Stop The Blame Game, Nigerians Are Hungry – Saraki, Provides Guidelines For Economic Recovery
BEVERLY HILLS, September 20, (THEWILL) – The Senate President, Bukola Saraki, has declared that Nigerians are desperately hungry and are in need of desperate solutions to counter the effects of the recession that has befallen the economy.
Saraki, during in his speech at the resumption of the senate on Tuesday after a seven week recess, insisted that Nigerians are not concerned about who is responsible for the present economic hardship, but about how to end it and highlighted some guidelines for the Federal Government to follow in putting an end to the current economic recession.
The recommendations, which will form the basis of a debate at the upper legislative chamber on Wednesday , are part of the interaction he had with various groups in Kwara during the recess.
“During this year's Sallah as it is my tradition, I had close interaction with a cross section of my people in Kwara central, including the aged, youths, market women, and leaders of thought,” he said.
“I believe many of you did the same. I recall unforgettably, how one of the women came straight to me with a look of utter desperation and all she could mutter out was, 'please our senator, do what you can to put an end to this suffering; it is becoming unbearable'.
“During my interaction, which I described above, I remember trying to explain to my people that this kind of thing does not happen overnight; that the seeds for the condition that we suffer from today must have been planted by past administrations that refused to do what was necessary.
“However, I soon realised that my people are not so interested in how we got here or who to blame for our current situation. They only wanted to know that government has plans to get them out of this current predicament. To them, the only explanation that makes sense at the moment is that which puts food on the table, reduces price of rice, garri, salt, sugar, meat and saves jobs.
“It is clear to me that when people are desperately hungry, what they need is leadership with a clear vision, leadership whose daily actions reflects the very urgency of the people's condition.
“Therefore, our response to the current challenge must be dictated by the urgency of the hardship that the people suffer on a daily basis.
“The Federal Government should engage in meaningful dialogue with aggrieved militants in the Niger Delta and avoid an escalation of the conflict in the region.
“The Federal Government must consider tweaking the pension funds policy within international best practice safeguards to accommodate investment in infrastructure and mortgages.
“The government and the Central Bank of Nigeria must agree on a policy of monetary easing to stimulate the economy and harmonise monetary and fiscal policy until economic recovery is attained.
“The Federal Government must retool its export promotion policy scheme with export incentives such as the resumption of the Export Expansion Grant (EEG) and introduce export financing initiatives.
“We must ensure the passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill as soon as possible to stimulate new investment and boost oil revenue. As we all know, this bill is long in waiting and is very crucial for vital investment in the oil and gas sector.
“We will immediately begin the process of accelerating bills aimed at reforming the sub-sector for growth and accessibility. We must also explore the possibility of backing certain key government policies with legislation.
“I say this to urge us that we must have an urgent debate on the way forward, but in having this debate, we must resist the temptation of drowning the debate with apportioning blames that will neither bring solutions nor reduce the cost of food in the market.
“Rather, this debate must be solution-driven. It must be people-oriented and less political.”
Story by David Oputah