Economy falling rapidly under Buhari: What do you expect when a cattle rearer are your president

.Urges President to pay attention to global indices

. Opposition’s strategy mischievous –APC

Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has advised the All Progressives Congress, APC, administration to pay urgent attention to the management of the economy.

The call is contained in a statement issued by PDP National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh, in Abuja, on Monday.

It claimed that its worry stemmed from the fact that the economy had remained on rapid fall since the last four months.

According to the statement, the fall is “apparently due to the absence of clear-cut fiscal policy direction and an economic team to deal with the domestic and global challenges associated with a developing economy.’’

It said PDP was in full support of President Muhammadu Buhari’s efforts in tackling corruption and insurgency but was concerned about the economic situation of Nigeria.

The party said it was worried that the government had not paid attention to indices from global economic watchers in spite of its predictable negative impact.

The statement said as a responsible party, PDP was duty-bound, beyond politics, to draw the president’s attention to the fact that under the prevailing circumstances, the economy was threatened.

It stated that the situation had become more worrisome following the “failure of APC administration to articulate any interventionist policy at this critical moment,’’ especially against predictions that oil might sell for 20 dollars.

“We caution strongly that this approach to governance is not healthy for our nation,’’ the party said. It said time had come for the president to take urgent steps to set up a crack economic team of experts to immediately swing into action and salvage the economy.

“In managing this economy at this time, we urge the president, as the father of the nation, to look beyond partisan politics.

“He should ensure that the policy frameworks and populist economic projects laid by the PDP administration, especially in the non-oilsectors are not allowed to rot but adequately utilised for the good of all.’’

It advises the APC administration to pay attention to various agricultural projects and programmes established in Nigeria by the PDP administrations, especially in the northern part.

The projects include various dams and irrigation projects, the e-wallet financial empowerment system to farmers, associated to the over two million direct farm jobs.

Others are the Green Belt project under Presidential Initiative on Afforestation in Kano and 10 other northern states, all in line with PDP’s agenda to return the region as the food basket of the nation.

“The PDP believes that in the interest of millions of Nigerians citizens who look up to the political class for direction, it is now imperative on the APC-led federal government to pay deserving attention to the economy.

“The administration should continue the policy of the past administration of opening the space for harnessing indigenous potentials,’ it said.

But APC, in its reaction, described the PDP’s statement on the nation’s economy as part of the opposition’s ploy to distract the Buhari administration from its onerous task of putting the nation on a sound footing.

In a statement issued in Lagos by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said the PDP’s statement was a litany of delusional self praise, rather than a genuine concern about the nation’s well being.

‘’The question the PDP should ask itself is that if it had laid a solid foundation for the economy in its 16 years in charge, could such a foundation have given way in just three months of a new administration?

‘’If the PDP had been as fantastic as its statement had portrayed, it would still be the ruling, rather than the opposition party that it is now.

‘’It is therefore important for the PDP to concentrate its attention on remaking its tattered image rather than continuing to act as a desperate attention-seeking opposition,’’ it said Meanwhile, economic activities resumed throughout the country on Monday on a brighter notefollowing the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, reassurance on the nation’s economic strong fundamentals.

The CBN assurance followed recent claims and counter claims over the nation’s foreign exchange liquidity profile, even as JPMorgan removed the country from its emerging market bonds index.

Mr. Godwin Emefiele, CBN Governor, while reaction to the concerns raised by the foreign rating agency, reassured Nigerians and foreign investors on the nation’s strong economic fundamentals.

He described the rating agency’s concerns and decision as baseless. According to him, the nation’s ability to operate within 350 million dollars and 400 million dollars daily range of liquidity was a challenge.