Dear Asiwaju,

We cannot just print money as a radical alternative to a past of pilfering, poor leadership and refusal to diversify the economic base of the nation. We risk triggering hyper inflation in a country where inflation is already in double digits, loss of savings value and will devalue the currency in such a way that the basic needs of the average Nigerian in an import dependent economy such as ours will be unattainable. Can we say there is an increase in economic activity linked to the money created currently that would not trigger increased inflation? Even the US has looked to fiscal stimulus and quantitative easing to boost its economy rather than arbitrary money printing. Where the average consumer is priced out of essentials to survive what then shall he or she resort to since an effect of inflation is a likely increase in the price of goods to meet up with demand.
On the public financing side, doing this risks lowering the value of the bonds the govt need to finance the every increasing debt we have. If this is the case , no investor is touching our bonds with a 6 foot pole and we will need to pay premium interest rates to even get anyone's attention. Please sir, keep the advice in your agbada and urge Pres Buhari to take the difficult but needed decisions we require to get us moving

kikero:


1.Buhari did not cause this current recession or the one that happened on his watch in 1983-5

2.The recession that happened under Buhari in 1983-5 started when oil prices fell in 1982...which even prompted Shagari to bring in austerity programmes by 1983.

3.Likewise the recession under this current admin started in April 2014...when oil prices collapsed due to the Saudis trying to outproduce American shale oil producers. By January 2015...NOI was warning that whoever won the election, there would be economic crisis.

4.The truth is, our economy has been vulnerable since independence. The economy depends on revenues from whatever raw materials we sell , whose prices we do not control. In the 1960's it was agricultural produce. By the 1980's, oil was taking over.

5.Where Buhari and others make mistakes is that they spend too much controlling prices on vital sectors like petrol and power. This limits the amount of investment that can be poured into both sectors, leading to job lossess and financial losses...especially from subsides which is money down a bottomless pit.

6.Because of our large population, we need oil at $139 per barrel and above, since 2017, up from $120 per barrel since 2012....to run a balanced budget.(despite our cost of production being below 30 dollars). Since 2010...we haven't had oil prices that high. That's why we are taking debts via borrowing...the money we are earning is not enough and has never been enough for our needs.

Oil is at $25. We need it at $140. We are losing at least $115 now per barrel of oil sold. (More information on my figures here)

Also due to the low oil prices, we are losing an average of $35.76million or N13.1 billion per day in accruable revenue

7. The way froward eventually...remove subsides , allow power and petrol to be run at a profit....which brings in investment and jobs. We did this for the GSM sector. Why can't we do this for power, petrol?? To long term help us transition into a producer economy...which produces goods whose prices we can control.

Modified

To anyone who thinks I am defending the current administration, see my points 5 and 7 and reflect on them. Also look at point number 6 and them make the assumption....we need to change our economic paradigm.

There is nothing to defend about this APC government. It is obvious they have failed. However, my problem with most critics of this administration is that they criticse the effects...they don't think about the cause of the effects. If we can think about the cause of the effects, we may be on the way out of this economic crisis.

The problem is, the solution involves some hard decisions. Removing subsides...and so on. The problem also is, APC, like PDP exisits to share the national cake, not to think about how the cake is baked, or how we assemble the ingredients.

Agreed! Very valid points . However the question of the subsidy should be directed also to the Nigerian people, trade unions, and Organized Private Sector. Shall we continue in this subsidy foolishness so that poverty may abound? As it is , any government which attempts a removal of this subsidy will face near insurrection from " civil society groups " and labor. We cant eat our cake and have it. Realism is needed

festacman:
It is certainly not looking good but we did neglect diversification of our economy inspite warnings over years. We had wrong priorities.We played BAD politics, fought avoidable civil war and destroyed spirit of true federalism.We spent HEAVILY fightIng APARHEID in South Africa than developing our economy. Badly conceived programmes like OFN, Green Revolution, DFFRI, NDE, etc. were created, billions budgeted but got siphoned away. Leaders' appetite for stealing public money ballooned.

