Buhari Lied On the Financial situation of the Country – Ex Minister
Opeyemi Oladunjoye
The former Minister and Deputy Chairman of the National Planning Commission, Dr. Abubakar Olanrewaju Sulaiman, has faulted President Muhammadu Buhari’s claims that his administration was left an empty treasury by the former President, Goodluck Jonathan.
According to Sulaiman who described the President’s claims, that the immediate past administration left Nigeria in a debt of about US$30billion, as “unscientific and unfair”, the former administration as at May 29 left behind the sum of US$2billion.
In a statement in Abuja, he said: “Government can’t tell us that there is no Excess Crude Account(ECA), Sovereign Wealth Fund(SWF) or are we saying the Federal Inland Revenue Service(FIR) and related agencies had not in the last one month been generating revenue?
“Until they are able to prove they had no receipts from these government agencies in the last one month before Nigerians can now buy into Mr. President’s claims of an empty treasury.”
He recalled that under the Jonathan’s administration,Nigeria was rated the largest economy in Africa and 26th largest in the world, querying how come such a government would leave behind an empty treasury.
”Money made by government is meant to be spent, and this the immediate past administration did responsibly. Every government, even in the so-called western world, including the US which today remains one of the largest debtor nations in the world, government operates on deficit.
“Is it not on record that President Obama inherited US$3 triillion debt, a collapsed banking sector and mortgage industry,yet he never raised any alarm. None of these has happened in Nigeria under Jonathan.
“Under Jonathan,Nigeria became the largest Africa economy and 26th in the world amidst deadly security challenges and dwindling international prices of oil. In spite of all these, the FG never owed salary.
“Upon inception of Jonathan’s administration, it is on record that the price of oil at the global stage was over 100 dollars per barrel and at the close of the administration, it dropped to 46dollars. Yet, there wasn’t collapse of government and federal civil servants were paid as at when due.
“It will be misleading therefore for our respected President Muhammadu Buhari and indeed the ruling APC to claim to have met an empty treasury.
“Aspiration to governance is a call of meeting and confronting challenges headlong. So, we urge the APC-led government to hit the ground running as promised Nigerians by confronting the challenges.
“We are not in doubt of the capability of Mr. President to do it. He should therefore get to business, put in place structures and personnel to redeem the pledges made to the Nigeria.”
