By Chukwudi Nweje
Lawyer and public affairs analyst, Adebayo Adeolu has said that Nigeria’s quest for foreign investors must begin with President Bola Tinubu providing a safe and secure environment at home. He argues that foreign direct investment (FDI) will come naturally if there is a safe environment at home. He also discussed other national issues.
What is your take on the 2024 budget signed by President Bola Tinubu, it was observed that the National Assembly increased the figure from an initially proposed N27.5 trillion to N28.77 trillion, even as it allocated more funds to the legislature?
A National budget refers to an itemised plan consisting of estimates of government spending and revenues for a fiscal year. It estimates the spending that is often related to the revenue generated by the country. The budget is a policy document that has technicalities along with priorities.
The increase of the budget estimates is not a big deal because national budgets have the flexibility to be reviewed upwards or downwards depending on the economic circumstances surrounding the country at the particular time.
An upward review of the budget brings with it great expectations from the people of Nigeria. You may ask what the benefits of the upward review are? Firstly, it brings with it expectations of job opportunities and job creation, economic growth, macro-economic stability, better investment environment, increased human capital development and reduction in poverty and greater social security.
However, in terms of priorities, the budget is faulty in many areas. For instance, the priority given to building of the Vice President’s house and money allocated to office of the First Lady and Presidential lodge in Lagos, which runs into billions of naira while the repair of a major road from Benin to Auchi was awarded at a mere N200 million does not show good sense of priority.
You mentioned that national budgets should be flexible with room for either upward or downward review. In the 2024 budget it was an upward review where the lawmakers allocated more funds to the National assembly, what is you take on that?
By allocating more funds to themselves, the lawmakers showed they are more interested in their personal benefits than development. The decision to buy expensive Lexus brand 600 model SUVs that costs about N160 million per unit, the lavish renovation of already luxurious houses and other ridiculous things shows that the National Assembly is not ready to trim down on its expenses and high cost of governance, and it appears the President has no will to change the direction. If the government is serious about cutting costs, it should have started from the top and that would have cut down on government expenses.
What is your takeaway from the president’s New Year broadcast to Nigerians?
The broadcast echoes a lot of promises of a better future for Nigeria. The speech sounds very positive and the president sounds very confident that all would be well in Nigeria. But the reality on ground is otherwise. Few days before the broadcast, Nigerians woke up to another sad news of massacre of innocent Nigerians in the Middle Belt of Nigeria. The attack on two villages in Plateau State by bandits and the killing of about 200 people by militiamen who ransacked the villages and turned the people into refugees remains unsolved. There is insecurity in several parts of the country with scores of gallant soldiers paying the ultimate price with their lives in the bid to secure Nigeria.
It is puzzling that the President made no mention of the attacks on the villages in Plateau State, an obvious indication that the speech was not updated.
Just seven months in office, the Tinubu-led administration is battling with allegations of corruption and misappropriation of public funds and other irregularities in the Ministries of humanitarian affairs and poverty Alleviation, what is your take?
The President should take another look at this Ministry of Humanitarian affairs and Poverty Alleviation. The Minister in that ministry before as Betta Edu is also being probed for mismanagement of the huge funds.
The NPower money under former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo was also misappropriated and mismanaged.
President Tinubu should search well; there are so many people available to work with him and do a better job.
2023 was a particularly tough year for many Nigerians and indications so far in 2024 suggest that the year will not be different, what do you think the Federal Government should do to alleviate the burden of Nigerians?
The Tinubu government has big challenges with many multinational companies pulling out their operation from Nigeria because they said the environment is too hostile to do business. What I expected the President to do was to invite the manufacturers and businessmen in Nigeria to ask how the challenges faced by their businesses and companies can be solved but this was not done.
The President was ill-advised by a bandwagon team who didn’t understand what is needed to run a country. It must be said that being a former governor of a state is totally different from being a President of a country like Nigeria.
But it appeared the President was convinced he needed to use the same strategy that his predecessors used years ago, where the country went around seeking foreign investors. The circumstances at the time were what triggered the move that brought success. But the strategy today needs a different approach entirely from the President. The President needs to work from inside Nigeria for at least a year before making any move to go overseas for any reason whatsoever.
The trip to France, Dubai, America all fell through without much success but diplomatic scorn because he had not put anything in place at home. The Chinese leader hardly leaves his seat unless for very important functions, rather they send representatives and diplomats.
What is the way forward?
The President has to look at and also scrutinize how the details are diligently disbursed and allocated to the various ministries and states. A failure of scrutiny will be so damaging as the corruption going on would swallow all the great expectations of a large budget which is expected to make sweeping changes to the economy of Nigeria.
Nigeria has money but the problem has always been good management of the resources and the trend of seeking out foreign investment will not be necessary once the economic management is tidy and set up properly because foreign investors will be the ones to approach the government of Nigeria for new investment and partnerships that would be of benefit to both sides.
The bottom line is that with a determined leader and a good team, Nigeria’s fortune can be turned around.
The stage we are in Nigeria and the crisis within has gotten to a stage where state emergency is needed in the security situation across the country, the health sector where 70 per cent of our best doctors have relocated overseas through their desire to get better conditions of work service and through the direct snatching of our man power of skilled labour by foreign countries who offer greater comfort for our skilled workers. The development has left the health sector paralysed by shortage of qualified doctors and this is happening in every sector today. The government must find a way to stabilize the Naira and bring down the high cost of doing business in Nigeria and also the high cost of living.