Former Kaduna Senator, Shehu Sani, has strongly criticized the World Bank, denouncing its advice to the Nigerian government to increase taxes and remove subsidies on petrol as insensitive and irresponsible.
In a statement released on Friday, Sani condemned the World Bank’s recommendations, stating they would further burden Nigerians who are already grappling with poverty and insecurity. He highlighted the World Bank’s warning of potential poverty levels soaring to 104 million people out of a population of 223 million due to increased living costs caused by economic reforms.
Sani criticized the detachment of World Bank leaders, likening their approach to treating the economy as a mere chess game without considering the impact on individuals, their families, and their lives. He expressed concern over the government delicately handling a volatile situation and is now being urged to exacerbate it by removing certain crucial elements.
Expressing apprehension about the potential fallout, Sani questioned the World Bank’s stance if such measures lead to increased chaos in a nation already struggling with security challenges.
Additionally, Sani aimed President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s decisions to eliminate fuel subsidies and unify the exchange rate, deeming these measures insufficient to tackle the underlying causes of inflation and economic volatility. He urged President Tinubu to adopt more comprehensive policies focusing on job creation, poverty reduction, infrastructure enhancement, social protection, and regional integration.
Furthermore, Sani called upon Nigerians to resist any attempts, whether internal or external, aimed at undermining their nation’s sovereignty and dignity.
He said, “The World Bank is insouciantly telling Our Nigerian Government to raise taxes, withdraw subsidies on everything, and just increase the price of PMS known as petrol.
“It’s the same World Bank that alerted about poverty levels rising to 104 million out of a population of 223 million, as a result of the rise in the cost of living brought about by the economic reforms.
“The World Bank kingpins comfortably sit in their office and think of the economy as the game of Chess and not about people, their families, and their lives.
“At present, the Government is managing a Grenade with care and now telling it to remove the pin. Where would the World Bank be if the country is plunged into further chaos in a nation currently battling with security challenges?”
Sani’s remarks come at a time when public dissatisfaction is growing due to soaring prices of essential goods like food, electricity, transportation, and other commodities. The National Bureau of Statistics noted a surge in inflation from 23.2% in July to 25.8% in August 2023. In a move to counter inflationary pressures, the Central Bank of Nigeria raised its policy rate significantly, hiking it by 200 basis points from 12% to 22% in September.
The World Bank has been actively involved in supporting Nigeria’s economic recovery endeavors since 2015, implementing various projects and programs. In June 2021, it published the Nigeria Economic Update: Resilience through Reforms report, proposing policy options aimed at curbing inflation and safeguarding vulnerable households.
These suggestions encompass strategies like enhancing the transparency and consistency of exchange rate policies, defining clear monetary policy priorities, resuming open-market operations, reopening trade through land borders, facilitating the importation of essential goods like food and medicine, monitoring government CBN overdrafts, eliminating fuel subsidies, boosting domestic non-oil revenue, improving public services and business environments, pursuing fiscal consolidation, addressing security concerns, and promoting regional cooperation.
Nevertheless, critics argue that these reforms may not be adequate or timely enough to tackle Nigeria’s deep-seated structural issues, such as corruption, governance deficiencies, institutional weaknesses, limited human capital development, high unemployment rates, meager foreign direct investment, and insufficient diversification of exports.
They also question the efficacy and accountability of certain World Bank initiatives, including the Power Sector Recovery Project, Transmission Network Upgrading Project, Rural Electrification Project, and Social Investment Program.
