1 month ago
2 ARTICLE AD
Members of the organised private sector and Civil Society Organisations have lamented the increasing hardships in the country, characterised by rising inflation, soaring food prices, and increasing unemployment.
They called for a rethink of government policies, which they noted, elicited sorrows and tears.
According to them, reconsideration is essential to create more effective and compassionate solutions that genuinely address the needs of the people.
Since President Bola Tinubu assumed office in May 2023, the average price of commodities in Nigeria has increased by 45.92 per cent to 32.70 per cent as the headline inflation rate in September 2024.
This rate is from 22.41 per cent recorded in May 2023, indicating a 10 percentage point increase.
The Inflation rate escalated for 13 consecutive months due to various factors, including the removal of fuel subsidy, which led to increased transportation and production costs, and the depreciation of the naira against major currencies.
A breakdown of the National Bureau of Statistics monthly inflation report showed that the average price of commodities moved from 22.41 per cent in May to 22.79 per cent in June. In July, the rate increased by 1.29 per cent to 24.08 inflation rate. August inflation was 25.80 per cent, September (26.72), October(27.33), November (28.20), and December (28.92).
As of late 2023, inflation surged, driven by higher prices for food, energy, and essential goods.
By January 2024, the inflation rate increased further to 29.90 per cent, mainly on the cost of food items.
It was 31.70 per cent in February, 33.20 per cent in March, 33.69 per cent in April, 33.95 per cent in May, and 34.19 per cent in June 2024 before it dropped to 33.40 per cent in July, 32.15 per cent in August and 32.70 per cent in September.
The Central Bank of Nigeria responded with interest rate hikes by 850 basis points to curb inflation, attempting to stabilise the economy and restore investor confidence.
These measures, while aimed at controlling inflation, have raised concerns about their impact on economic growth and the cost of borrowing for businesses and consumers.
Similarly, power and petrol costs surged astronomically beyond the pockets of Nigerians.
Despite promising to bring down the price of petrol during his campaign, Tinubu’s administration has repeatedly increased petrol price by about 488 per cent – from N175 in May 2023 to N1,030 in October 2024 – inflicting more pain on the already impoverished Nigerians.
Although, Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product experienced a year-on-year growth of 3.19 per cent in real terms during the second quarter of 2024. This growth hasn’t brought about any change in the life of the average person on the street.
Lamenting the situation in separate interviews on Thursday in Abuja, sector players and public analysts said government policies haven’t created jobs or improved the livelihood of Nigerians.
The Director-General of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, Segun Ajayi-Kadir, in his interview, described the rise of the September inflation rate to 32.70 per cent from 32.15 per cent in August as “an eloquent justification for what (MAN) has always said that the consistent increase in interest rate was not going to fight inflation.
“I mean, it is evident. You can’t do the same thing for 18 or 28 months, and expect a different result. What this has proven is that we need to rethink our strategy. We need to rethink the way we have managed the issue of inflation and the economy in general.”
Ajayi-Kadir said MAN was one of the most impacted sectors by the rising inflation and urged the government to carry out an impact assessment.
“We have asked for an impact assessment of the persistent increase, and whether it has achieved its objective. And if it has not, we must be able to ascertain what else we need to do and what sectors have suffered as a result of this persistent increase.
“If we do that analysis, I think it will be evident that manufacturing has been the most impacted because it is no longer possible for you to borrow and produce and be profitable, competitive and sustainable. So you can’t borrow at a rate of more than 30 per cent or 34 per cent.”
The MAN DG urged the Central Bank of Nigeria to emulate recent international finance developments to limit further increases, saying “Even the World Bank itself has advised that we should be mindful about increases.
“The European Bank is cutting back on rates at this moment and I think countries that want to be progressive have to learn from it that you have to do something intentionally to be able to address the rising inflation. It is not Nigeria alone, but across the world, people are cutting rates and rethinking their strategies to suit their immediate environment.
