Peter Obi, the Labour Party presidential candidate in the 2023 election, has urged the Nigerian government to cut governance costs drastically, noting that the government is becoming wasteful.
He said this at an exclusive interview with News Central on Wednesday.
“Please, cut the cost of governance drastically,. It is too much waste,” Obi said.
“We have to show what is being removed in subsidy and where it is being applied. If the fuel subsidy is gone and the electricity subsidy is gone, then tell the people where it is going,” he said.
Obi said what Nigerians will want to see is Nigerian politicians starting to sacrifice, noting that “the politicians are still enjoying.”
The former governor of Anambra State, while restating that he once promised to remove fuel subsidy in his manifesto, said, “I have to first remove the criminality associated with the fuel subsidy and I would have been able to replace it with an alternative.”
“Now people are ready to sacrifice but you cannot ask people to fast while you are feasting. The people are suffering,” he said speaking to the Nigerian government.
He said looking at the Nigerian debt rising ‘irresponsibly,’ there is nothing bad in borrowing because people borrow globally.
He cited Singapore which owes over 100 percent of its GDP and Japan owing 200 percent, noting that the money borrowed by Japan was used for the economy and the people. He said China has a huge debt but the debt was invested.
“Today, we are the number three highest debtor to the World Bank. We will soon be number one,” Obi said.
The presidential candidate of Labour party in 2023 stated that the problem of Nigeria is not Nigeria, but the politicians.
“I mentioned that the problem of Nigeria is not Nigeria but the politicians are the problem, including myself,” he said.
He said corruption kills entrepreneurship and professionalism. “Government should stick to the constitution and do the right thing because they swore an oath to respect and keep the constitution.”
Obi said that if he were a president, he would stay within the constitution and the number of ministers, noting that what they would be doing must be measurable.
“Constitutionally, what we have is not what should be,” he stated.
Obi said the Nigerian resources have to be prioritised in key development areas that make a difference and what the country needs is competent leaders that have compassion and are dedicated to prioritising the resources of the government to key development areas.
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