- By Prof Leonard Shilgba
Sir: I understand the complaints by many a Nigerian against the pains of the present ongoing reforms by the government of President Tinubu, but I ask: what alternatives do we have?
I have studied Nigerians long enough to know the following about them. Grotesque impatience is a huge negative badge on Nigerians: we see this dramatized every so often on our highways and streets. Almost no one wants to wait for the other, and eventually gridlocks happen making those impatient drivers waste a lot more time than they were willing to give away in the first place! Tell me which government has arisen in Nigeria that Nigerians appreciated? Nigerians will always have the government of their murmurings.
Nigerians, even the so-called educated ones, manifest shameful ignorance of political economics: What is the primary promoter of poverty in Nigeria? Inflation. What are the triggers of inflation? High energy costs & attacks on agriculture due to insecurity. What are the drivers of energy costs? weak naira continually triggered by unscrupulous Nigerians who have hoards of foreign currency (e g. US dollars) in their houses with which to manipulate the exchange rates to their selfish end and the removal of “fuel subsidy” that has provoked previous beneficiaries (including the neighbouring African countries).
Any monetary policy of the CBN will be frustrated by those super-rich and corrupt Nigerians who are bent on sabotaging their country. What will an average Nigerian response be? “The government should go after them.” And when the government does, what will the same Nigerians say? “Oh, is so and so the only one? They have gone after him because he is from this part of Nigeria, from this religion, or such and such a political party.” Ever murmuring Nigerians!
How many so-called educated Nigerians understand enough the efforts being made by the federal government to repair the cumulative economic damages of the past?
Nigerians holding foreign currencies (e.g. US dollars) have been given nine months (from November) to take the cash in their houses to their domiciliary accounts with banks in Nigeria at no legal costs to them: this is amnesty to those corrupt colony of super-rich Nigerians who have held their country hostage; the same people that Nigerians cheer and murmur when they are arrested and made to face the law.
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The ruling of the Supreme Court in July to have local governments’ funds remitted directly to them is a positive move. But I have known that many Nigerians are cowards, who speak against the federal government only, even accusing it for the failings of their state or local governments. Nigerians, do your civic work at your local government or state government level! You slough off your civic responsibility and think that your country shall become a paradise just by your murmurings and idleness?
Prudent investments of savings from fuel subsidy have resulted in Nigeria meeting up with her Joint Venture counterpart funding in the upstream oil sector that has resulted in improved oil production, growing forex reserves (a determinant of FDI), expanding critical development infrastructure, etc.
In less than two years, a solid economic foundation has been laid. To Nigerians who complain, “The people are suffering,” I can express sympathies, appeal for a different kind of discussion: State and local governments have a primary role to play towards poverty reduction. Both have more funds coming to them recently. The Federal Government is considering either reducing or phasing away certain taxes to make Nigerians keep more of their money as disposable income. I should request the National Assembly to expedite work on the proposed tax reforms.
Federal agencies should be directed by President Bola Tinubu to freeze increases in their sundry charges: now is not the time, for instance, to increase fees for renewing of driver’s license, vehicle particulars, among so many charges. VAT should not be increased until the fruits of Tinubunomics start pouring in.
•Prof Leonard Shilgba,
<shilgba@gmail.com>