Ajayi-Kadir acknowledged that the country needs to grow what it eats and be able to fight insecurity affecting production to ease food inflation.
He added, “We also need to be able to check the activity of middlemen that have continued to create this steep rise. And then we need to give effect very quickly to the importation of the food.
“Though I need to say that we need to be very careful about that so that we set the right quota and we monitor the implementation so that it is those who have milling facilities as envisaged in the reform, in the measure for implementation.”
The MAN DG encouraged President Bola Tinubu to consider the state of the economy to make necessary changes.
“In coming back, Mr. President would be best advised that well, the situation in the economy has not really improved so there is more to be done and all hands should be on deck to intentionally backtrack the resolution of the economic situation we are in as envisaged in the stabilisation plan of the government,” he advised.
Ajayi-Kadir declined to speak on expectations of an imminent cabinet reshuffle but acknowledged that President Tinubu “is the one in charge and he has the knife and the yam,” implying the President will take the decision when he wants to.
“It’s been announced that a cabinet reshuffle is imminent. But I think we need to leave it to Mr. President to make the best decision that he has,” he stated. “He is the one who appointed the ministers and he is the one who knows what is expected from them. So, if anyone is delivering according to his KPI, they will remain and those who are not delivering, according to his KPI, he may want to drop. But I believe that it’s a political decision and what Nigerians should look forward to should just be a system that works.”
The National President of the Association of Small Business Owners of Nigeria, Dr Femi Egbesola, in his comments, said small businesses, in particular, faced a multi-pronged attack from inflation.
He said, “Rising costs for everything from raw materials, taxes, energy, fuel, other inputs and cost of doing business, eat directly into profits, making it harder to stay afloat.
“This squeeze is further amplified by weakened consumer spending power. As people have less money to spend, non-essential purchases often take a back seat, potentially leading to declining sales and eventually job losses as businesses continue to prune down costs.
“We strongly advocate for the re-jigging of the president’s cabinet, as some of the ministers are not making significant impact in their assigned ministry.”
Egbesola asserted that “best hands should be engaged to chart a more innovative way forward out of the economic quagmire we are.”
Similarly, the National President of the Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture, Dele Oye, said everyone is affected by the economic hardship.
He said, “Everyone is affected including the government, no gain , except sorrows and tears. It is a form of indirect tax.”
On his part, the Executive Director of the African Centre for Media and Information Literacy, Chido Onumah, urged the government to immediately address three areas of challenges, namely food security, insecurity, and transportation.
“It is tragic that one, as an oil-producing country and supposedly oil-exporting country, we is facing these challenges. Perhaps it is also a reflection of the challenge of leadership over the years. I mentioned before the need to declare a state of emergency in agriculture. We have been talking about insecurity thinking that we have seen the worst, and maybe there have been attempts to tackle insecurity. Still, suddenly, food insecurity is the worst kind of insecurity. Imagine what it costs for average families to put food on the table”.
“The government needs to rally Nigerians rather quickly and address at least three important issues, the whole question of security, the food question, and the issue of transportation, particularly the price of petrol. The advice will be for the government that people are going through a lot. And you can imagine when you have food insecurity, insecurity that has to do with banditry and terrorism and all of that, and then, the generally poor economic situation, it is just a cocktail of trouble for the country. It is not enough for the government to just issue statements occasionally, we want to see action”, he said.
The Chairman of the Centre for Accountability and Open Leadership, Debo Adeniran, lamented the failure of the government’s policies, describing them as elitist, adding that Tinubu should not allow the World Bank dictate the treatment of his citizens.
“Bola Tinubu is acting below expectation as far as the care of the masses is concerned. As somebody who sympathised with the masses even before he got into government, who was part of all the agitations for a better society, a society that is more convenient and comfortablelelele for the masses, for the poor generally, we believed that everything he does when he got into power, all his activities will be pro-poor. But what we have been seeing is that all his activities are elitist. The World Bank is dictating how he should treat his people, that is unfortunate. It doesn’t matter what he might say would be the long-term effects of his current policies, we don’t have to die even before the better days arrive.