Government after government paid lip service to diversification inspite of hiring ELITE economists to manage our economy: Onalapo Soleye, P. Chu Okongwu, Kalu Idika Kalu, Anthony Ani, Abubakar A. Abubakar, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, etc. We crafted periodic National Development Plans but neglected it. At a point, we abandoned the concept altogether and operated on knee-jerk basis. All geopolitical zones neglected good old AGRICULTURE and ran after OIL revenue allocations.

The populace preferred political leaders who would talk smoothly, make money 'flow' and allowed us import everything. We loathe the leaders that would make HARD DECISIONS. We became too comfortable and laidback to interrogate our leaders. We goofed. We could have done better but we didn't. We brought this BURDEN upon ourselves.

Difficult days are ahead but Nigeria will emerge STRONGER because what is written has been written.

Perfect submission. Key word to me being loathing leaders who can make the TOUGH but necessary decisions that would have seen us better off on the long run.

Ishiewo:
please, sir, what is round-tripping

This is in reference to a practice when certain institutions like banks and possibly individuals are able to obtain forex at a certain rate "officially" and can then turn around to sell same on the black market at a different price thereby making profit on the same

Always knew this day was going to come and it's about damn time too. Having multiple exchange rates with some people able to have preferential rates was actually quite unrealistic. The opaqueness and propensity for round tripping and all. I still believe the naira is still artificially higher than its actual value even at the 360 -370 bandwidth. I forsee a likely " adjustment " ( for lack of a better term since I know they will not want to acknowledge it's actually devaluation) especially if things hold up this way. Most hard hit again will be the Nigerian consumer who basically relies on imported goods all through. The gains of the public sector wage increase just got erased. Interesting times

It's time we do the following:

1. The CBN as banker of last resort with the FG need to come up with a fund to help small businesses which would be impacted directly by these economic conditions..hardest hit areas such as the airline industry will need to be catered for to avoid job losses
2. Tax cuts for individuals and some sort of tax relief for businesses.
3. Revise budgetary estimates significantly and block all loopholes and wastage the real belt tightening is here folks and that applies to the politicians. That new stupid cathedral some state planned to build? Scratch that
4 we were gonna borrow anyway to fund the 10 trillion naira budget so if we are still gonna borrow , can we really stop paying lip service to diversification and really seek to explore the agric value chain? At least that's a strength
5 begin the process of removing certain things such as power and mining from the exclusive list to the concurrent list..its time each state is empowered to go to market and go hustle to bring actual development that will stimulate local economies rather than rely on ever dwindling pittance from FG
.


.

Can this subsidy be removed already?

For all his faults and foibles, El- Rufai has consistently stayed loyal to those he regards as his friends. Same for Jimi Lawal , now for Sanusi

Great stuff...been a fan of your work since Falz's " Sweet Boy" video

Depends on opportunities and prospects available in Nigeria and in the diaspora. I dont envisage retiring in the actual sense of it e.g staying at home going crazy...there might be a slowing down or a new venture but I envisage being active at some level for a long long time and that may mean living in multiple locations

anonimi:


Were the regions not better when we were semi-autonomous?
If you are waiting on your rapacious political elite instead of working your (community's) salvation, keep waiting.



www.nairaland.com/attachments/3937452_fbimg1455225198661_jpeg11aac1d4a66dda821df3f6422c5fd4c4

You were around then? You would say the conditions are the same now economically and socio politically as it were in the 60s and 70s which is the period I assume you refer to? The political leadership is the same? I am sorry but how do you propose to influence your community's salvation as you put it when you have no political influence on that society?

SonofDevil:
is there anything holding you from holding you consituency senator, house of rep, local govt chairman and governor?
Is it not same set of leaders that will preside over the affairs?
So everything will change overnight because of new restructuring?

You have said it all sir. People talk like restructuring is the silver bullet that will turn naija to Eldorado and paradise combined. Ask a person from the different zones in naija what restructuring means to them and you would get different answers. You asked the same question I always ask. What will change when the same rapacious political elite will remain in charge post- restructuring? Who will drive this so called development? The same ones that failed pre restructured Nigeria ?

