Recession: Sen Adeola Chides Economic Team, Calls For Urgent Palliatives

The senator representing Lagos West Senatorial District, Senator Solomon Adeola (APC) has
called for urgent and persistent measures to be taken to address the now
officially acknowledged recession that Nigerian economy has slipped into.

The senator who is the vice chairman of Senate Committee on Communications said that  it is worrisome that government at all levels
are not treating the issue of recession with the urgency it requires to ensure
that its duration is not unduly prolonged with untold suffering and even deaths
for majority of our people.

While acknowledging that the recession at this time is not peculiar to Nigeria,
Senator Adeola said that the difference here is that not much is being done to
assured the people that government is on top of the situation in terms of
marshaling out implementable policies to address the plight of groups that are
hardest hit by the continuing recession.

“I must say that one is yet to see any urgency in providing palliatives for the poor and
collapsing industries and other corporate bodies leading to serious job losses
and a growing sense of despair among the general population. Experience in the
past shows that one of the most reliable ways to tackle recession is to spend
money on productive sector as well as welfarist spending to put money in the
pockets of the poor” the senator asserted.

The senator, a Fellow of ICAN, regretted that so far
the Economic Team of the Government particularly the Finance and Budget and Planning
Ministers, the Director General of Budget Office and the CBN Governor appeared
lackadaisical in their approach to what is ordinarily an economic emergency
adding that he would have expected the team to be dishing out policy options
and direction in forms of palliative for the poor, bail out/loans for
distressed organizations like Innosson Motors and airlines in dire straits.

“As we confront the unpalatable recession one is worried to see unelected ministers of
government go about in convoys of SUVs with a horde of assistants and security
aides as if the recession is just a word that has no effect on their lives and
ways of doing things while we elected representatives are daily confronted by
helpless constituents who look up to us for solutions to their economic
challenges. This period calls for austere lifestyles and cutting of recurrent
expenditure of government at all levels to free funds for interventionist
palliatives for the people and organizations that provide jobs for the people
as well as diversification of the revenue base of the government.” he further
stated.

Senator Adeola who stopped short of calling for the sack of the Economic Team however
lamented that with the World Bank and other international development agencies
putting the number of our poor at about 70 million when dollar exchange for
N150 before the recession, the number of those living below poverty line may
now be approaching over 100million adding that the Economic Team must realize
that an enormous responsibility rest on their shoulders to provide palliatives
and rescue millions from extreme poverty beyond what the interventions of
government that predates the recession.