Tide Of Times with Bright Okereke
Critically, assessing Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s stay in office as the President of Nigeria and Commander in Chief of the Nigerian Armed Forces, thus far; one will have no recurs in believing that, his less than Forty (40) days government has been driving the country with the severity and haste synonymous to military rule; as experienced in Nigeria in the 1980s and ’90s, that increased hardship and hopelessness among Nigerians.
Tinubu, who in an interview during the electioneering campaign days, described himself as one, who if he becomes Nigeria’s President will from “day one hit the ground running; day two continue running; day three, do not stop…” had upon his inauguration on May 29, removed fuel subsidy totally without concern on what will be the plight of the people as a way of “hitting the ground running”.
In his inaugural speech, he said, “….Fuel subsidy is gone…The Central Bank must work towards a unified exchange rate”, consequent upon the above speech, Petrol Stations hurriedly increased the pump price petrol and since then, the petrol pump price has continued to rise in the country; and now it is dangling at an average of N600 per litre depending upon location with the tendency of increasing to N700 and above in the next coming days.
The deepening level of hardship under Tinubu’s watch is undoubtedly, the outcome of his nasuating policies, implemented thus far, which includes the removal of petrol subsidy at the point of inauguration without effect-cushioning palliatives which directly and immediately hiked the petrol pump prices.
Again, the Higher Education Act, 2023, otherwise known as Students Loan Act, which establishes an Education Loan Fund to help Nigerians fund their higher education, while they pay in instalments two years after completing their participation in the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) programme and that has in turn increased the Tertiary Institution fees arbitrarily.
But, I ask, how many Tertiary Institution graduates in the present Nigeria, could get a job, two years after completing the compulsory National Youth Service before you talk about paying back the loan or serve a jail term?
The despatch in the sack and replacement of the heads of some key Agencies such as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Nigerian Police Force and the nation’s security Chiefs, among others is also adding more salt to septic injury.
And the removal of official controls on foreign exchange market by floating the Naira exchange rate in the open markets which were launched in the first two weeks of his assumption of office; and this is in addition to the quick dissolution of almost all Boards of federal government owned Commissions, institutions and parastatals.
It was also announced recently that new taxes are taking effect while a 40 per cent hike in electricity tariff which presumably took effect from the beginning of this month, July, according to the recommendations of the sector regulators and operators.
Indeed, these hash policies and the new forex reforms are adversely affecting peoples’ standard of living in the country.
Following the pronouncement of the President, the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, on Wednesday June 14, introduced new operational measures for the foreign exchange market which includes elimination of multiple exchange rates and reintroduction of the willing buyer, willing seller model in the official market, the Investors & Exporters (I&E) window.
Consequently, the exchange rate in the I&E window rose to above Seven hundred and sixty naira (N760) per dollar there after. This translated to about 63 per cent depreciation of the naira in the official market. The depreciation in the parallel market was rated marginal at 0.9 per cent during the same period,
Meanwhile, the nation’s external reserves has declined by $927 million during the same period.
According to data by CBN the reserves fell to $34.22 billion on June 26th from $35.147 billion.
Notwithstanding these developments, analysts including the World Bank commended some aspects of the foreign exchange market reform which included the elimination of multiple exchange rates and removal of other restrictions in the I&E window.
Infact, taking it from a constructive and discerning perspective, Nigeria could be seen degenerateing to the old hash days of 1980s and ’90s when the military juntas held sway with hash and anti-human policies and programmes such as Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) of the then Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida’s administration in the late 1980s.
A sharp assessment of the actions and reactions of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu since he took over office on 29 May will leave Nigerians wondering if the outcome of his administration be any thing different from the eight years of Nigeria under Muhammadu Buhari, apart from Tinubu replacing Buharis “boys” with his?
Steps back the memory lane will remind many Nigerians who were up to the age of records in the 1980s a scenario similar to the current experience played out.
The economic plight of Nigerians then was a horrible one; when the country’s national debt rose to over $20 billion with crude oil which was the only export commodity experiencing downfall of its price in the international market causing the country huge budget deficits that affected virtually all the social services, making health and education, poorly funded, leading to incessant strike actions and other forms of Industrial Union protests that resulted in outright desertion both in schools and hospitals.
However, to ameliorate the harsh conditions of that time, IBB began indicated interest to take $2.5 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund planned to be used to aid the recovery of the economy which did not go through following the refusal of majority of Nigerians to embark such loan. This position therefore midwived the implementation of the Hence, the implementation of the IMF-recommended Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) of the late 1980s under the watch of General Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida, instead of the loan.
Also remember, similar scenario again reared up its head under the watch of Shehu Shagari as the nation’s president but with a quick intervention of a policy referred to as “Austerity Measures” with called for a more careful and stricter spending and living.
The implementation of Austerity Measure brought the daunting situation under tentative control. The introduction was expected and it did encourage local production and its patroage as means of limiting the huge foreign exchange losses from importation.
The “Austerity Measures” failed to bring the situation under permanent control and stemming on that the military made another incursion into the reins of power on December 31, 1984 with the then General Muhammadu Buhari, emerging as the Head of State. Buhari remained in office with “War against Indiscipline (WAI)” mantra until August 27, 1985 when General Ibrahim Babangida, sacked him from office via a bloodless coup.
But, the irony is that Muhammadu Buhari, was the the immediate past civilian President for 8 years who handed over an already impoverished and strangulated Nigerians to Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who vowed during his campaign period to continue from Buhari will stop.
And indeed, Tinubu, has continued from where Buhari stopped.
But, the question is what will be fate of Nigerians, if this administration continues?