Mental health issues need to be advocated for more in Nigeria. Socio cultural and religious systems prevalent in the country have led so many to untoward silence which has worsened their condition

Nice to see people are taking more interest in holidaying, sightseeing and vacationing in Nigeria. Hopefully these would become more attractive to those who live outside Nigeria and one day have tourism become an important sector to the economy as it is in Kenya

Not actual regrets....more like things I miss. I miss the easy-going nature of life and work in Naija. The " I can't come and kill myself" factor. After a few years of working in certain sectors in certain cities, you have to tell yourself to slowdown. I miss my old friends too and the many hangouts in Lagos and Ibadan. Hard to get everyone in one place when you visit now as folks are married with kids and responsibilities. I miss the food .. sometimes. Yeah, its available but to get authentic asun and suya is such a chore. fresh palmwine is a pipe dream and correct mortar-flavored pounded yam is a mirage. sometimes i miss the "lawlessness" when you want things done in a hurry also but that's something being eradicated from the system. Generally , Nigeria may have its severe challenges but its a great place to be and miss . Had the experience of going back to my favorite haunts in Ibadan recently and i was like a child again.

This is really just wrong. Do people read at all? A panel is convened for these things. That she is head or that she delivered the judgment means she had to reach a consensus with her colleagues on the interpretation of facts as laid before them..I for one find these judgments unfortunate but till INEC and the political parties themselves learn to do the right things, we may continue to see things like this

The same dude I was part of the prosecution team for? Wonderfulment! The more you look, indeed the less you see

Interesting. Was just thinking recently of how my waka fit reach Santorini this summer. Traveling is always a pleasure in Europe

one of the most painful tragedies of this Boko Haram issue is the fate of these young women abducted and married off based on certain medieval "religious" edicts. as yorubas will say "Elede a d'oyo, ariwo e la po". One day , she and others like her will be free!

This may be an unpopular view but I actually agree with Tinubu on this. There is quite a lot of needless confusion on this amotekun issue. I would urge the governors to pay attention to the points as formulated by Tinubu. This goes beyond theatrics and emotion. What I would have expected the governors to do would be a) release formal operational guidelines that are clear on what this regional watch is to do. This is not a banana republic. There is a constitution which vests security matters in the federal govt. Just like any other agency, the regional watch ought to have clear guidelines with respect to its mandate. Secondly, this regional watch needs to be recognized in law. I cant believe a team of governors with an SAN in there would goof on this. How then do you make it legal if there is no statute supporting the creation of this watch? Is this concept only for the tenures of the serving governors or would future governors be able to use this if such a crisis ever rears its head again? Let the governors go back to the drawing board and perfect this. The idea is welcome but needs to be worked on. As for malami, if he is so aggrieved, he can go to court to restrain the governors or whatever....not his purview to declare anything illegal. On the basis of what?

ultron12345:
Rubbish

Firstly, I do not support owing employees salaries. Salaries should always be paid when due as specified in the employment contract. If for some reason, you can't afford the salaries at that particular time, inform the employees of the situation, explain to them and an understanding should be reached.

I will however talk about the so-called 'Peanut Salary'. What exactly is peanut salary?. Were you not informed of the salary before taking the job?. If the salary is too small for you, then the solution is simple, don't take the job. If you've already taken it, then resign, abi did they tie your hands and legs.

Salary is determined by productivity and market-value. You cannot be producing N4000 and be expecting to be paid N10,000.

Demand and supply of labour must also be put into consideration. When demand of labour is higher then the supply, wages are high, but when demand of labour is less than supply, wages are low.

You don't expect an employer to pay N1,000,000 when others are willing to take less. Will you buy a bag of rice at N200,000 when the near-by store is selling the same bag of rice and the same quality at N50,000. Never. So why do you expect employers to do otherwise. The same way an employee will not stay with an employer paying him N100,000 when another employer is willing to pay him N900,000.

Some companies honestly can't pay better. How can you expect a school in one small, interior town, that collects school fees of N6000 per term to be paying salary of N50,000 per month to teachers.

