NECA tasks Tinubu on the rising cost of living

…Demands action to mitigate persistent inflation

Against the backdrop of rising cost of living in the country and its attendant impact on the population and businesses, the Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA) has charged the President Bola Tinubu’s led administration to urgently address the challenges of persistent inflation to mitigate the problem and save the country from total collapse.

The Director-General of NECA, Mr. Adewale-Smatt Oyerinde said the situation is already having a negative impact on Nigeria’s poverty and production index.

“In the last one year, we have witnessed perpetual rising inflation, commodity price instability, reduced industry capacity utilization and a gradual dwindling of the purchasing power of Nigerians, all of which has further dragged many enterprises out of existence and Nigerians below the poverty lines”.

The NECA Director General noted that while the current administration has lined out policy plans to improve the living standards of the masses, such plans must be backed by deliberate and quick responses.

“As it is obvious to all, there is rising agitation owing to the rising cost of living, compounded by the increasing cost of PMS and threat of increment in electricity tariff amongst others,” he said.

He noted that while NECA commended the removal of fuel subsidy, renewed efforts at curbing oil theft and the ongoing attempt to reform the Tax administration system with the appointment of Mr. Taiwo Oyedele as Chairman of the Tax Reform Committee, it is, however, important that government take more drastic steps to stop the slide into hopelessness by Nigerians and in deed organized businesses.

Oyerinde expressed that it is instructive to note that businesses and households are currently being over-stretched beyond their shock buffers.

He lamented that presently there is a drag on business operation as production plans are persistently displaced by frequently changing factor costs, and households are constantly adjusting consumption to accommodate their inadequate real income.

Proffering immediate short-term considerations, Oyerinde said at this breaking point, it is imperative for government to quickly take deliberate actions to mitigate the persistent rise in inflation so as to address the fast-accelerating cost of living in the country. Such actions, he opined may include price stability mechanisms, periodic feedback on the progress of the ongoing work at the refineries, reversal of the VAT on AGO, and suspension of the planned upward review of electricity tariff.

“More importantly, government must conclude all palliative measures, which we expect should provide some immediate respite to both individual and corporate citizens,” he stated.