Former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Prof. Kingsley Chiedu Moghalu has said that very soon, President Muhammadu Buhari’s economic policy direction will soon be clear.
Moghalu said this in an article titled: “Buhari’s Slow start- Why Nigeria’s Economic Horizon Will Clear,” published the Official Monetary and Financial Institutions Forum (OMFIF) bulletin.
He said “The most important is that the Nigerian leader, despite coming to power on a democratic political platform, simply does not trust Nigeria’s professional politicians. He is determined that the usual political horse-trading should not undermine his vision of governance or his authority as head of government.
“Under pressure from individuals and vested interests with a predilection for public office and its privileges, Buhari was wise to apply the brakes and take control of his leadership selection process. After all, he will take the political responsibility for the team’s success or failure.
“It is an open question whether Buhari will agree to abolish inefficient petroleum subsidies that have placed much pressure on fiscal resources. From the perspective of economic efficiency, he should do this – and then transfer the savings to clearly measurable social programme so as to navigate the political sensitivities of such reform.
“Buhari is open to increased foreign investment. But he will also favour industrial policies aimed at developing home-grown manufacturing and a welfare approach to extreme poverty. He will wish to increase capital spending to spur qualitative economic growth in a country where recurrent spending to sustain a bloated government apparatus has reached 90 per cent of the budget. Despite the Buhari government’s slow start, an investment bet on Nigeria remains a good one in the medium to longer term.”
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