Over 80% Nigerians in despair ―Mailafia

THREE years into the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari, former deputy governor, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Dr Obadiah Mailafia says over 80 percent of Nigerians are in despair and unsure of what tomorrow holds.

Speaking in a television programme monitored in Abuja on Tuesday, Mailafia said “in spite of what looks like quite positive figures, a lot of Nigerians are in despair.

There is a deep feeling of despair across all spectrums of society because of a general feeling of uncertainty.

“The middle class is being squeezed. There is a survey conducted by CLEEN, an NGO supported by the Norwegians government which showed that over 80 percent of Nigerians felt the country is going in the wrong direction.

“And for 80 percent of the population to feel that way means that government is doing well but unemployment is rising, there is crises of the rule of law, insecurity, widespread killing, the reality of rural banditry. We don’t want to talk about herdsmen/farmers clashes.

“A lot of things are wrong that almost overshadow whatever gains may have been in terms of improvement in the economy.”
In his assessment of the three years of Buhari in the saddle, Mailafia said they fared well in some areas and not so well in some areas.

“For one thing, we all agree that economic recovery has taken place.

The government had the misfortune of inheriting almost empty treasury due to the grand larceny that took place by the last administration, also because of collapsed oil prices, and the balance of payment crises.

“Today we have an economic recovery, thanks to Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP).

Inflation has gone down from almost 20 per cent to about 12.5 per cent, interest rates have gone down, external reserves have risen to almost $50 billion which is quite a big jump, we have seen almost $70 billion capital inflow and the stock market has gone up almost 40 per cent in capitalisation. Obviously, the government has bragging rights in certain areas.”

“There is a feeling that we have lost direction as a country, that we are not moving towards where we want to be.

Nigerians have become more divided than ever. People are now thinking in terms of the tribe; everybody to his tent o’ Israel. We have forgotten the task of nation building but as leaders, our responsibility is to bring people together and not divide them. It looks as if we are dividing our people and it is very dangerous.”

Reacting to Buhari’s Democracy Day speech, the financial expert lamented that while most Nigerians have not really benefitted from the country’s prosperity since 1999, things appear worse now because of a pervading atmosphere of hopelessness.

ALSO READ: IMF worries over slow growth, high inflation, worsening unemployment

“The difference then was that people had hopes that things would improve. Nigerians were optimistic because the country offered them the essence of living and there was a sense of rational expectations in spite of whatever difficulties they were experiencing that things were going to improve.

“However, what we are seeing today is collective despair. People are feeling that the country may not even survive.

The country is divided now; the army is taking sides like Gen. Danjuma said.

“The Army panel on Gen. Danjuma’s allegations is a kangaroo panel because you cannot be a judge in your own court. People are dying in their thousands and it is getting genocidal.”

He also accused the government of scoring an own goal with government openly tolerating banditry and killings especially in the Middle Belt region, which “is destroying agricultural foundations.

“With CBN’s efforts, we are becoming less dependent on rice importation but things would have been 10 times better if bandits haven’t invaded the Middle Belt which is the food basket of the nation.

Things are very bad in the Middle Belt.

“If this had not happened, the abundance of food in Nigeria would have triggered higher incomes. States have a role to play in this but the Federal Government is absolutely responsible for security”, he declared.