It’s 70% politics and only 30% economics

There was this man in my village called Emeanu, who was known as a great liar. He always quoted dead people as his witnesses.

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo quoted former German Chancellor who died some years ago and who might have advised Obasanjo in the 1980s that why African economies failed was because African leaders were never economists.

Wonders shall never end also because the said German Chancellor friend was never known as an economist either. Even the lady that succeeded him is not an economist. But who amongst today’s world leaders is an economist? Almost none.

The current German Chancellor who took Helmut Kohl is not an economist.

The current French President as well as his predecessors up to Charles De Gaul, was not an economist.

Trump along as well as all his predecessors was not an economist. over from

The British Prime Ministers up to Winston Churchill were never economists. From Chairman Mao to President Xi of China none was an economist.

From Japan to South Korea to Canada and Australia, etc. their past and present Presidents were/are never economists.

Even Babatunde Raji Fashola is not an economist and not even Obasanjo’s recent education was in economics.

It was Prof Lester Thoruw the famous MIT Prof of Economics, my mentor, who made it clear that inasmuch as economics is important in managing an economy, that an excellently run economy must have only 30% of its decisions coming from economists while as high as 70% from politicians who don’t have to have any knowledge of economics.

Prof Thoruw’s thesis is based on the fact that, after all, 70% economic decisions are better made by politicians who have to put all political implications into consideration in their final decisions.

Odilim Enwegbara, Abuja.