NIGERIA'S STRATEGIC PROCESS TOWARDS ECONOMIC RECOVERY CANNOT BE FAULTED BY CHARLATANS!

ZION B-BC   NEWSLETTER.  

A Publication of the Zion Faith Bible-Believing Church, Kpeyegyi, Abuja Nigeria. [VOL. 5. NO 154. 24th July, 2016.} “…ONLY The Truth, Will Set You   Free! (John.8:32).

NIGERIA'S STRATEGIC PROCESS TOWARDS ECONOMIC RECOVERY CANNOT BE FAULTED BY CHARLATANS!

The present economic management team of the Change Administration has prudently decided to allow market forces to prevail and determine the true and factual economic indices that determine rates of goods and services in Nigeria as they are applicable to global economic international principles and best practices! First, the team took the painful decision of total deregulation of the dowmstream sector of the Petroleum Industry and raised the pump price of premium motor spirit (pms), or petrol to a market price of N145.00, per litre from N87.50; and, second, the Central Bank of Nigeria, was unhindered from adopting a flexible foreign exchange policy, which critics have dubbed "naira devaluation",  but which in actual fact, enabled the official currency to find its level and value in the international monetary market, for real economic growth of the nation!
Before this brave economic policy, government pegged official foreign exchange transaction at N199.00 to 1US Dollar, which was very unrealistic, but now that it has found its level at between N250.00 and N300.00, import activities of all banned foreign goods through smugglers are now at their lowest ebb; while major industrialists are investing their funds to purchase Federal Government Bonds which would support the diversification of the economy to intensive and aggressive agricultural pursuit that would ensure food sustainance and food security for the masses of the people.
President Buhari's economic initiatives in the people-driven 2016 Budget of Change is similar to the United States President Roosevelt's formula of involving the unemployed in works projects administration of long-term nature, to ascertain social security measures which countered economic depression in America at the end of the II World War in 1945; and today, 240 years on, the US remained the strongest economy and commercial destination of the 21st Century world!
However, detractors of the new administration and some dubious international economic analysts have made much noise that Nigeria was drowning under the forces of hyper inflation/economic recession and the devaluation of the official currency (the Naira), by setting off fake alarms that the nation was at the point of total economic collapse because they could not comprehend the powerful under current revolution being vigorously pursued to put the nation on the global chart of the 20 most economically-viable global economies by the year 2020! Professional analysts believe that commodity inflation in Nigeria was not due to "demand pull", (which means an excessive pressure of demand on available resources), but "cost push", - a deliberate and counter-productive attitude of traders' unilateral price hikes on goods and services, which demand government's urgent attention through the Price Control Boards at federal and states level to halt the ugly trend!
In the past one year of the present administration, serious emphasis had been placed on the welfare of the people (who constitute the economic engine house and human capital), without which there would neither have been any form of economy nor a democratic government in place!
Although the APC Government at resumption on 29th May,2015, discovered an almost empty treasury bequeathed through institutional approval and consent of massive corruption by its predecessors in office, and was also confronted with the Boko Haram insurgency which had gained a ferocious dimension because of Mr. President's inaugural speech which set a target date for the cessation of terror in the North East and environs, it reinforced, strengthened and galvanized the otherwise institutionally discouraged armed forces to partner with the friendly neighboring military garrison to crush the terrorists at all battle fronts!
Simultaneously workers and pensioners salaries in twenty-seven states of the federation were owed in arrears of payment between six to fifteen months in some cases while  startling discoveries that fiscal allocation of billions of United States dollars meant for defence hardware to prosecute war against Boko Haram terrorists in the North East, were diverted through the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), into private pockets for the presidential ambition of Dr. Ebele Jonathan and his People's Democratic Party (PDP) while scores of innocent lives, properties and critical government infrastructures were ceaselessly destroyed by the terrorists on regular basis between 2013 and 2015! With the above complicated scenario, the economic "think-thank" of the new administration moved into action to succour the majority masses who bore the brunt of all misdeeds of financial recklessness of the bad leaders through monetary bail-outs to all indebted States, in order to alleviate the people's sufferings! But some State Governors reneged on the terms of the Federal Government bailout-loans to pay arrears but compounded the fate of the poor workers by diverting the funds into dubious projects only to return cap-in-hand to shamelessly request for further loans following ceaseless protests and strikes by organized labour unions of their various States!
