Fayose: Buhari has lost touch with Nigeria’s economic realities

Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose has taken another swipe at President Muhammadu Buhari saying his latest comment that he was pleased with Nigeria’s economy shows he has lost touch with the economic realities in the country.

The president had recently while receiving a briefing from the Minister of Budget and National Planning, Udoma Udoma; the Minister of Finance, Kemi Adeosun, and the governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele said he was pleased with the records made so far in the economy.

But in a statement issued on Wednesday, by his Special Assistant on Public Communications and New Media, Lere Olayinka, Governor Fayose said it
was obvious that President Buhari’s close to three months stay in London ‘had taken its toll on his mind.’

Governor Fayose, who said the economic growth of a nation can only be measured by the welfare of the people, said the president ought not to have made the statement.

“How can a President who has spent more time abroad than he spent in Nigeria be telling Nigerians that he is satisfied with the sufferings of the people? It
is like the President endorsing the sufferings of Nigerians and this is painful,” Mr Fayose said.

“That President Buhari, who met exchange rate at N197 to $1 said that he is pleased with the economy when the exchange rate is now N370 to $1 is a clear indication that the government is being run on his behalf.

“The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), in its unemployment report for the fourth quarter (Q4) 2016 said 3.67 million Nigerians became jobless in one year and that the number of unemployed Nigerians rose from 7.51 million at the beginning of October 2015 to 11.19 million at the end of September 2016.

“The same NBS, said in its June 2015 to May 2016 National Corruption Report, that over N400 billion was paid as bribes to public officials in Nigeria in one year (June 2015 – May 2016). Yet, they will tell Nigerians that they are fighting corruption when indeed, corruption is thriving under the All Progressives Congress (APC) government of President Buhari,” the governor, a known critic of Mr Buhari said.