Former aide to ex-president Goodluck Jonathan, Reno Omokri, has stated that Nigeria’s economy under President Bola Tinubu is on a more sustainable path than under the previous administration led by Muhammadu Buhari.
Omokri, who was a guest on Channels Television’s Politics Today, on Wednesday, argued that Tinubu has taken necessary but tough decisions to correct what he described as the economic illusion Nigeria was under during Buhari’s tenure.
“We were living in a fool’s paradise. Tinubu has taken that away and we are now living within our means,” Omokri said on the show.
“Should we continue to go into debt because we want to give our people an artificial luxury? We were borrowing so much under ex-President Buhari.”
According to him, former Central Bank Governor Godwin Emefiele, who is currently facing trial, took loans of ₦28 trillion without informing the National Assembly.
“They were using that money to artificially inflate the value of the naira. We cannot be borrowing just to give people food. We have to produce—and that’s why we’re now producing. Exports are going up, and imports are reducing,” the ex-presidential aide said.
Addressing the question of the average Nigerian’s purchasing power and livelihood, the author said that despite present hardship, the shift away from debt dependency was necessary.
“The impression people have is that things are worse, but the truth is we have to look inward. Everything Tinubu is doing are the things that Peter Obi and Atiku said they would do,” he said.
On the national debt profile, The ex-presidential aide claimed that Nigeria’s debt figures have, in fact, improved under Tinubu.
“As of 2015, Nigeria owed $63 billion. When Buhari left office, the debt stood at $113 billion. Today, under Tinubu, our debt has dropped to $97 billion. That’s a reduction of over $14 billion. We should be appreciating this man,” Omokri stated.
