Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has knocked the administration of President Bola Tinubu over poor implementation of the removal of subsidy from petroleum products and the floating naira.
Obasanjo noted that though the policies were necessary, they were wrongly implemented.
The former Nigerian president also condemned Nigeria’s approach to the coup in the Republic of Niger.
According to a statement made available to journalists on Sunday by his Special Assistant on Media, Kehinde Akinyemi, former President Obasanjo was said to have spoken in Abuja at the weekend at a colloquium tagged: “Nigeria’s Development: Navigating the Way Out of the Current Economic Crisis and Insecurity.”
The former president Olusegun Obasanjo said, “Today, the government has taken three decisions, two of which are necessary but wrongly implemented and have led to the impoverisation of the economy and of Nigerians These are the removal of subsidy, closing the gap between the black market and official rates of exchange, and the third is dealing with a military coup in Niger Republic.
“The way forward is production and productivity which belief and trust in government leadership will engender. There is no shortcut to economic progress but hard work and sweat.
“The 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.”
Obasanjo added that the government must do more to attract foreign investments. He said, “Total Energy has gone to invest $6bn 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.
“With change by us, the investors will give us benefit of doubt, and security being taken care of on a sustainable long-term basis, they will start to test the water.
“With the right economic policies, attribute of integrity and honesty of purpose, all should be well with all hands on deck and government becomes a catalyst for development, growth and progress.
To conclude on the economy, “tinkering with the exchange rate is not the answer. The answer is consistency and continuity in policy to ensure stability and predictability. That way, we will be sure to incentivize domestic and foreign investment.
