Dino Mrlaye Ekweremadu others Abandon Saraki

Nigerians In Total Shock As Dino Melaye, Ekweremadu, Others Abandon Saraki | Post-Nigeria

Barely 24 hours after the Senate reconvened and recommended that the Federal Government sells some of its ‘National Assets’ to raise funds as one of the ways to bring the country’s economy out of the woods, some Senators have disagreed with the position.

Senate President, Bukola Saraki, had while addressing plenary on Tuesday, September 20, listed measures to be taken by the executive to turn the economy around.

One of the recommendations was the sale of some of the countries assets, including the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas, NLNG, Holdings, sale of government’s stakes in the African Finance Corporation and the privatization and concession of major/regional Airports and Refineries.

In reaction, on Thursday, September 22, some of the Senators averred that no country ever sold its assets as a way out of economic recession.

Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, led the pack of Senators who argued that sale of National Assets was not the way out.

He cited an example of the United Arab Emirates, UAE, which according to him, “does not even allow you close to oil wells, let alone sell them.”

“For a country like Saudi Arabia, its budget each year is run by investments from oil revenue. Other countries are investing; I am sure we will not be fair to the next generation if we sell off our assets. If we must sell, we have to sell the non-performing assets so that people can turn them around and create employment,” Ekweremadu added.

He also called on Buhari to re-jig his cabinet by putting square pegs in square holes, especially in the area of economic management.

Ekweremadu, identified the duo of the Minister of Budget and Planning, Udoma Udo Udoma, and his counterpart in the Ministry of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun, as knowledgeable people, but maintained that they are unfit for their current positions, given their professional backgrounds.

Also Speaking, Senator George Akume cautioned those making calls for sale of assets. He said rather than opt for sale of National assets, the country should focus on recovering stolen funds.

“If we want to sell our oil assets at this time when the price of oil crashed, how much are we going to realise? We are making a mistake here; what we are doing is to ensure that those who are within the bracket of the stolen dollars will still come to buy,” he pointed out.

He suggested industrialization through Agriculture as one way out, and also advocated the review of the revenue sharing formula to encourage savings, saying states should not insist on sharing revenue.

On his part, Senator Dino Melaye called for the sack of non-performing Ministers. He outrightly called for the sack the two Ministers handling the financial sector Adeosun and Udoma.

He also proffered attracting Foreign Direct Investments, blocking leakages, pacifying Niger Delta Avengers and banning some food and clothing imports, as solutions to ending the current economic crisis.

Earlier, the Senate Leader, Senator Mohammed Ali Ndume, who opened the discussion by giving his colleagues a general overview of the situation, said the current recession was not peculiar to Nigeria, adding that the country is just one of the 15 oil-dependent countries of the world experiencing same.

“This is a global phenomenon that is not only affecting our country but all countries dependent on oil,” Ndume said, even as he blamed the immediate past government for the economic crisis, by not leaving anything behind in the nation’s reserves.