If you're not happy with salary you're offered, then don't accept the job or resign. If you're worth more than that salary, you will surely see other employees willing to pay your more than what you were paid before. If I offer salary of N40,000 per month, and no-one takes the job, I will be forced to increase the salary in order to fill the vacancy. You can also choose to start your own business and begin paying water-melon salaries instead and we'll see how long you'll stay afloat.

Let's also not forget how lazy and wicked Nigerian employees are. They are ready to ruin your business with fraud at the slightest opportunity. All they do is to steal your money. That is why Nigerian employees coined the phrase "Na where person dey work, na there e dey chop, na e make them dey callam work-chop (workshop)" as a way to justify their fraudulent character. Money that is supposed to be used to sustain and expand the business and even provide better packages for the staff will then have to be used to employ extra-staff to monitor each other, biometric scanners, CCTV cameras and other things that are not supposed to be needed, just to monitor staff to avoid fraud.

Start a poultry and they will be stealing your eggs. Some will even go ahead to be killing the chickens so that they'll be allowed to take them home.

Start an entertainment/viewing/game center and they'll be pocketing your money. On the days you're around at the business, the money realized will be x10 of the money realized when you're not around. Because they're eating your money.

Lease out a vehicle to a driver to use and watch as he'll finish you.

Start a restaurant, the same thing will happen. More than half of the total food ingredients will end up in their personal kitchens.

Even ordinary provisions shop, they will find a way to steal.

The major problem of doing business in this country isn't power or infrastructure, it's finding honest and competent manpower. The average Nigerian employee is waiting to steal from you. The ones in management positions will not only be stealing but will be hiring incompetent staff solely because they are his friends, relatives or church members. That's why I don't blame companies who hire expatriates like Indians and Lebanese for sensitive positions like Finance and Accounting even when we have qualified Nigerians.

Some people have money to do business in this country but they don't have time for it. They'll have employed staff to manage it, but they can't do that because there are no trustworthy staff in Nigeria, so they abandon the idea, and rather invest their money in treasury bills and fixed deposit accounts. And later, they'll be complaining they there are no jobs when they are killing all the businesses with their evil character.

Let's not forget their rude attitude that they'll use to drive all your customers away, just like they exhibit in government offices.

That's why they like government work, where they're allowed to be lazy and to steal. Where they can get money without adding any value. Where they can steal, where they can come to work by 10pm, gist till 12pm, sleep till 3pm and spend the next hour preparing to leave by 4pm. And they'll go home and tell people they went to work. That is why our government agencies are not working, that is why our government corporations like NNPC and others are not working. That is why we say Nigerian government cannot run business. Any private company that allows such will fail like Nigerian government agencies and corporations have failed.

If you think your salary is Peanut Salary, then quit and sart your own business and be paying water-melon salaries. By the time you crumble, you'll start blaming Buhari.

Peanut salary ke, paw-paw salary ni.
Resign and start your own.

well put i must say

Sometimes this FFK fellow just exhibits stupidity of the highest order. Who told the nuisance AJ has enlisted as part of his cause and that he can tell a grown man how and who he needs to show respect? The man decided to show Buhari respect culturally and then what drivel is the FFK fellow uttering? Last I checked , AJ is a sportsman, not a PDP/opposition supporter. Let FFK let the man be and dont associate his name with his insanity. For the clowns supporting his rubbish, 98 percent of them will do more than prostrate if they saw their state governors , not to talk of Buhari

one i found very interesting . Love Europe!

aww how sad. Met them a while back.... still remember them from their songs and their video appearances in Orlando Julius' "Adara" video back in the 80s. May her soul rest in perfect peace

ChyjoskyJ:


Why are you justifying evil, you have to think in 3D not in one direction. In United States alone, these names below are Vice President that later became Presidents. go and do your research well before you talk rubbish.

