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By Merit Ibe
Amid allegation of worsening poverty following the corterie of economic policies, some members of the nation’s Organised Private Sector (OPS) have absolved the President Bola Tinubu administration of any blames in the rising spate of hadship in the land.
Speaking to Daily Sun against the backdrop of accusation by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar that Nigerians have become poorer in the 40 days of President Bola Tinubu, Chairnman of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, (MAN) Dr Frank Onyebu, said it would be wrong to blame the new administration for the worsening poverty in the land , as it was merely the spillover from previous administration’s failures.
“I think it would be rather unfair to blame the new administration for the current level of poverty in the country. The rot, which evidently resulted from the failures of the previous administrations, cannot be corrected with just a snap of the fingers. It certainly would take some time.
I do believe that the current administration has been taking the right steps since inauguration. You have to give it to them. Some very hard decisions are required and I do believe those decisions are being made by this government. The current situation cannot be resolved by any magic wand. Due to the level of deterioration, it would definitely get bad, very bad, before it gets better. I think we should give the administration time to work. I just hope it would sustain the current initiatives.
Also commenting on Atiku’s allegation, Chairman, SMEs Group, Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Daniel Dickson-Okezie,… admitted that a major driver of poverty is inflation. When price keeps going up and individual revenue or income remains static or decreases, that means poverty is bound to rise. And that is what is playing out today in this country.
With the removal of the fuel subsidy, cost has risen and the purchasing power is low. Nigeria wa declared under the Buhari administration as the destination of poverty in the world, we can see how it’s coming to reality. Now there is so much suffering and much anger.
The small businesses are in pain.The cost of production is high and no commensurate income. About 70 to 80 percent of of small businesses need power supply to operate but this not forth coming.
So poverty has not just risen, it is rising by the day. Things are bad and from the look of things, it’s like things will continue this way in the next few months.
We all supported the fuel subsidy removal but before the removal, certain things should have been put in place to mitigate the effect of the removal to an extent but nothing was done.
So prices have gone high, so what we have now is hyper inflation.. This period is the worst for Nigerians..Things might not improve except the political Leadership changes.
Implementation of policies na d executive orders has been a major problem in this country.
Some of these orders and policies are panic measures. The government does not have the political will to see them through, that is the problem.
Dr. Nathan Owhor, a political economist..
The current rate of poverty and inflation in the domestic economy cannot be attributed to the 40 days of President Tinubu administration. These economic evils have continued to define our economy for several years now. The assessment of the former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar is therefore hasty and over bearing.
A major policy plank of the present administration was the removal of fuel subsidy. Several attempts have been made in this direction in the past without success. We must therefore give it to President Tinubu who has demonstrated leadership to deal with the oil cabal within such a short time in office.
This decision it must be admitted, has implications for the economy; it can drive inflation and poverty but the decision was good for the economy. Nigerians have witnessed the poor management of the subsidy regime over the years. A lot of queries by citizens have been raised on the ratio of fuel import over our claimed consumption level but no sufficient explanation. Those managing the process have continued to act in the most unaccountable and unacceptable manner. The president action is a master stroke of a champion and must be celebrated.
Clearly, you cannot bake an omelette without breaking an egg. The president has done what obviously is needed for now. There is the need to give the administration a breathing space.
The government must however take deliberate steps to fix the old refineries and build news ones. The capacity to refine crude locally will surely drive dawn prices and the rising levels of poverty and inflation will crash. There should also be urgent decisions to reform the oil sector and ease out those who have not shown enough commitment and loyalty to the country. The pursuit of these two objectives will reposition the oil sector which regrettably has remained our major source of receipts and payments.