“Food prices have skyrocketed because farmers find it difficult to transport the products of their farming to places where they are needed because transportation is high, the condition of the roads apart from the high cost of fuel has made transportation to hit the roof, and once such happens, they will have to leverage it on the cost of their own products. Those who manage to farm in security threatened areas are complaining that they have to pay some kind of ransom in advance so that the bandits will allow them to go and farm and get their products, which is also unthinkable in a government being run by a supposed progressive”.
Adeniran urged the President to allow the public to determine which members of his cabinet should be removed and/or replaced for non-performance, adding that the governance cost should also be reduced significantly, to reflect what obtains in the civil service.
Tinubu was expected to release a list of his reshuffled cabinet on October 3, sources told one of our correspondents.
“We have been expecting them since yesterday (October 3). I am not sure of any specifics regarding names for now.
“The last I know, he (the President) said he wants to sleep over the list again before he releases it. Maybe he still wants to change his mind about some names,” one senior government official revealed.
At a joint briefing on September 25, the Presidency confirmed The PUNCH reports about an imminent rejig.
Onanuga said although there was no timeline for the impending reshuffle, the President had “expressed his desire” to do it.
He said, “I don’t have any timeline. But the President has expressed his desire to reshuffle his cabinet, and he will do it.
“I don’t know whether he’s going to do it before October 1, but he will surely do it. He has not given us any timeline when he wants to do it, but he will do it. He has expressed his plan that he wants to do it.”
Senior Special Assistant to the President on Digital/New Media, Mr. O’Tega Ogra, had also told State House Correspondents that the exercise will be based on the performance reports from the Central Delivery Coordination Unit.
“The President’s decision to reshuffle his cabinet is also based on empirical evidence.
“When he was speaking at the retreat for the ministers [in November 2023] he said they were going to have periodic reviews and the results that are extracted from these reviews will be used to make that final decision,” said Ogra.
On his part, the Executive Director of the Rule of Law Advocacy and Accountability Centre, Okechukwu Nwaguma, urged the Tinubu-led government to implement stringent fiscal and monetary policies, review the fuel subsidy system, and identify bottlenecks contributing to the inflation rate in the country.
“The Tinubu administration needs to take urgent measures to address the increasing hardships faced by Nigerians. Implement stringent fiscal and monetary policies aimed at reducing inflation. This may include adjusting interest rates and managing the money supply to stabilise prices. Review the fuel subsidy system to ensure it is sustainable. If subsidies are reduced or eliminated, reinvest the savings into social programs that support the most vulnerable populations.
“Engage in strategies to stabilize the naira, such as building foreign reserves, encouraging exports, and attracting foreign investment to boost confidence in the currency. Identify and resolve bottlenecks in the supply chain that contribute to inflation. Facilitate better transportation and logistics to reduce costs for businesses and consumers,” he said.
Furthermore, major opposition parties in the country have slammed President Bola Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima for travelling out of the country at a time the masses are suffering under the excruciating pain of hardship.
While lamenting that the country is currently running on autopilot, they faulteddddd the president for failing to tinker and reshuffle his cabinet as promsied by his handlers.
In an exclusive telephone interview, the National Publicity Secretary of the Labour Party, Obiora Ifoh, said the least Tinubu could have done was stay back and empathise with the people, particularly in the wake of the tanker explosion that claimed 153 lives in Jigawa State.
He said, “This is not the best time for the president to embark on any trip. It is even worse when he is not around and the vice president also leaves the country. It leaves Nigeria on autopilot. In a country where the leadership is serious, somebody should be answering queries by now. A few days ago, there was massive deaths reported in Jigawa State and the two leaders were not around.
