Dr, Garba Abari, the Director General of the National Orientation Agency, NOA in this exclusive interview with Enitan Olukotun, the Editor-In-Chief of the Complete News, speaks of developmental strides of the Muhammadu Buhari-led administration vis-à-vis the overwhelming rots the previous administrations plunged the nation into before Buhari took over the reins of power. Excerpt:
Sir, there were high hopes when President Muhammadu Buhari took over the reins of power but it appears that the President is not hitting the mark, how would you react to this?
Well, it could be true. Even the President on various occasions has spoken about that. The significant of that however is not lost on him because Nigerians must realize the circumstances in which the Government came.
And all of us as Nigerians knew that there was massive damage to our economy, values and ethics virtually all aspects of our national life had been abused but the extent of the rot were never knew.
Actually, Nigerians never knew the quantum of the rot until this new government came on board. Even those accusing the government of being in the blame mode must also come to agree that the government is not blaming just for the fun of it but you are only bringing to the fore for Nigerians to appreciate the magnitude of the holocaust.
We never had savings despite our high earnings. We didn’t build our infrastructure despite our huge earnings. We never invested in our elderly who are dropping dead on an account of non-payment of gratuity and pensions having meritoriously served the nation. We never invested in the youth. Sixty-three percent are below the age of 30 in this country making Nigeria a country of extremely very young people.
We never invested in our schools and hospitals against the backdrop of huge annual budgetary allocations. You allocated budgets but you never did any of these. Common sense should have suggested that since we budgeted and we never executed, the money should be there. The money was not there.
Secondly, this country depends only on one product for its foreign exchange earnings. Two months after the government took over, the oil price tumbled down from $100 as low as $28 everything came crashing.
All previous governments had done was to make verbal commitment to the diversification of the economy. So, a country that its sole source of foreign earnings is oil and the product is now selling for a quarter what it used to sell 7 and 8 months earlier such a country must definitely fall into crisis.
To worsen the matter, the production and sales projection was subverted by the Niger Delta militants. Low price against low production. There was a time when the expected 2.2m barrel per day came down to less 1m.
So, there is therefore a serious economy emergency as far as the economy of this country is concerned. Infact, it is even amazing that this country could able to pull through up to this point in time compared to what is happening in other parts of the world. Look at what has happened to Venezuela, an oil producing country like Nigeria. For the citizens to get dairy products they have to cross over to the neighboring country.
We (Nigeria) are able to contain it because apart from oil, what has been sustaining the country is the contribution of the informal economy, the petty traders, the commercial transport workers and farmers who are producing what we are eating in very difficult circumstances.
Do you know that 2013, 2014 Federal Government imported fertilizers without paying. It was only in the course of the year that about N64bn was sourced by this administration to offset that debt despite the harsh economic climate.
Nigeria did not pay its own contribution of the joint-venture cashcall inspite of its absolute reliance on the oil industry. This is even with the fact that Nigeria is classified as an oil-producing country but what kind of value addition has Nigeria actually enjoyed from the classification. The NNPC as at today does not employed up to 10,000 Nigerians. The local content what has it added in terms of the value chain.
How many thousands of Nigerians are employed by the telecommunication companies? Therefore, there is serious emergency. The Buhari Government came to sit on the economy that had been mercilessly abused, plundered, a country completely raped in terms of its values and national resources and assets.
But some people argue that with the money this government has gathered through TSA, the nation should not be broke?
Simple. I am not an economist but the logic is simple. Take for instance, as a household Head, if your monthly earning is N100,000 and all of a sudden your earning dropped to N30,000. Would you live the same lifestyle your were living when you were earning N100,000. That is a simple logic.
Even with reduction in the oil theft?
It is gradually it is picking up, But do not forget that a day after the President sat down with the Niger Delta leaders of thought, governors, elected representatives. Niger Delta Avengers went to blow up oil installation. So there is an element of sabotage, ignorance coming from that region about what they are systematically doing to their environment at the same time the implication of wrecking havoc on national assets.
They might be angry. Every section of this nation is angry for one purpose or the other. But the fact is that, if we are angry as a region does not mean we should unleash havoc on our collective ownership and national assets.
In their case, they inflict havoc on national asset and destroy their own environment. But the thinking is that they hurting the Federal Government but the fact is that they are hurting the entire nation. That is why the Government is deploying dialogue, moral suasion to see that oil theft is reduced.
Perhaps, with the slight improvement in oil prices and improved production then we will begin to see signs of exiting this problem. But as we are exiting the recession, we must also bear in mind that never should we ever depend on a single commodity as a nation.
