Your forex policy brought hardship to Nigerians, Atiku tells Tinubu

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has blamed the forex policy of the administration of President Bola Tinubu for the current poverty and economic hardship in the country.

According to Atiku, who was the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 general elections, the policy’s hasty implementation and lack of careful planning have caused the nation to experience multiple economic crises.

Atiku said this on his X account on Sunday, adding that the government did not allow the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to develop and implement a sound FX management policy that would have dealt with such issues as increasing liquidity, regulating demands as well as rate convergence.

He further stated that the government should be willing to open itself to sound counsels from opposition, and ask for help in fixing the economy.

Atiku said: “The government did not allow the CBN the independence to design and implement a sound FX Management Policy that would have dealt with such issues as increasing liquidity, curtailing/regulating demand, dealing with FX backlogs and rate convergence.

“I firmly believe that if and when the Government is ready to open itself to sound counsels, as well as control internal bleedings occasioned by corruption and poorly negotiated foreign loans, the Nigerian economy would begin to find a footing again.”

The former vice president offered some possible solutions that can address the burgeoning foreign exchange crisis in the country, adding that the government can implement a managed-float policy rather than a free-float FX regime.

Atiku further stated that the government needs to bolster its foreign exchange reserve to promote liquidity in the market.

“Nigeria’s major challenge is the persistent FX illiquidity occasioned by limited foreign exchange inflows to the country. Without sufficient FX reserves, confidence in the Nigerian economy will remain low, and Naira will remain under pressure. The economy will have no firepower to support its currency.

“On the other hand, given Nigeria’s underlying economic conditions, adopting a floating exchange rate system would be an overkill. We would have encouraged the Central Bank of Nigeria to adopt a gradualist approach to FX management. A managed-floating system would have been a preferred option.

“In simple terms, in such a system, the Naira may fluctuate daily, but the CBN will step in to control and stabilize its value. Such control will be exercised judiciously and responsibly, especially to curve speculative activities,” Atiku advised.