Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has criticized President Bola Tinubu’s administration for its poor execution of policies.
According to the Elder Statesman, the removal of the subsidy on petroleum products and the floating of the naira are necessary measures but have been wrongly implemented.
Obasanjo made this remark at a colloquium titled “Nigeria’s Development: Navigating the Way Out of the Current Economic Crisis and Insecurity,” held at the Paul Aje Colloquium (PAC) in Abuja over the weekend.
He hinted that the third issue was the stance on handling the coup in Niger.
“Today, government has taken three decisions, two of which are necessary but wrongly implemented and have led to impoverisation of the economy and of Nigerians. These are removal of subsidy, closing the gap between black market and official rates of exchange and the third is dealing with military coup in Niger Republic,” he said.
“The way forward is production and productivity which belief and trust in government leadership will engender. No short cut to economic progress but hard work and sweat.
“Economy does not obey orders, not even military orders. I know that. If we get it right, in two years, we will begin to see the light beyond the tunnel. It requires a change of characteristics, attributes and attitude by the leadership at all levels to gain the confidence and trust of investors who have alternatives.
“Total Energy has gone to invest 6 billion dollars in Angola instead of Nigeria. If the truth must be stated, the present Administration has not found the right way to handle the economy to engender confidence and trust for investors to start trooping in.
“They know us more than we know ourselves. And now they are laughing at us, not taking us seriously. We have to present ourselves in such a way that we will be taken seriously. If the existing investors are disinvesting and going out of our country, how do we persuade new investors to rush in. We can be serious if we choose to be but we need to change from transactional leadership in government to transformational and genuine servant leadership,” he said.
The former President emphasized that to overcome the current challenges in the country, both the government and the people must reflect on the past and present, asking themselves, “How did we get here?”
Obasanjo also criticized those who oppose his stance on the renovated refinery in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, labeling them as “sycophants and spin doctors.”
He stated that these individuals overlook the fact that the decision made in 2007 to partially privatize the refineries was based on a comprehensive analysis of the situation. Therefore, his recent decision was informed by his knowledge and deeper understanding of the circumstances.
“They forgot that the attempt that was made in 2007 to partly privatise the refineries was made by me after a thorough study of the situation. But the decision was reversed by my successor and the 750 million dollars paid was refunded.”
The former President, however suggests that Nigeria requires a “25-year socio-economic development plan” that will be widely accepted and enacted into law so as to find a way out of the current situation.
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