Abba Dukawa
As the people and the nation enter the new year 2021 with great anticipation of what the year will look like to more than 100 million Nigerians, that were classified as poor citizens.
Absolutely, last year was one of the hardest years for millions of Nigerians. Whatever may be, Nigerians are hoping for Allah’s blessing in spite of losing much confidence in the leadership.
May Allah, protect our country from harm, eradicate anything that may disrupt our peaceful coexistence, aid our rulers to maintain our country’s economic progress and forgive us of our wrongdoings and accept our good deeds. Bless our nation again.
Like the rest of the countries across the globe, the year 2020 was the most challenging year almost all the nation’s sectors have its up and down. But the critical sectors which have a direct bearing on the country’s population is the hit in Inflation, Economy, and Security.
These sectors witness serious turmoil and the rest of the sector remains the same.
On Inflation, The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) report that Nigeria’s inflation rate rose by 12.82% (year-on-year), the highest rate recorded in 27 months since March 2018.
The situation has worsened Nigeria’s poverty rate. In a country where N30,000 is a minimum wage, the rate of inflation left lucky ones with fixed income with less purchasing power, and their ability to afford the same quantity of goods and services has reduced significantly.
2020, Nation’s Economy: Following the collapse of crude oil prices from 2014 to date, triggered unpleasant memories to the Nigerian government.
Since then It continued to struggle to revive the economy amidst dwindling oil revenues compounded by unemployment, poverty, and insecurity and the country remains weak and fragile -being outstripped by population growth.
The outbreak of the Covid 19, which has put Nigeria’s economy at a crossroads.
Nigeria’s Dependent on oil for 70% of government revenues, fluctuating prices leave the country vulnerable in hardship.
Due to lack of foresight from our rulers, they would have saved hundreds of billions of dollars as much as possible especially at the time crude oil price reached its peak.
The present and past administrations both failed to prevent the country from going into a recession followed by the collapse of oil prices in 2015.
Unemployment, poverty, and economic uncertainty remain unresolved. Now the country facing severe challenges. Oil price is accentuated by rising commodity prices, with the devaluation of the naira against the U.S. dollar.
With Covid 19 pandemic in the first quarter of the last year. While the serving administration lack an economic transformation strategy, the country bears serious economic turmoil with the first recession and now in the second, the recession the country going into which is expected to be the worst since the 1980s.
With the administration’s inability to implement an expansionary fiscal policy, since then the economy has been grappling with slow growth. The IMF projects that growth will remain weak at an annual average of about 1.9% from 2019 to 2023.
With a second recession set to further aggravate the extreme poverty level in the country which already stood as the highest in the world.
Nigeria’s debt has doubled since Buhari took over. Two months before he took office on 29 May – the country owed a total of N12 trillion.
At the end of June 2015, the country’s debt had risen slightly to N12.1 trillion. By the end of June 2018, total public debt had almost doubled to N22.4 trillion.
Going by these frightening figures released by the Debt Management Office and another scary situation total debt stock stood at some humongous rose to N31. 009 trillion ($85.897 billion) as of June 30, 2020.
Almost every day Concerned Nigerians and Economic experts expressed worries over the country’s rising debt profile.
Nigeria has been condemned perpetually with the twin problem of heavy budget deficits and weak balance of payments position.
Where things do get even worse, the recession could continue into 2021 when the economy could only attract only 2%.
It is time for economic diversification in the country because there is no state in Nigeria without untapped mineral resources. Notwithstanding this huge opportunity in the nation’s untapped mineral resources.
According to a report on the Geology and Mineral resources of Nigeria estimated Nigeria’s iron ore deposit to reach three billion tonnes, coal, three billion tonnes while lead and zinc are to reach 10 million tonnes each.
from iron, ore experts say Federal Government can make $280 billion from iron ore annually more than what the country earns from crude oil.
The country will set itself free unless the federal government develops the country’s untapped mineral industry and mechanize the agricultural sectors.
Security challenge; remain most scary year because of the level of insecurity reaching unpleasant stage due to the rising tide of insecurity across northern Nigeria and other states of the federation and the most challenging times after the country’s bitter experience of the three-year civil war.
People in the northern part of the country are completely at the mercy of armed gangs who roam towns and villages at will, wreaking havoc.
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I am a strong believer that the government and the citizens should evolve strategies in tackling the menace.
It behooves every Nigerian to rise to the occasion to support the security agencies toward securing Nigeria.
Like I have raised this issue in my last articles which were widely published in many prints and online mediums Why Insecurity And Mass Kidnapping Persists In The North, Said Nigerians clamor for change but we do not want to change themselves.
In the North, villagers give information to Boko Haram, kidnappers, and bandits.
In the South, families and friends protect drug dealers, yahoo boys. People in high places intercede on behalf of criminals.
Every Nigerian is a major stakeholder and therefore owes it a duty to ensure Nigeria is saved from the quagmire of insecurity.
There has never been a time when millions of Nigerians are losing faith in the ability of those in governance to make a great impact to better our tomorrow than now.
The people’s faith keeps fading on a daily basis in the country.
Five years down the line no Nigerian expected negative things to happen under PMB’s stewardship.
The electorates never thought Baba would head a government bedeviled with boggling poor economic policies, poverty, and insecurity.
Nigerians want to see improved security, Economic situation in the country.
The economy is sinking deep and the unemployment rate is higher than ever before.
The government should take proactive steps to reverse the situation.
The government should do everything possible to redeem itself.
Truly, 2020 has been a challenging year occasioned by COVID19 and a bad economy.
Things have gone so wrong and so bad.
Even Buhari’s fear factor has gone. Corrupt and criminal ones in society have a free day. Everyone does as wishes. Government has a lot of work to do in 2021 to redeem itself. May we have a prosperous year free from any misfortune?
Dukawa write in from Kano can be reached at (abbahydukawa@gmail.com
