The economic downturn in Nigeria has adversely affected the fortune of most workers. But while the working class is expected to adjust to the harsh times, leaders do not compromise on their comfort,GBENRO ADEOYE writes
Reports have hardly been kind to Nigeria, especially, the ones about the wellbeing of the people.
In 2014, the United Nations Development Programme ranked Nigeria 152 out of 187 countries on the scale of the Human Development Index, with other African countries like Algeria, Botswana, Egypt, South Africa and Ghana coming ahead of the country often touted as the Giant of Africa.
The agency, in its 2013 report, ranked Nigeria153 out of 186 countries on the list.
Sixty-eight per cent of Nigerians were said to be living below $1.25 daily while adult illiteracy rate for both sexes was put at 61.3 per cent.
The HDI, according to the UNDP, is a summary measure of average achievement in key dimensions of human development: a long and healthy life, being knowledgeable and having a decent standard of living.
It was created to emphasise that people and their capabilities should be the ultimate criteria for assessing the development of a country, and not economic growth alone.
So, in spite of what a country’s economic growth says on paper, one of the most obvious testimonies of its economic success or failure is told in the lives of its people.
In Nigeria, the lives of citizens paint a gloomy picture of the situation of the economy, and the stories seem to get worse annually.
The year 2015 will go down as one of the worst for the citizens, particularly for workers.
It was a year in which many state governments owed workers several months’ salaries following dwindling federal allocation, and from all indications, this year could still be worse.
Many states, including Osun, Oyo and Imo still owe workers several months of salaries, with many state governors already threatening to slash salaries.
Already, Nigeria’s N18,000 minimum wage for workers is one of the lowest in the world with the recent free fall of the Naira against the United States Dollar and inflationary trends over the years.
Therefore, such factors and unpaid salaries and pensions for workers and pensioners in many states have led to a drastic decline in the living standard of the average Nigerian. In 2011, when the N18,000 minimum wage was approved for workers, the exchange rate was about N140 to a dollar, so the amount was about $130 a month.But now that the exchange rate is about N280 to a dollar, N18,000 is about $64.
Ironically, while the government has recently been advising Nigerians on the need to be prudent because of the dwindling revenue occasioned by the falling prices of oil, which is the mainstay of the country’s economy, public officials have failed to reduce their level of comfort.
For instance, a look at the 2016 N6.08tn budget, which President Muhammadu Buhari recently submitted to a joint session of the National Assembly failed to show that the Federal Government has heeded its own advice.
According to the budget, President Buhari and Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo will spend N2.2bn on travels and transport, foodstuffs and catering materials, refreshment and meals as well as honorarium and sitting allowances in the 2016 fiscal year.
The figure is N710m higher than what was budgeted for the same purpose under former President Goodluck Jonathan in 2015.
While N944.62m was allocated to the President in the 2015 budget for general travels and transport, the sum of N1.415bn was allocated to serve the same purpose in the 2016 budget, which translates to a 49.7 per cent increase.
A sum of N114.9m was allocated for foodstuffs and catering materials for President Buhari, which indicates an increase of N45.09m over that of his immediate predecessor the previous year.
Also for honorarium and sitting allowances, the N307.64m budgeted for Buhari represents an increase of N84.4m over the N223.24 that was allocated for the same purpose under Jonathan in 2015.
The breakdown of the 2016 budget for the Presidency also indicates that N326m has been voted for wildlife conservation in place of the N24.6m allocated for it in 2015.
A breakdown of the 2016 budget for the Presidency also includes general renovation of the Guest House at N387m; complete furnishing of the Guest House at N45m; purchase of computers for N27.5m and the construction and provision of recreational facilities for 764m.
A sum of N3.6bn was also budgeted for BMW salon cars for principal officers, based on the budget for the Presidency.
About N189m was allocated for tyres for operational vehicles in the Presidency.
The purchases of tool boxes, car jacks and diagnostic machines for the Presidency’s armoured cars would gulp N30m while other materials such as fire extinguishers and cables would cost N27m.
The sum of N114.4m is to be spent on the upgrade of internet infrastructure and N22.5m on the purchase of internet servers in the State House.
A human rights lawyer, Mr. Ebun Adegboruwa, however, described the Presidency’s budget as one of deceit, saying it was not realistic with the current economic situation in the country.
Adegboruwa urged the Federal Government to cut down the budget for the Presidency.
