IN a dynamic, competitive, and globally interwoven environment, political systems are much aware of the validated fact of being in competition with one another. Also given that economic ascendancy is the quest of all political systems, every nation seeks to maximists gains and minimize its losses to ensure a better economic dominance. Well thinking governments therefore would in their policies seek the economic empowerment of their citizens so that they in turn could engage in economic activities that would in real terms promote productivity and enhance their Gross Domestic Products, without manipulating data to massage their deflating egos.
IN this light, economic policies are not enacted with a bid to fight sections of the State, or to strangulate the political ambitions of a few to the detriment of the many. For non-parochial and shallow thinking political systems, rational actor and satisficing models are engaged in making didactic, proactive, and productive policies. Unfortunately, we observe that the CBN, under the leadership of Mr. Godwin Emiefele was bent on killing a mosquito with a sledgehammer and burning a hectare of cocoa farm to kill a rodent.
THE change of currency policy, which we had applauded as being a step in the right direction, but had warned that it lacked implementational sagacity, has unfortunately disparaged the performance rating of the ruling government. We had warned that the shoddy preparation, one sided intention and unrepented arrogance that accompanied the currency swap and forced cashless policy, would birth anarchy and economic retrogression. At a time when power outages had increased, fuel scarcity and hike in prices bite harder, we warned that scarcity of money would create chaos, and it has.
IN Ibadan, Access Bank and Wema Bank branches located in the Dugbe and Queen Cinema areas of the town were attacked; violent protests had spread to Sapon, Panseke, Oke Ilewo, Abiola way, Adatan, and other areas in Abeokuta, and a Nigerian’s life had been lost. It is also widely reported that some bank officials had to scale fences to flee for their lives, while the Lagos, Ore and Benin expressway was locked down by protesting Nigerians. Need we mention those who stripped themselves naked in the bank or assaulted bank workers and the unfortunate Nigerian who slumped and died while waiting to access his hard-earned funds. A state of anarchy is being birthed.
THE major challenge is the paucity of the new naira notes in circulation. As at today, few hours to the expiration of the old notes, the market is mostly void of the new notes. It may interest the Federal Government to note that even many Nigerians who opted to ‘transfer’ funds through online and USSD platforms have sad stories to tell of bad networks, and uncredited debits. For many who live on daily wages, survival had become dismal, and the frustration had doubled, making an average Nigerian, a disaster set to occur.
UNFORTUNATELY, the Nigeria in us has also made criminal elements hold sway. While the CBN was against the black-market merchants of foreign currency, now even old local currencies are exchanged for old notes at the rate of 20% on the streets. POS operators have even claimed that the scarcity created by the apex Bank had also forced them to buy currencies from the banks. What an absurd situation, created by shoddy plans and faulty strategies. Whither is the fight against inflation?
FURTHERMORE, even the custodians of the new currencies have been found hoarding the new naira notes. Economic and Financial Crime Commission, EFCC, had discovered and arrested saboteurs of government’s monetary policy, who had refused to dispense the few new mints in their vaults. These, like black marketers of the nation’s petroleum resources, are disloyal elements who sell the nation’s resources to highest bidders, and such must be tried for felonies.
HOWEVER, we insist that the CBN created the environment for these criminal elements to thrive. Leaping without looking only breeds criminality in the political system, hence, it is not out of place to indict the Apex financial institution as unconscious conspirators to the crime. However, though sad, the (in)actions of the CBN and the Presidency; and the deliberate deafness to the people’s agonies has revealed a government that is far away from the people it pretends to govern. A government that is deaf to the people’s voice has lost its legitimacy and bury its head in shame.
CITING the hardship inflicted on their people by the short time limits and scarcity of the new notes, the Kaduna, Zamfara, and Kogi States having instituted a suit at the Supreme Court to stop the CBN and Federal Government from implementing the February 10 deadline and having secured a favourable interim injunction from the Supreme Court until it reconvenes on February 15, Nigerians can still hope that the Federal Government would stop her broken calabash from following the river. But, given antecedents, would the Federal Government and the CBN bite the humble pie and succumb to the wishes of the Lordships? The Hope warns that Nigerians have been pushed to their limits, and the absence of a long-lasting succour may ignite an inferno that would resist the efforts of the best equipped firefighters.
