The Presidency has issued a strong rebuttal to a recent report by the New York Times on Nigeria’s economic situation, stating that President Bola Tinubu inherited a struggling economy and implemented necessary measures to prevent further decline.
In a statement released by Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, the Presidency described the New York Times’ report as “jaundiced” and “misleading,” stating that it failed to acknowledge the positive aspects of Nigeria’s economy and the ameliorative policies implemented by the government.
According to the Presidency, President Tinubu inherited an economy that was “bleeding and needed quick surgery to avoid being plunged into the abyss, as happened in Zimbabwe and Venezuela.”
The statement noted that the previous administration had maintained a fuel subsidy regime that had gulped $84.39 billion between 2005 and 2022, and that the state oil firm, NNPC, had amassed trillions of naira in debts for absorbing the unsustainable subsidy payments.
The Presidency explained that the decision to remove fuel subsidies and unify exchange rates was necessary to address the economic challenges facing the country. It noted that the exchange rate had been subsidized by the government, with an estimated $1.5 billion spent monthly by the Central Bank to defend the currency against the unquenchable demand for the dollar by the country’s import-dependent economy.
The statement acknowledged that the exchange rate had reached its worst level but noted that stability was being restored, with the naira regaining some value and prospects of appreciating to between N1000 and N1200 before the end of the year. It also highlighted that the economy had recorded a trade surplus of N6.52 trillion in Q1, as against a deficit of N1.4 trillion in Q4 of 2023, and that portfolio investors had streamed in as long-term investors.
The Presidency further noted that the inflationary rate was slowing down, according to figures released by the National Bureau of Statistics, and that the government was working hard to rein in food inflation by increasing agricultural production. It mentioned that some state governments had set up retail shops to sell raw food items to residents at a lower price than the market price and that the CBN had donated N100 billion worth of fertiliser to farmers.
The statement concluded that Nigeria was not the only country facing a rising cost of living crisis, citing the USA and Europe as examples, and expressed confidence that the country would overcome its present difficulties, just as it had done in the past.
