It is either I do not
understand economics or how exchange rates work or a vast majority of us
Nigerians still don’t get how we have wrecked our country with our own curious
choices. Just this morning I was listening to the radio and the lady on air
went on and on about how she thought CBN governor Godwin Emefiele was
incompetent and should be sacked because the naira was now exchanging at 309 or
so to the US DOLLAR.
That view pretty much
echoes the sentiments expressed by many people I know and it amazes me that
there are Nigerians who actually think there is some magic POLICY that can make
the Naira strong in the near term. If my economics and my understanding of the
way the world works are right, then that is as far from the truth as Jesus
Christ is black.
The simple fact of the
matter is that apart from oil that accounts for over 90% of our revenues, we
really don’t have much of an economy. We hardly produce anything, we import
even toothpicks, so exactly what policy is going to be implemented that will
turn Nigeria into a top exporting economy in the near term? .
Where are our Apples,
IBMs, Disney’s, General Motors, General Electric’s, Coca Colas, Empire State
buildings, Statues of Liberties, Lockheed’s, Citibank’s, JP Morgan’s,
ExxonMobil’s, NBAs, Super Bowls etc? Let me bring that closer home.
There was a time long
ago when Nigeria had a truly strong economy and Nigeria’s economy was not
competing with America’s economy but rather United Kingdom economy.
One pound was equal to
2 Naira and 1 Dollar was equal to 65 kobo. Back In those days the Government of
U.A.E (Dubai) came to beg Nigeria for loan to develop its country. Now we are
the one’s begging for loans, Or is it Malaysia that came and exported our own
brand of Palm Trees from the Nursery to develop their agricultural sector,
today they are one of the largest producers of Palm oil in the world.
Today I don’t need to
tell you how strong these countries are, and how Nigerians troop in to their
embassies in search of visa to go for greener pastures or holidays.
Back then we had a
good economy. The economy was so good that we needed no application for visa to
America to be treated or deported the way we are treated now. My father once
said if you were paid in dollars after doing a job you could reject it and
request for Naira, because the Naira was one of the strongest currency in the
world after the British pounds.
We were either the
top, or among the top exporters, of timber, cocoa, groundnuts, rubber, palm
oil, etc, in the world.
Nigerians not only
holidayed at home in their villages,but also at Yankari Games Reserve, at Obudu
Cattle Ranch, at Oguta Lake, at Ikogosi springs, at Gurara Falls, at Mambilla
Plateau, etc, we attracted international tourists who brought in loads of
foreign exchange.
Even Nigerian schools
were foreign exchange earners because they attracted foreign students. We had
different car assembly plants – Peugeot, Volkswagen, Anamco etc. Nigerian
government officials only bought vehicles assembled in Nigeria for official
cars. We had a thriving sports industry.
We were not Man United
or Chelsea fans; we were Enugu Rangers or IICC fans. We had the Nduka Odizors,
people made money from sports. We also had companies like Lennards and Bata
producing school shoes in their thousands, we had the thriving Nigerian Airways
and the Aviation School in the north that produced some of the best pilots in
the world.
In those days if you
were brilliant you were respected much more than the crazy money-miss-road
contractors of today. Most of the Aje Butters had fathers who were university
dons and Professors. Back then it meant something to ‘know book’.
Our textile industry
was alive and well. Just recently I watched a news report on the textile
industry in Nigeria on CCTV News. Though the main focus was on the comatose
status of the industry, I was stunned by the gigantic Kaduna Textile Mill built
in 1957. I could go on and on.
Today however, no
thanks to our parents (and we must call them out the way Wole Soyinka did his
generation) and many of us (and we should be remembered for failing our
children if we continue like this), we have destroyed everything.
Today for instance
Nigerian football League (which am madly in love with) doesn’t appeal to some
of us. Personally as an Arsenal Fan for the past 20 years, my love for Arsenal
has never stopped me from loving my darling Dolphins of Port Harcourt. (Oh that
finest moment in 2001 when my captain fantastic Kennedy Chinwo led us to the
double as we won the League and FA Cup).
People fly across
thousands of miles to watch Arsenal, Manchester United And Chelsea Football
clubs play. Every year we collectively burn Billions of Naira being fans of
clubs that give us nothing back, but some ‘entertainment value’ – simple
pleasures for which we are ready to destroy the future of our children. Well
people, payback time is here.
Even with our little
incomes we earn,we all want to wear designer clothes and carry designer bags,
Armani, Givenchy, Louis Vuitton etc. Neglecting our own which will insulting
calling it "Aba made"
We all want to drive
Jeeps with American specs, our children must now school overseas and acquire
the necessary accents to come back home and intimidate/show off on their ‘bush
and less’ friends that they left behind who could not afford going abroad.
Nobody holidays in
Nigeria anymore, is there Disneyland here? No one buys made in Nigeria school
bags for their children, after all no Superman, Incredible Hulk or Cinderella
picture on them. We are no longer top exporters of anything and the demise of
oil means we have hit zero scale.