“I can tell the reason we have that degree of casualties was because of poverty. People were scooping fuel to make between N2,000 and N4,000. That was how over a hundred persons got roasted to death. The pang of hunger is even getting higher in Nigeria. We want to beg the president to at least sit in the country and do the job he was elected to do.
“As it is, nobody even knows his whereabouts. We heard he went to London and later went to other places and Nigerians are unaware. Whenever we ask, his handlers will say the president can rule from anywhere. Is this what happens what happens in other developed and developing economies? Nigerians are hungry, civil servants are not paid adequately and universities are about going on another strike. The health and transport systems are also in shambles.”
The National Publicity Secretary, New Nigeria People’s Party, Ladipo Johnson, also shared Ifoh’s opinion.
Johnson expressed concerns that the current administration has developed a reputation of all-talks-no-action since it came into office.
He said, “The first question we should ask ourselves is if there was any difference when he was in the country. If you ask many Nigerians, they don’t even know whether he is in or out of the country. It is as if Nigeria has been on autopilot for a long time.
“Again, we have a lot of talks but no action. We heard about the possibility of cabinet reshuffle. Nothing has been heard about it again. So all we can do is to wait to see their next line of action.
“The bottom line is that people are dissatisfied with where the country is at the moment and they don’t see it going in the right direction.”
Meanwhile, indications have emerged that President Tinubu didn’t return to the country as planned because he was yet to complete his vacation.
Top government officials told The PUNCH that Tinubu is expected back around the weekend or early next week from October 21.
One of the sources said, “If you were to calculate the two weeks from October 2, he should be returning on Wednesday, October 16.
“But you only count the working days. Meaning, weekends are out of it. So, he’s supposed to spend 14 working days which is going to end by early next week,”
As at the time of filing this report, the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, could not be reached for comments.
Also, multiple sources could not ascertain the date of the President’s return from his two-week working leave.
In his national address to mark Nigeria’s 64th Independence Day anniversary, President Bola Tinubu said his administration was implementing measures to reduce the cost of living.
He said, “The central concern of our people today is the high cost of living, especially food costs. This concern is shared by many around the globe as prices and the cost of living continue to rise worldwide.
“My fellow Nigerians, be assured that we are implementing many measures to reduce the cost of living here at home.”
“I commend the Governors particularly, in Kebbi, Niger, Jigawa, Kwara, Nasarawa, and the Southwest Governors that have embraced our agricultural production programme.
He urged other states to join the Federal Government in investing in mechanised farming saying “We are playing our part by supplying fertilizer and making tractors and other farm equipment available.”
Tinubu said in late September, the Federal Executive Council approved establishing a local assembly plant for 2000 John Deere tractors, combine harvesters, disc riders, bottom ploughs and other farm equipment.
The plant has a completion time of six months.
He said the FG’s energy transition programme is expanding the adoption of the Presidential Initiative on Compressed Natural Gas for mass transit with private sector players.
“The Federal Government is ready to assist the thirty-six States and FCT in acquiring CNG buses for cheaper public transportation,” he affirmed.
Tinubu also boasted that his administration was winning the war on terror and banditry.
“Our target is to eliminate all the threats of Boko Haram, banditry, kidnapping for ransom, and the scourge of all forms of violent extremism.
“Within one year, our government has eliminated Boko Haram and bandit commanders faster than ever. As of the last count, over 300 Boko Haram and bandit commanders have been eliminated by our gallant troops in the Northeast, Northwest, and some other parts of the country.
“We have restored peace to hundreds of communities in the North, and thousands of our people have been able to return home.
It is an unfinished business, which our security agencies are committed to ending as quickly as possible,” he explained.
He added that as soon peace is restored to many communities in the troubled parts of the North, farmers can return to their farms.
Therefore, “We expect to see a leap in food production and a downward spiral in food costs. I promise you, we shall not falter on this,” Tinubu assured Nigerians.
