HOW NIGERIA CAN MOVE OUT THIS “INFLATIONAL RECESSION”

The recent event where a boy of seven years was burnt to death for stealing what he will eat shows the level of hunger in the land and the act of wickedness from the side of those who committed such a brutal murder in our soil. Coming events often cast their shadows and it is only the discerning minds that will foresee. I have often said that Nigeria is not structured for economic development, which is why every known theory advanced by scholars to move the nation away from this stage of despondence and wants has failed. We do not need the World Bank, IMF or even the so called Minister for Finance to tell us that we are in state of famine and food crisis.

Under normal circumstance, if a nation is in the middle of recession, the prices of goods and services usually go down. This is a different ball game in Nigeria as we are presently in the state of “inflational recession”. Sadly this recession is manmade. One of the ancient philosophers said that “poverty is the root cause of crime created by the state”.

Apart from the fact that there is a reduction in the prices of crude oil at the international market, the major reason why we are facing this hardship is because of this government’s harsh economic policies, especially the closure of the nation’s borders. Common sense should tell any reasonable government that you shouldn’t close your borders when you do not produce enough goods and services that can go round. More so is the fact that we do not have electricity that should have been the catalyst for economic boom.

The government should therefore open the borders for goods to move from other nations, we cannot practice the policy of isolationism at this age of globalization. The best thing to do is create a deliberate policy to reducing the rate of importation while at the same time pushing for massive industrialization. It is too elementary to sit down in the comfort of your office and give an order that the nation’s borders should be closed without knowing the impact of such a policy.

On the other note, Nigeria should be divided into economic zones, not just political zones. The current structure of the nation is faulty and we cannot make any meaningful progress with this structure created by men who did not see what we are facing today. We can have a fiscal federalism wherein the federating units will be economic hubs while the Abuja will handle issues of currency, defence , foreign policies etc. a situation where the governors run to Abuja at the end of every mouth to collect their share of the national cake is demeaning.

Finally, the government should understand that an incompetent person is as worse as a corrupt person. We are not doing the nation any good when we hand responsibilities to incompetent persons. Take for instance when Ministers and Heads of Federal establishments return capital votes at the end of the year because they were not able to utilize such funds in a nation where people are crying for development. For me even if it means working day and night to accomplish the year’s budget the pain is worth it. We have come to a point where if it is a foreigner that can solve the nation’s problems, let him or her lead.

Roland Uwakwe C.
PHOTO CREDIT:INTERNET