A country of 170
million fashion-conscious and crazy people has no textile industry. We take
delight in showing how our made-in-Switzerland Aso Ebi is different class to
everyone else’s.
Our musicians are not
left behind. When we help our musicians grow and pay them millions, they repay
us by immediately shipping the monies overseas to produce their “
I-don-dey-different-level” music videos.
I was watching a
certain Humble Smith video titled "Osinachi"(Nice song with Nice
message) and saw it was shot in a church in Nigeria. Well that is because he is
upcoming. I bet you next time would be South Africa or Dubai, helping another
country entertainment industry blossom.
As stars concerned
they also wed and holiday overseas to impress us all, a certain musician spent
millions of Dollars on his wedding in Dubai. The question is how many Arabs
bought his Cds or flew from Dubai to Nigeria to attend his shows here. But
Nigerians helped him come to limelight. But he invested into another man's
economy through his wedding.
All the musicians who
acknowledge their Ajegunle roots now speak in a cocktail of strange accents to
symbolise how much they have blown their monies overseas.
Were we a more serious
people, the highly popular Kingsway Stores of the past would probably have a
thousand outlets branches in Nigeria today supporting a massive agriculture
industry among others.
Today we have the
likes of Shoprite, own by South Africans (South African's keep making money
from us) and SPAR which is worldwide dominating the retail industry while our
Kingsway is dead.
In Telecommunication
we allowed our own NITEL die while we patronize South Africa’s MTN and U.A.E
(Dubai) Etisalat. (Thank God GLO helped redeemed our image).
In Satellite TV, we
allowed personal gains to kill our own Hi-TV in 2007 because of South Africa’s
DSTV ( mind you DSTV has 5 million Active Users in Nigeria and makes about 12
Billion Naira monthly and 140 Billion Naira annually from Nigerians)
And we Nigerians make
it a special point to shop from the Oyinbos (foreigners) who have ‘cleaner
shops’, ‘better this and better that’. For our personal pleasure we don’t mind
them dominating us and making money in our own backyard and shipping the money
back to their countries to develop it. Some Nigerians even do impulse buying as
a sign to show off.
I could go on and on,
but am tired. Even as you are reading this, stop for a moment and look around
you. What you see will probably explain why we are lucky it is not yet 1000
Naira to 1 Dollar yet. And don’t think for a moment that it cannot get there.
Just continue to wear
your Armani, Louis Vuitton designer’s clothes and Swiss-made lace, continue to
spend your money on Man United, Arsenal, Chelsea and Barca rather than watch
them for fun and encourage your children to do same. (My next article will be
on the Nigerian champions Enyimba FC . Nigeria’s most successful club having
won the league seven times yet not a brand name, yet companies that make money
here like Airtel pay over 600 million Naira to Arsenal and Chivita drink pays
Manchester United for sponsorship to impress us.)
Ehhh, no problem,
continue to tell me the Nigeria League is not good. Yet every season I see
breathtaking sublime free kicks from people like Uwadiagu of Enyimba ,world
class goals from strikers like Orok Akarandut highest goal scorer in 2008/2009
season with 17 goals, Ahmed Musa (yes the Ahmed Musa you know, then he played
for Kano Pillars) highest goal scorer in 2009/2010 season with 18 goals, Jude
Aneke with 20 goals in 2010/2011, Sibi Gwar with 17 goals in 2012, Victor Namo
with 18 goals in 2013, Mfon Udoh with 23 goals in 2014 and Gbolahan Salami with
17 goals in 2015. (The Nigeria league for this year starts in February).
Continue to tell me the clubs should package themselves if they want
sponsorship.
Carry on with your
love of French wines, don’t curtail your interest in choice wines or love our
own Jacobs wine or Deebee wine. (we were the number one champagne consumers in
the world in 2015).
Since 2011 Nigerians
consume about 1.1 million liters of Champagne every year which is worth about 8
Billion Naira yearly).
Continue to love your
American specs cars, cheer the education ministry for letting schools sink to
pitiable levels.
Owners of schools
continue to embrace British, American and whatever else curriculum. 90 percent
of schools in Nigeria don't do History any longer, Our children no longer learn
about the great Kingdom of Benin or its lovely artwork (lolz I just remembered
my History teacher in Hallel College, Port Harcourt, Mr. Momoh). All because we
have embraced foreign standard and way of life.
Don’t even consider
holidaying in Nigeria, keep saying it’s too dangerous.
Please keep dressing
in fine silk made in some exotic place so you can be addressed accordingly or
called “big man”
Finally keep letting
corrupt leaders who have looted your wealth and shipped all the monies overseas
get away because to attack them does not fit your political narrative.
Some of us even say is
none of my business because I am not a politician. Some go religiously “saying
I am a Christian I operate the economy of heaven. So if Naira falls or all our
politicians loot all our money it can’t affect me because my bank is in heaven.
Let us continue with
the fine life, let us all continue to work for Oyinbo (Foreigners). But don’t
forget that there is payback time and Emefiele who is the Governor of Central
Bank is not your problem. It is time for us to look in the mirror and take
responsibility.
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