PMB Can Get Nigeria Out Of Recession – Hon Romo

The government seems to be at a loss on how to manage the economy and Nigerians are getting impatient. What is your take on this?
There is recession which came as a result of many factors. There is pipeline vandalisaiton by the militants, corruption, and the fall in the prices of crude oil. These are some of the factors that led to the recession in Nigeria. I also believe government is trying its best to get us out of it.

But is the government doing enough to get us out because some think they don’t have the capacity?
When things happen, people will want to apportion blames. Some will say the FG doesn’t have the capacity or political will, some have said, they are not serious but in reality, the Buhari- led federal government is doing its best to curtail all these problem. For example, if you look at vandalisation, is it the government that is making them to do it? Is it the government that is making south-east to protest and destroy public property or what about the increase in kidnapping? Another thing is that, we are in a democracy and so, the government cannot come out to fight them anyhow like it used to be done during military regime. Government has to find a diplomatic and democratic means of resolving these problems. The government cannot take arms and kill its own citizens because they are not doing the right thing. Government must dialogue and that is what they are doing in every situation. See what dialogue is doing to the boko haram and how some of the girls were released. This vandalisation has really affected our production capacity. Nigeria loses over 600 thousand barrels per day which is huge and affects our income. I believe the leaders of this region can bring their young people to order. The government has the capacity to get us out of recession but they need the cooperation of every Nigerian.

Do they have the right people in the right places because there seems to be no viable economic team in place?
This recession is not peculiar to Nigeria alone, it is happening all over the world. The whole world is in recession. In some countries, they cannot afford to pay salaries of their people. You can see that our government is trying to diversify the economy. Government cannot just draw solution from the heavens, they will have to take it step by step and it might take longer than most people expect. We also know that, there are those that are waiting at every junction to frustrate government efforts. When a child is born, he doesn’t start walking immediately, he goes from one stage to the other. So this government is like a new baby and they will have to move from one place to another.

Some have advised the government to secure loan or sell our assets to reflate the economy, what is your advice on the means of funding for the economy?
I am not an economist but as a layman, we must go back and remember what happened to the assets that were sold in the past. We know of infrastructure like NEPA, NITEL and the rest. Were they really revived or did some people just short-change government? I think selling of assets is not an option at all. Government should think of other means.

This is the last quarter of the year and Nigerians are beginning to wonder whether the 2016 budget was even implemented because nobody seems to feel the impact. What is happening?
I think some people thought the government would do magic and things would start working out immediately. It doesn’t work that way. But I am sure there are improvements in some sectors. Like security, now Nigerians can move freely. They can worship freely and women can carry their bags and wear long gowns without security stopping them to search them. Corruption is also on the decrease because people are now afraid of collecting bribes and those who stole are afraid of bringing out their loot because they know they will be investigated and they might be prosecuted. The budget is being implemented. I am aware that funds for infrastructure and other things have been released. Besides, the budget will not end this year, it will be carried to the first quarter of 2017. So, there is still time to implement the budget fully. My joy is that, corruption has been reduced in government. I believe this time around, Nigerians will feel the impact of the budget because every ministry and MDA will want to implement what they were given.

The wife of the president, Aisha Buhari has stated that, the president is being surrounded by a cabal, and that if things continue this way, she may not support him in 2019. Don’t you think this is an indictment on the part of this government?
I don’t know what she is talking about and I think it is between them. But I believe that, it is not necessary to be familiar with people before you work with them as long as you know they will deliver. Familiarity is not a principle for working with people. Capacity is necessary in governance. Nigeria has gotten to a stage where we have to appoint anybody that can contribute positively to the growth and development of this country, not minding affiliations. We have to move above party and ethnic lines to move the country forward. I also believe the president has the sole prerogative of employing and appointing the people he feels comfortable with. Knowing his stand on corruption and integrity, he cannot work with just anybody because somebody wants him to do it.

The APC seems to be fighting itself. We have the case of Tinubu and Oyegun and then Kwankwaso and Ganduje. Don’t you think this is a serious problem somewhere?
It is politics. It is normal to disagree and agree. Even married couple fights not to talk of politics in which everybody has his interest. This is pure politics but we will resolve this issue. The APC is full of men with integrity and passion for Nigeria. At the end of the day, the factions will reconciled and come back together. I don’t think it will affect the party in 2019. These are leaders and they know what is at stake.
Still on Kano State, what is being done in terms of reviving the textile industry?
Government is trying its best but no industry will function without adequate power. I think that is what government is trying to do by giving license to different companies who will bring in alternative power sources like wind, solar and the rest. In Kano now, they are trying to establish power supply with wind and if that is done, most of the factories will be revived. I hope from now to next year, things would have improved drastically.

What has been the impact on the economy since these companies folded up?
You can never quantify it. It is unfortunate that so many people lost their lives and jobs because of the closure of these companies. I know one company that used to employ more than ten thousand people. But for almost 10 years now, the company has been closed and nobody is there. So you can imagine where this people went to. You can also imagine the multiplier effect on the economy. So many companies like that close shop. You can see the effect from the increase in crime, poverty, kidnapping, armed robbery and the rest. This is because people don’t have what to do. Some grow up to see their parents jobless and decide to change the fortune of their families through crime. If these companies were still functional, even if there would be crime, it would have been low. Look at places like Maiduguri which used to export fish. In a day, about a 100 trucks used to live Maiduguri with fish to other parts of the country. But now, I don’t think two vehicles leave there with fish because of insecurity. The same with the Niger-delta. If these youths are giving jobs, I don’t think some of them will like to be militants. They would have been contributing their quota to the society too instead of trying of destroying it.