Nigeria at a crossroads —Abdulsalami

By Abdullateef Salau

Aformer Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar (rtd), has warned against the planned increase in the pump price of petroleum, saying the move would push millions of Nigerians deeper into poverty.

Petrol price currently sells between N162 and N165 per litre. But the National Economic Council (NEC) had reportedly recommended its increase to N302 per litre as part of the government’s plan to fully deregulate the prices of PMS and eliminate monthly subsidy payments.

Speaking Thursday at the 19th Daily Trust Dialogue in Abuja, Abubakar said the proposed fuel price hike would worsen the condition of millions of young people and women, the demographic groups most affected by the country’s sick economic and acute insecurity.

Nigeria, he said, was at the crossroads with Boko Haram insurgency in the North East, banditry in the North West, violence in the South East, kidnappings and abductions of travellers across many states.

He warned that the worsening economic and security situations during an election year posed a very challenging period for Nigeria that must be carefully managed by all concerned.

Abubakar, who chaired the dialogue, said though the country’s economic growth rates and inflation have improved somewhat in the last three months as official figures showed, the impact on the lives and wellbeing of the ordinary Nigerian is suspect.

He said, “Insecurity in the country is worsened by our dire economic situation. Unemployment and underemployment remain at the record levels and over 80 million Nigerians are still caught up in needless poverty.

“In fact, Nigeria now faces a food security crisis that is compounded by the COVID-19 global pandemic and banditry in many states of northern Nigeria.

“Both of these have disrupted the fragile value chains across the country and negatively impacted the ability of Nigerians to produce, process, and distribute food.

“The result is a continuing rise in the prices of food items beyond the reach of many Nigerian families.

“On top of all these, fuel prices are expected to rise significantly in the coming months as announced last November by the NNPC. When this happens, as the government has planned, it will push many millions deeper into poverty.”

The former head of state said the frustrations of youths and women occasioned by the country’s sick economy and insecurity could easily boil over into a national conflagration worse than the EndSARS protests.

“These are not doomsday predictions but a warning to which all stakeholders must pay heed,” he said.

He, therefore, urged governments at all levels to redouble their efforts and channel more resources towards securing peace.

Abdulsalami expressed worry that after more than 60 years of independence and self-government, Nigeria is stuck politically in the same place and its democratic experiment has refused to grow beyond political thuggery, rivalries and inflammatory rhetoric that resulted in violence and deaths.

“None of these is new in Nigerian politics. And yet, none of them has been fully resolved. All of these developments make 2022 a very crucial year for the country and its people,” he said.

The former head of state advised politicians to watch their words and deeds carefully and avoid saying or doing things that will further heat up the polity as they jostle for power in the coming elections.

“This election year calls for statesmanship and patriotism. It calls for restraint among all politicians in words and deeds. And above all, it calls for serious social and economic programmes that would help pull Nigeria out of the woods.

“We must all remember that no one can rule over a nation in ruins. Leadership is a collective responsibility, and we must all play our parts positively,” he added.