“The budgetary estimate for feeding for the President is a collective insult and a demonstration of presidential hypocrisy,” he said.
“You are telling the followers to embrace austerity while you want to live in splendour. Even if the diet of the president includes human flesh, there is no reason why the budget should be that much in one year, in a country where some people cannot even get one meal a day.
“Meanwhile, his promise to primary school children has yet to be fulfilled. I think it is important for the President to identify with the people. His budget estimate for the renovation of the guest house is about N350m, is it angels that will stay in the house? How much will it cost it build the house? Is it not the same house that has just been used by the immediate past president? We cannot continue this deception in the name of change.”
He, however, expressed confidence in Buhari to review the budget for the Presidency, saying “the President must have been misled because I believe in his personal integrity”.
According to the President of the Committee for the Defence of Human Rights, Mr. Malachy Ugwumadu, the budget fails to represent the reality of Nigeria’s economy.
Ugwumadu said Nigerians would no longer tolerate the “voracious tendency of leaders in appropriating public funds for mundane things such as entertainment and leisure activities.”
He said, “We would imagine that a government that came to power on the mantra of moderation should be able to channel every penny towards the recovery of this nation that was plundered by the previous administrations.
“To read that such amounts are still devoted to mundane things such as maintenance, travel and others will naturally evoke the curiosity of the Nigerian people and challenge us more than before to ensure that the searchlight beamed on this government.”
He, therefore, urged civil society organisations to insist that the implementation of the budget satisfies the priorities of Nigerians rather than the comfort of the leaders.
But an economist, Mr. Ayo Teriba, described the budget for the Presidency as “petty” and “political”.
“It is the responsibility of the National Assembly to look at budgets for approval,” he said, adding, “That is a matter of political decision, if it is approved. It is a political issue and not an economic issue.”
Buhari recently presented the 2016 budget proposals of N6.08tn to the joint session of the National Assembly with a commitment that the Federal Government planned to finance the deficit of N2.22tn by borrowing N1.84tn from domestic and foreign sources.
Adegboruwa said there was no justification for the President and the Vice-President to have a N2.2bn on travels and transport, foodstuffs and catering materials, refreshment and meals as well as honorarium and sitting allowances, when the Federal Government is proposing to borrow to finance its N6.08tn budget.
He said, “The President should tell us how he plans to repay the money that he wants to borrow because the debt burden will be on young people as he is already 73 years old.
“He cannot leave us in penury and debt. There is no record for all the looted funds that are being refunded. We have only been told that people have been returning looted funds, but we don’t have the records. We are being told that Nigeria has no money, but the little we have, what is happening to it?
“What is the economic blueprint of this administration? We have no idea. How do we deal with the declining exchange rate? We have no idea. What is our plan for further fall in oil prices? We have no idea. The president has been talking about fighting corruption, but people are dying of hunger. He said he would recover money and people will go to jail, but we are hungry. There is no power supply, fuel or food. People are suffering.”
Earlier, the main opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party, faulted the 2016 budget, describing it as “unrealistic”.
The party’s National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh, also demanded that the President state the specific projects the money his government plans to borrow would be spent on.
Metuh said, “By every standard, this budget is a booby trap against the nation. When you break down the proposed N1.84tn borrowing, you discover that it amounts to borrowing N5bn everyday for the 365 days in 2016. The questions are: for what specific projects are they borrowing N5bn per day and how do they intend to pay back?
“The President should explain to Nigerians how his government intends to pay back the loan. Is it by continuous borrowing to service the interests? And does the President intend to accumulate a colossal debt for future generations of Nigerians? The truth is that this administration cannot justify this proposal. There is no known economy in the world where you can justify borrowing N1.84tn without specific projects and precise repayment outline.”
In his opinion, Teriba advised the Federal Government to open up sectors in dire need of infrastructure to private investors and not attempt to fund infrastructural needs on its own.
He said, “I don’t agree that the government should borrow to fund capital projects. But if somebody is borrowing to invest, it does not mean that he is broke.
“I would have preferred the ceding of investments to investors. Government should open those sectors like housing, transport and power up for investors to run. Revenue level is low and it might remain low next year. I don’t know where the government expects to get the money to repay the loan from.
“But the country is not broke because the revenue projected for the country is about N3.8tn. The main reason for borrowing is to fund ambitious capital projects, which has been increased by three-folds.”
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