Chukwuma Soludo, professor of economics
and former governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), on Thursday said
Nigeria’s plight has grown beyond recession to “massive economic compression”.
Speaking
at ‘Big Ideas Podium’, a public policy debate organised by the Afri Heritage
Institution in Enugu, Soludo acknowledged the fact that President Muhammadu
Buhari inherited a bad situation, but said he has “made it worse”.
He
said it will be a miracle for Buhari to return the economy in dollar terms to
the exchange rate he met when he took over on May 29, 2015.
“Buhari
met a very bad situation when he assumed power, but he has made the situation
worse. Nigeria today is a fragile state with a failing economy. Some say
failing state; some say failed state,” he said.
“The
economy is not just in recession; we are suffering from massive economic
compression. Saying it is recession trivialises the issue.
“It
will be a miracle if after eight years, by the time it leaves office in 2023,
the current administration is able to return the economy in dollar terms to the
exchange rate it met when it took over.
“The
truth is this government inherited a very bad situation, but it has made it
very much worse.”
He
alleged that Nigeria, as currently structured, favours only a “privileged few”.
Soludo
lamented that the north, a region which has produced many Nigerian leaders,
still wallows in poverty.
He
said despite having many Igbos in power during the administration of former
President Goodluck Jonathan, many roads in the south-east region were still in
bad shape.
“Nigeria
is not working in anybody’s interest except that of the privileged few and
because of this, there is an obsession with unnecessary distractions, like which
part of the country produces the president. You can have the president, the
vice-president and all the ministers from one village and the life of the
ordinary people from that village will not move from point A to point B,” he
said.
“The
north has ruled the country for several years, but poverty, to a very large
extent, is a northern problem.
“In
the last dispensation, we had Jonathan as president, the finance ministry and
almost all the financial institutions of government were headed by Igbos then,
but we still don’t have any motorable federal road in Igboland.”
Comments
Post a Comment