genuine and well-intentioned government
efforts.
Sadly, even that which was not
stolen was wasted. Government coffers were left empty, with huge debts unpaid
and unrecorded (this government is working to quantify the amount owed). Even
the current high food prices can be traced to past deceit. For example, the previous government
purchased fertiliser in 2014, worth N65Bn and left the bill unpaid. In 2015 the
suppliers could not supply fertiliser which resulted in a low harvest,
shortages and high food prices. This government had to pay off the debt so that
the suppliers could begin to supply fertiliser again. Across Nigeria a green revolution is
occurring as Nigerians are going back to the farms, from rice in Kebbi and
Ebonyi to Soya and Sesame in Jigawa and Kano. At the same time Nigerians are
looking inwards to identify commercial opportunities from agri-businesses.
Most of our road contractors had not
been paid since 2012, many of them had sent their workers away adding to the
unemployment problem. This government has released capital allocations in the
last three months that is more than the whole of 2015. In 2015 Nigeria spent a
paltry N19Bn on roads, in three months we have spent N74Bn and we are already
releasing more.
In the transport sector in 2015,
government spent just N4.2Bn; we have spent N26Bn with more to follow. We are
starting a concession that will revive our old rail system for freight, whilst
we build a new high speed rail system. Moving heavy goods by rail will reduce
our transport costs which will reduce food prices and will save our roads from
damage from heavy loads. Government will embrace the private sector through
PPP, concessions and other collaborations to deliver services and
infrastructure efficiently.
Nigerians expected a lot from President Buhari
and are right to have done so. Many feel disappointed. While much of this
warranted, a lot more is arising from opposition politics.
A man who has promised good things
is being accused of failing to use the palm to cover the sun or that he is
unable to stop the rain. Nigerians are right to be disappointed but they must
direct their anger at the right quarters. The bad management and corruption of
the past are firmly to blame.
This government is fighting
corruption. It is working hard to do things right and do them in a manner that
will endure. No government has ever considered the poor like this one. Under
the current budget, the administration devoted N500Bn for social intervention
programmes for those who need and deserve support.
There are also programmes for
affordable housing with mortgages which will transform thousands from tenant
status to homeownership.
Any process that will endure, must
involve some pain but things will begin to improve. There is always a time lag
between policy and effect. That is why the bad effects of past policies are
manifesting now. Similarly, the positive impact of the work being undertaken to
fix Nigeria’s problems will soon begin to show and we will emerge from this
period stronger, wiser and more prosperous.
There is hope for Nigeria, a hope that
was previously clouded by corruption, greed and lack of focus.
Nigeria is starting over and
everyone has a role to play. Look back, look ahead.
Garba Shehu, Senior Special
Assistant to the President (Media and Publicity)
Jubilation as court removes FRSC’s
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