The All Progressives Congress (APC) has asserted that former Governor of Anambra State, Peter Obi, has assumed the role of embittered loser and spoiler over his recent comment on Nigeria’s economy since the ruling party took power in 2015.
Recall that Peter Obi raised concern over the lingering economic crisis in Nigeria, recalling that Nigeria had the biggest economy in Africa as of 2014.
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He lamented that Nigeria’s economy has seen unprecedented retrogression on many fronts for the past 9 years.
Obi lamented that instead, Nigerian leaders are more concerned with funding their selfish luxuries and individual lavishness instead of concerning themselves with challenges threatening the nation’s collective existence.
In a post on his X handle on Monday, the former Anambra State Governor said political leaders are throwing blame at others who are only committed to solving the nation’s problems.
He stressed that efforts should be concentrated on finding ways to recreate an inclusive and sustainable economy, pull millions of people out of poverty, and return nearly 20 million out-of-school children to schools.
He said: “When Nigeria returned to democratic governance in 1999, it maintained an average GDP growth of about 6.72% for 16 years from 1999-2014. The impressive growth trajectory, unfortunately, was not sustained by the then-new government, and our GDP growth collapsed to 2.79% in 2015 and then sank into a recession in 2016 with a negative growth of -1.58% and 0.82% in 2017. For the past 9 years, Nigeria’s economy has seen unprecedented retrogression on many fronts.
“In 2014, just before the inception of a new administration a year later, Nigeria had the biggest economy in Africa with a Gross Domestic Product of $568.5 billion and a GDP Per Capita of about $3,200.
“Our economic indices pointed towards hope and prospects for the future growth of the economy. Nine years later, the giant of Africa has retrogressed to the 4th largest economy in Africa.
“Reports showed our GDP in 2023 stood at $375 billion with a per capita of $1700. In 2024, our estimated GDP declined further to $253 billion with an estimated per capita of $1087. These trends and figures show how our nine-year journey since 2015 has resulted in a sharp decline in our national prosperity. Today, poverty is pervasive and on the increase. Unemployment is rising. Food inflation has skyrocketed to over 43%. Foreign and local investors are losing faith in the future growth of our economy and are leaving in large numbers.
“Businesses are shutting down. Urgent actions need to be taken to salvage the nation from further economic collapse and move it from consumption to production!
“However, instead of concerning ourselves with all these challenges threatening our collective existence and finding ways to recreate an inclusive and sustainable economy, pull millions of people out of poverty, and return our nearly 20 million out-of-school children to schools, our leaders are more concerned with funding their selfish luxuries and individual lavishness, while throwing blames at others who are only committed to solving the nation’s problems.
“I have always believed that politics should be about service to the people and the betterment of society. In the face of all these challenges, we the leaders should commit to inclusive and sustainable growth to end the hardship, which has continued to burden our fellow Nigerians.
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“Only through that can we achieve a peaceful and secure society. A new Nigeria based on better economic and patriotic thinking is very POssible.”
However, the APC, in a statement on Tuesday by its National Publicity Secretary, Felix Morka, said Obi’s comment on the country’s economic situation is an admixture of half-truths, blatant distortions and misinformation calculated to mobilize outrage against Tinubu’s government.
Felix faulted Peter Obi for only acknowledging the challenges in the country while ignoring the thoughtful policy intervention President Tinubu had taken to salvage the economic situation.
According to the APC chieftain, contrary to Peter Obi’s claim, the country had, in the last one year, attracted over $20 billion into the economy, aside from recording an all-time high N6.52 trillion trade surplus in the first quarter of 2024, marking a positive shift from a long history of trade deficits.
The statement read, “Mr. Obi’s latest statement on the country’s economic situation is an admixture of half truths, blatant distortions and misinformation calculated to mobilize outrage against the All Progressives Congress (APC) government of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
“His warped conclusion that Nigeria’s economic crisis was caused by nine years of APC-led administration is a highly revisionist, dishonest, distorted and deliberately misleading assessment of the country’s economic trajectory in the last decade.
“But in his selfish political desperation, Obi will never acknowledge the complexity of the causation of our economic challenges but would rather attempt to scapegoat the APC administration for all of the country’s economic ills while turning a blind eye to the bold and thoughtful policy interventions of President Tinubu’s administration.
“Quite contrary to Obi’s jaundiced and gloomy analysis, in the last one year alone, the country has attracted over $20 billion into the economy, aside recording an all-time high N6.52 trillion trade surplus in the first quarter of 2024 marking a positive shift from a long history of trade deficits.
“Despite clearing the backlog of the foreign exchange debts owed foreign airlines and other economic actors by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the nation’s foreign reserves has continued to expand, hitting upwards of $34 billion, the highest in recent times. Capital inflow into the country increased by 66.27 percent this year alone.
“Notable financial experts and the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics (NBS) report that for the first time in our economic history, the All Share Index (ASI) of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) crossed the 100,000 benchmark this year, making the Nigerian Stock Exchange currently about the most profitable capital market in the world with a return on investment (RoI) as high as 22.90 percent.
“The International Monetary Fund (IMF) projects that the nation’s economy will have a 3.1 percent Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth in 2024, one of the highest projections for any African country.
“Initiatives such as the Credit Corps, Students Loan, the newly approved minimum wage, the construction of 700-kilometre Lagos-Calabar coastal highway, and many more are tailor-made by the President Tinubu’s to combat poverty and expand economic opportunities for Nigerians.
“Mr. Obi is a loquacious and disruptive backseat driver who has assigned himself an ignoble role of an embittered loser and spoiler. Economic challenges and hardship are a stark reality of most countries of the world today, both developed and developing. It is an existential condition that must be tackled and transformed. This is an arduous task that requires collective patriotic collaboration.
“Mr. Obi must know that inflaming passion and mobilizing outrage through false and manipulative narratives are not legitimate tools of opposition politics. Expecting President Tinubu to accomplish total transformation of Nigeria in one year, a feat he failed miserably to accomplish in eight years as Governor of Anambra state, is the height of disgraceful hypocrisy.”
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