Our attention has again been drawn to former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s comment on the implementation of President Bola Tinubu’s economic policies on subsidy withdrawal and the unification of forex rates.
In what appears like the former President’s appraisal of President Tinubu’s economic policies, former President Obasanjo acknowledged that although the two policies are necessary, its implementation was wrong.
But it is very interesting to note that there was nothing acerbic in Obasanjo’s statement, which is a departure from what he always dishes out to his successors in office. Instead, he subtly commended Tinubu for his very bold moves to reposition the Nigerian economy. Other administrations did not enjoy the level of pass mark Obasanjo gave Tinubu, despite being opposed to the president in the run-up to the last general election.
But Obasanjo should have gone the whole way to applaud Tinubu instead of a double speak. You can not commend the introduction of some policies in one breath, and then make assertions about its implementation that are a far cry from the facts on the ground. It is like approbatiing and reprobating at the same time. Why were these not done when he was president?
The former President’s argument that the twin policies ought not to have been implemented at the same time is not only untenable, but it also demeans his acclaimed knowledge of the workings and dynamics of the Nigerian economy.
The payment of petroleum subsidy and foreign exchange rates are intertwined and interrelated. Fluctuations in the forex rates, oftentimes, create difficulties in determining variations on the actual amount of subsidy the federal government pays on imported fuels.
This probably explains the reason why former Obasanjo’s regime toped the chat of petroleum price hikes in Nigeria with a record of nine increases in pump prices, without achieving any remarkable success in the management of the petroleum subsidy.
However, it is important to enlighten the former president that the gains of subsidy withdrawal by Tinubu can not be adequately consolidated and efficiently managed without the twin effect of appropriate deployment of effective monetary policies This is the wisdom for having both policies implemented at the same time.
When Obasanjo decided to institutionalize petroleum subsidy in the economy as Nigeria’s Head of State in 1977, not many Nigerians envisaged the negative multi dimensional implication of converting a temporary economic intervention into a permanent state policy.
After over 49 years of a wasteful economic expedition under a stinkingly corrupt subsidy regime, the nation was compelled to make a U-turn from petroleum subsidy under the courageous and purposeful leadership of our current President on 29th May 2023. A move that Obasanjo himself aptly described as “necessary.”
We expect the former President to commend the economic policies of the Tinubu administration for finding the rare courage to remove the monstrous petroleum subsidy regime, which his predecessors (including Obasanjo himself) could not dare, rather than resort to mischief making over the implementation of the key policies of the present administration’s economic policies. The former president should not have resorted to uncharitable comments demeaning of an elder statesman of Obasanjo’s status.
We seriously think the former president should have observed that Tinubu’s policies are giving life life to the local economy as well as attracting a number of portfolio and foreign direct investments into the economy. The economy has also boosted investors’ confidence in the ecosystem with overwhelming foreign remittances, including a lot of international accolades and commendations from the United Nations and global financial institutions,
We therefore advise the former president to enjoy his retirement and wish Tinubu success in the Herculean task of repositioning the economy for the well-being and prosperity of all Nigerians, irrespective of class or creed.
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