The Federal Government, with the hind sight of the predicament of the workers and pensioners have agreed to release fresh bail-out funds but this time around, with very stringent measures that included deduction of the loans at source from States financial allocations through the Federation Account.  ln his First Democracy Speech on 29th May, 2016, President Buhari described the first 366 days of his administration as, “a year of triumph, consolidation, pains and achievements" adding that by age, instinct and experience, his preference was to look forward, to prepare for the challenges that lied ahead and rededicate the administration to the task of fixing Nigeria. "We affirm our belief in democracy as the form of government that best assures the active participation and actual benefit of the people despite the many years of hardship and disappointment, the people of this nation have proved inherently good, industrious, tolerant, patient and generous," he added. In addition to all of the above economic and security challenges, the Change Administration was able to produce a masses friendly budget which took into consideration their basic needs of life and ensured that for the first time in this new attempt at fiscal and productive democracy since 1999, capital projects received more allocation than recurrent expenditures! These included, allocation to the following Ministries: Works, Power and Housing, N433.4 billion; Transport, N202.0 billion; Special Intervention Programmes (which includes market women empowerment, 500.000 jobs for teachers, employment opportunities for the youths especially in Agriculture, stipends for the poorest of the poor, etc,), N200.0 billion; Defence, N294.5 billion; Interior, N145.3 billion; Health, 221.7 billion; and Education, N369.6 billion. During his Budget Speech to the Joint Session of the National Assembly on 22nd December, 2015, President Buhari, promised to diversify the economy and shore up national revenue which was continuously depleted by the daily loss of 1.2 barrels of crude oil, Nigeria's major foreign exchange earner for a period of six months through vandalization!
In the words of Mr. President: "We will invest in equipping our farmers with the right tools, technology and techniques. "We will invest in empowering and enabling our miners to operate in a safe and humane environment. "We will invest in training our youths through the revival of our technical and vocational institutions to ensure they were competent enough to seize the opportunities that will arise from this economic revival". Though recent figures from the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics (NBS) revealed that Nigeria's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) index rating had contracted negatively, the threatening recession could still be doused through the strategic solutions now being implemented by the determined Presidential "think tank"! It is instructive to note that Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), recently briefed the Senate on the monetary and new foreign exchange management policies of the apex bank and emphasized that diversification of the economy would ensure optimum growth in the sector while the Minister of Finance also assured the lawmakers at plenary, that the Nigerian economy was on track, very strong and resilient in spite of pipeline vandalization in the Niger Delta region. The Minister disclosed that the Federal Government saved N6 billion naira monthly through prudent financial management of a cut down on Recurrent Expenditure, which is an effort towards an enabling fiscal discipline in the face of declining oil revenues adding that, "Buhari's government now spent N159 billion naira instead of N165 billion previously expended monthly, as recurrent expenditure.
Also in a very re-assuring move towards diversification of the economy, the Minister of Agriculture also on Wednesday, 20th July, 2016, presented to the Federal Executive Council (FEC), a strategic document titled "GREEN ALTERNATIVE POLICY", which spelt out in details how Agriculture would again occupy the front position as the largest supplier of local food consumption and eventually an export foreign exchange earner for the nation within a period of one and a half year and beyond! While we salute the courage of President Buhari and his management team, we make bold to suggest that the anti-corruption war should be intensified and remain the number one priority of the government of Change in order to recoup all stolen and looted funds, in order to increase savings of the Treasury Single Account (TSA). No looter of the treasury should be spared and stolen monies must be recovered to the last kobo or dime while we trust that the Judiciary would co-operate with the Executive as joint crusaders to dismantle the institutional impunity of corruption which had almost become a traditional way of life in the nation! Government must pursue total blockade of food imports, including exotic items that consume and deplete the national foreign exchange reserves; encourage more exports of solid minerals and textiles to all foreign business partners especially CHINA as we revitalize the Industrial Sector through the Power and Energy Sectors. The small scale entrepreneurs who form the backbone of macro economic drive should be encouraged with feasible loans to keep oiling exportation incentives of government.
Though the European nation of Greece had very serious economic challenges in the recent past, its leaders never gave up but employed all surviving strategies to keep afloat through faithful leadership. Nigeria's economy is neither being funded by the African Union (AU), nor by the World Bank (WB), but by the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and its patriotic citizens whose unflinching zeal and untainted love is their determination to support the Change Agenda to overcome the existing challenges!

"When men are cast down, then thou shalt say; There is lifting up and He shall save the humble person. "He shall deliver the island of the innocent: and it is delivered by the pureness of thine hands." (Job.22:29-30).

Please look forward to more divine revelation in the next edition of Zion B-BC Newsletter as you share this with friends and remain blessed in the Lord. [For weekly access, to this newsletter, log on to:  facebook.com/zionfaithbible.believingchurch or http://www.zfbbc1.blogspot.com, https://www.google.com/+zionfaithbiblebelievingchurch.

If you have not accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Saviour, don’t miss this great opportunity as you pray this prayer: Lord Jesus; I confess that I am a sinner who needs to be saved through the grace of the New Testament of your Blood, shed on the Cross at Calvary; I renounce every sin in my life and accept you as my Lord and Saviour. Please forgive me and write my name in the Book of Life. Amen. If you prayed this prayer, you have been admitted into the family of sons and daughters of God, who are born-again. Congratulations.

I am, yours sincerely, Dr. David B.A. Olufon, Resident Pastor and Editor. 08130669886, 08098194390.  08080243066   g-mail- dvdolufon@gmail.com.