Let me tell you, there are only few countries that are so endowed like Nigeria. Look at the coastal areas, down to the rain forest, down to the Savannah, Sudan Savannah and go to the Sahel. See some bit temperate condition in plateau and Mambilla in Taraba State.
There is no crops you cannot grow in this country. The climatic condition supports agriculture. Less than 30% of Nigerian arable land is being cultivated. All we need is a leadership that will be focused and I think we have found this in President Muhammadu Buhari.
In spite, of the abuses, distraction and embarrassments mainly from the opposition quarter, he has remained focused, committed, consistent. He believes this country must be made to work again. What he inherited is a country that has been decomposing. Every aspect of the national life had been completely abused.
I believe we will begin to see signs of recovery from all the policies that have been put in place. They will begin to bear fruit when the 2017 budget is been implemented. The impact will be felt more when the militancy in the Niger Delta is subsided. Also gradual increase in oil production and deployment of resources in critical areas of the economy will further accelerate the nation’s recovery.
There is no way you can exit recession when you don’t have the funds to create jobs but the President is going to reflate the economy with the huge spending that will be deployed into construction of roads, railways, power and investment in critical social sector like education, health, youth engagement and the most importantly agriculture.
Do you agree with People who accused this government of being too slow in taken certain critical decisions?
I don’t know what people meant by being slow. In policy formulation, you don’t just wake up one day and say, I am going to do this. You have to understand the policies options available to you and develop these polices.
What the government is doing is drifting the nation away from the traditional ways of doing things to something new. And when people asked, is this the change we voted for? and I think this is the change we voted for. Precisely, this is the change we voted for. The change from impunity and gross corruption, open stealing of national resources to orderliness, accountability to transparency in the conduct of governance.
Yes, this is the change we voted for! The change of actually restoring confidence in our national institutions. This is something that has to be gradual given the massive pillage we have witnessed over the years.
Yes this is the change we voted. We have departed from the erroneous believe that we are a rich country. Of course, we are potentially a rich country but we are not in the real sense of it. We would have been a rich country if previous leaderships had led well.
At the moment we have to live in accordance with what we earn so that we tell ourselves the truth. Things are no longer the way it used to be. People are even self-adjusting. I personally coming from Borno and Yobe, I know this is the change I voted for. Because I knew how the place used to be before this Government came to be in terms of my security, including that of my family members when I will travel a journey of 100 km from Borno to Damaturu for six hours. So, this is the change I voted for.
Do you mean the massive hunger, pains and pangs in the land are part of the change we voted for?
We didn’t create the recession. Nigerians collectively created the recession. This Government didn’t create the recession. Did we save when we are earning? Did we build our infrastructure? I have already laid the basis for this.
A country that has done what Nigeria had done in the last 7 and 8 years must definitely go into a recession. There is no way you can escape it. We were earning, we didn’t save. You were earning, we didn’t build infrastructure that would have enhanced your productivity. We were earning, we didn’t improve power which would have created an enabling environment for people to engage in informally. People have to buy generators to run businesses and their homes.
Tell me why Nigeria has to be importing rice. What is the reason for a country like Nigeria to import wheat, what? What reason does a Nation like Nigeria to be importing sliced packaged potatoes from South Africa?
So, when you have money and you are only pre-occupied with consuming it on consumable without commiserate production, you must go into recession and this what has happened. We have to collectively join hands together and work our ways out of recession.
But the masses need urgent intervention to cushion this hunger because this hunger in town is biting
Most of the policies the government is putting in place are to address this issue. This year we are lucky that God bestowed us with a very favourable harvest. Food prices are coming down. People are engaged in agriculture have recorded significant output. The rivers and lakes are full. Many people are engaging in dry season farming. Whoever engages in one form of productive endevour will something tangible results at the end of the day.
President Muhammadu Buhari administration is clocking two years in May 29, 2017, do you think he can substantially deliver on his electoral promises?
I believe so
With the current realities?
Yes, with the current trend. Infact I want to tell you. If this Government had not come, with the kind of things we inherited, perhaps this country would have been at war or all of us might have migrated out of the country because the tactile signs of disintegration and total system collapse were all on ground.
First and foremost what the Buhari Government had done is rescue the country from the precipice. The country was actually on a cliff before he came to retrieve it. We retrieved a country that is panting which has not fully recovered.
So, this what Nigerians have not really understood. Look at what we have be reading in the papers. Stories of massive lootings.