John Adams
Thomas Jefferson
Martin Van Buren
John Tyler
Millard Fillmore
Andrew Johnson
Chester A. Arthur
Theodore Roosevelt
Calvin Coolidge
Harry S. Truman
Lyndon B. Johnson
Richard Nixon
Gerald R. Ford
George H.W. Bush

i think you actually need to do more research and go buy a copy of the Nigerian constitution while you are at it. The position of the Vice President is as he has described. It is devoid of any real power except as delegated by the President. The fact that a Vice President can aspire or become President does not take anything away from how the Constitution framers have made it. In Nigeria as well as other countries of the world, there are deputy/lieutenant governors and Vice Presidents who never became President. Dick Cheney was VP to George W Bush and never even bothered to contest. same as Joe Biden when Obama completed his two terms for his personal reasons even though he is running now. there are no real powers for a VP

festacman:
Surprising that Bloomberg fell for this mischievous narratives inspired by the opposition. In US, does the Economic Advisory Council advise Pres. Trump or VP Pence? The answer says it all.

It is important to emphasize that the influence, which VP Yemi Osinbajo enjoyed and exerted during first 4 years in office was largely due to Pres. Buhari's ill-health and loyalty. It is this influence that people are mistaking today as convention rather than conscious concession. Let's face it. How influential was VP Jonathan under Pres. Yar'adua or VP Sambo under Pres. Jonathan. Pres. Obasanjo who conceeded too much to VP Atiku regretted it. I am sure while sincere supporters moan on his behalf and mischievous haters display their mockery, VP Osinbajo will remain grateful to Pres. Buhari for that rare 'freehand' opportunity, which endeared him to Nigerians and catapulted his political worth.

The fact remains that in Presidential System of Government, the VP is an appendage of the President. The President is the executive Head of Government and Commander-in-Chief. This is captured in the constitution. I am sure that as someone who taught and practised law, VP Osinbajo knows his place. It is so in United States from where we borrowed the system.

Now, take a look at what some former United States VPs said about the post they once occupied:

“I am not in a leadership position. I am supporting the president. He can exert the leadership and I can support him.” — Nelson Rockefeller, the 41st vice president

The vice presidency is “not worth a bucket of warm piss” and “the worst damn fool mistake I ever made.” — John Nance Garner, the 32nd vice president

“The vice presidency is the most insignificant office that ever the invention of man contrived or his imagination conceived.” — John Adams, the 1st vice president

“Look at all the vice presidents in history. Where are they? They were about as useful as a cow’s fifth teat.” — Harry Truman, the 34th vice president

“I would a great deal rather be anything, say professor of history, than vice president.” — Theodore Roosevelt, the 25th vice president

"You shut the door, you tell the boss exactly what you think. But when the door opens, the job of the vice president is to stand right next to the president and implement the policy that he's decided. And I'm prepared to do that. - Mike Pence currently serving as the 48th vice president of the United States

“I do not propose to be buried until I am really dead.” — New Hampshire Sen. Daniel Webster, on rejecting an offer to be future President William Henry Harrison’s running mate in 1839

You know your onions sir ! no need to add anything

Take it if you are able to at least break even every month

This all brawn no brain approach will make us lose this match. the Dutch are not that good individually bar some really good ones but they have been able to nullify everything we have thrown at them as a team. Tactical nous before skill. RAW TALENT IS NOT ENOUGH AT THIS LEVEL!

Quite impressed with the Dutch team. It is obvious they came with a game plan for us

Eseose9:

Many Graba is not a bread and beans coach
he gave us the u-17 class of 2015(kelechi,uzoho,wilfred Ndidi,Awoniyi etc)
blame it on whosoever came up with quota system selection.
this coach is a man that discovers talents from the grassroots

I know who he is. Discovering talents is one thing. Moulding them into a team is another. I have followed coach Garba for years. His teams have always played on superior fitness and individual talents to win matches and while that may work as it did in 2013, you will always come unstuck when playing well drilled teams. This Australian team was really poor but i did not see anything from the bench to address the lapses from.game 1 till now. Sorry but he is a poor coach. He may have other strengths but this is poor

really gutted for these lads. they were the better team but really poorly coached. i could not see anything from the bench today . the boys are really good but these "bread and beans" academy coaches smh. no tactical input, nada. crying shame

[quote author=naptu2 post=83612786][/quote]
You know your history well sir. Kudos