Tinubu Isn’t The Cause Of Economic Hardship – Okechukwu

The former Director General of Voice of Nigeria (VON), Osita Okechukwu, has said the country’s economic crisis was not caused by President Bola Tinubu.

Naijaonpoint reports that Okechukwu said Nigeria’s current economic hardship dates back to 1986, adding that the President only inherited it.

In an interview with News Central on Wednesday, the All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain recalled that Nigeria’s government in 1986 was advised to leave the nation’s economy in the hands of private sectors by some foreign powers.

According to him, the privatization of the nation’s electricity was done in line with the advice. He, however, regretted that the outcomes were bad.

“The economic hardship is biting. Mr. President agrees on that as well. And nobody can shy away from the fact that we are facing some gruesome economic time. But going back to the issue of policy or mentioning any name, I won’t say so. The canvas for this policy, which is neoliberal policy, has been on the table for the last 39 years. If you remember what the former president, Ibrahim Babangida, when he launched his book, he reminded us where the rain started beating us. It was back in 1986, 39 years, when we changed to what they call the Washington Consensus or the Chicago School of Thoughts. Where they said that the private sector had to take over the reins of economic activities in the country. 

“And when we started an issue like privatization, we said, ok, we don’t have enough electricity supply, but it’s better to be done by the private sector. And went ahead to privatize our electricity chain, by the generation, the distribution, the transmission. And today, the federal government of Nigeria has spent more money and we are still behind the expectation anticipated by the structural adjustment program,” he explained.

The former DG of VON assured that President Tinubu was committed to reviving the economy.

“So I don’t think it’s President Tinubu’s making. It is an inheritance. And it was too late in the day for President Tinubu to run away from it. So I think President Tinubu had said, ok, why don’t we harvest the advantages of the policy by looking at the foreign side, for them to be of help to us. That’s why you could see major foreign investors coming in, especially in the oil sector,” he stated.