Stakeholders in the nation’s economy have expressed divergent views on the state of economy in the last 62 years of the country’s independence.
They spoke separately in Ibadan and Abeokuta on Saturday on the nation’s independence anniversary.
Commenting, Mr Sola Famakinwa, a Financial Expert, said Nigeria at 62, from an economic point of view, is still far from where it was supposed to be.
“Our nation has been characterised by economic depression due to inflation.
“More than half of the population still live below the poverty line, despite all the resources that we are endowed with.
“Corruption on the part of our leaders has made our economy worse. Lack of good policies and injustice.
“There is no respect for Rules of Law. Lack of security has not allowed the environment for small businesses to thrive.
“Over reliance on crude oil as the only source of revenue for our government is inhibiting our progress, because other areas like agriculture, industry, commerce, science and technology and tourism are neglected.
“These other areas would have helped our nation to develop like other Western nations. Meanwhile, there’s still hope for us, if our future leaders will look into these directions,” Famakinwa said.
Another financial expert, Mrs Lolade Adesola, who works with L.A Consult, said that Nigeria’s economic growth had been very disappointing, adding, “over the years, we have had bad managers managing our economy”.
“We have so many sad stories of inequalities, unemployment, currency devaluation and a host of others that caused heartbreak.
“But, the solution to this is for the government to have sincerity of heart.
“You can’t say you are going to curb corruption and then, when corruption bites back, you are surprised.
“What we really need is managers of the economy that are there to curb the excesses,” Adesola said.
She decried the high cost of governance in Nigeria, urging government to ensure that excesses and wastage of resources were eradicated because of its impact on the economy.
Adesola called for diversification of the Nigerian economy, urging the government to take it serious.
“Managing mineral resources and all other things that can generate income for the country and we can work on improving revenue.
“Also, we need to manage the debt profile of the country, because, as it is now, it is ridiculous.
“Though, they say it is not as high as the benchmark, we don’t have the revenue, as debt servicing is taking more than the revenue generated.
“Let’s say you generated N100 and the interest on your loan is N120 and you are still saying that the percentage of your loan is very low, that is a deceitful way of handling statistics, because you do not have the revenue to repay.
“Debt servicing alone is more than your whole revenue and so we must really look at the monster of debt burden and find the solution by increasing the revenue sources,” she said.
Adesola said that increase in Value Added Tax (VAT) would surely drive inflation, because “VAT is paid by the end users.
“Anybody, who produces, will just add it on top of the price and that will increase the cost of the end product,” she said.
Another Financial Consultant, Mr Tunji Adepeju, said that money should be more in circulation in 2022, adding it is a prelude to the election year.
“But, one wonders where the money is kept, considering the amount of money that exchanged hands during the parties’ primaries.
“We learnt some gave out dollars, some naira and all the rest, but where do they put the money they got from their delegates, because it has not really had any effect on the people.
“Ordinarily, one would have thought that the society would be awashed with some of those funds,” he said.
Adepeju said that there was scarcity of funds in the country, which was vividly manifested during the last Sallah celebration.
He said Nigerians were experiencing hard times, hoping that the nation’s economic situation would improve, if the country could stop importation of refined petroleum products and two of the nation’s refineries were put to work plus the one being built by Dangote.
“This may put less pressure on the naira against the dollar, because it is having an effect on the cost of production and this will keep driving up the prices of goods and services.
“And, if we minimise the pressure of dollars on naira and we put away subsidies on petroleum products, a lot of things will change.
“But, it will take the joint resolve of each and everyone of us to do the needful,” Adepeju said.
In her views, the Iyaloja of Kuto Market in Abeokuta, Alhaja Samirat Ibrahim, expressed concern that at 62, the nation could still not feed itself.
Ibrahim noted that the country had continued to be a consuming nation, while paying less attention to productivity.
She explained that the situation had resulted in high prices of goods in various markets, while many market men and women had been forced out of business.
“We have not enjoyed the dividends of democracy that they promised us; so, I don’t see the need for us to celebrate.
“Rather, government should look for ways to ease the pains of the common man on the streets.
“The way prices of commodities skyrocket on a daily basis is sickening and needs urgent attention; local manufacturers should be given a chance to thrive,” Ibrahim said.
Also, Alhaji Kamaldeen Akintunde, the Secretary- General of Ogun State Muslim Council (OMC), described Nigeria’s journey through independence as “a tale of mixed feelings”.
Akintunde said over the years, Nigeria had experienced the good and the ugly, adding that the former outweighed the later.
According to him, it is not a gain saying that the country has generally increased in terms of infrastructure and social amenities for its citizens.
“In all sectors, be it education, health, aviation, agriculture, communication, tourism, sports and others, there has been astronomical increase in the number of facilities.
“The country now has more Airports, schools, hospitals, stadia, while Mobile communication network has enhanced interpersonal communication and corporate engagement.
“The country has not fared bad in food production, though, much is still to be achieved.
“Moreover, our democracy has grown from being nascent to fast growing democracy.
“However, Nigerians quest for materialism, which has resulted in grid or graft has remained the bane of our development.
“The insecurity in the country has continued to undermine good governance that should enhanced our development.
“Energy provision is still a mirage in Nigerian and worsening and has affected all facets of the economy.”
Akintunde said that since in every problem lies the seed of its solution, the three tiers of government must be alive to their responsibilities by being committed to improving people’s life.
“The war against corruption must be fought and won to help in advancing the provision of infrastructure and social amenities for the people.
“Nigerians themselves must stop cutting corners and be law abiding in order to enjoy the dividends of democracy.
In his reactions, Mr Olusegun Dasaolu, the Deputy National President, All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), stressed the need for Nigerians to appreciate God for the height that the nation had attained.
Dasaolu, said though, Nigeria had not yet to actualise its potential, it had, nevertheless, surmounted many challenges, including the civil war that were capable of destroying its existence.
He said that mismanagement of natural and human resources had slowed Nigeria down in its quest to develop over the years.
Dasaolu called for a national rebirth to return to the golden days of the nation.
“The problem of the country is not about leadership alone, all of us must renew our senses of belonging in this country and own our challenges, while we collectively strive to address them.
“All that we need is for us to re-appraise ourselves. We need to think deep so as to ensure that every citizen has a sense of belonging, while nobody feels inferior in this country.
“Nigeria should secure her future by investing in its youths in the areas of education and capacity building, which will enhance their creative ingenuity and employability.
“Our agriculture should be put in its rightful place, as we adopt modern technology in production.
“We cannot afford to continue with rainfall agricultural system. Due to climate change, rain is no longer regular.
“Therefore, we need to adopt another system in securing food on a regular basis to enable farmers to be busy throughout the year.
“We also need to block all loopholes and leakages in our system through which our Commonwealth is being siphoned to enable us to actualise our potential,” he said.
Commenting, the Speaker, Ogun House of Assembly, Olakunle Oluomo, commended President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration for its re-building agenda.
Oluomo, a Chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), said that the Federal Government has been doing a lot in the areas of security and the economy.
He said that efforts were being made daily to address the challenges of the nation which had developed over the years.
“No government is idle. Every government needs to continue to put in its best. The best may not be enough for now, but it is not that nothing is being done.
“We are making efforts everyday to improve the living situation of our people, just as we make conscious efforts on the security of lives and property of our people,” he added.
