Despite the prevailing hardship in the country, politicians have abruptly dumped governance to give priority to imminent elections. Regrettably, Nigerians are currently overwhelmed by the debacles unfolding in the country, ranging from scarcity of cash occasioned by the prevailing CBN policy, unprecedented hike in fuel price and many more. It is indeed unfortunate that despite these debacles, politicians are only more concerned about the next elections than fixing the lingering crises.
Currently, Nigerians are stranded amidst the policy of the CBN to mop up the old notes with new notes. Recall that the apex bank had in late 2022, announced the design of a new 200, 500, 1000 note. Then, it set a deadline for January 31, 2023 for everyone to deposit the old notes, but later extended it to February 10. This is despite the fact that the new notes are yet to circulate across the length and breath of the country. By virtue of this devastating development, Nigerians are now condemned to buying cash at higher rates.
Worsening the issue is the lingering hike in the price of fuel. As of today, most fueling stations sells fuel as high as N400 per liter as against the N187 official price. This development has consequently impacted the prices of goods, thereby resulting into an unprecedented increase in cost of living. Despite these indices, salaries and income of Nigerians have remained constant. Although, it is not a lie that the prevailing economic downturn is a global problem, but the unfortunate fact that Nigerian government have chosen to prioritize elections while other governments across the globe are taking steps to cushion the effect of the crisis stands condemned.
It is on this note that I call on Nigerian governments to pick priority in fixing this nation, and resolve the lingering issues accordingly. Failure to do the needful may set the nation on fire, thereby affecting the chances of the elections that they have chosen to prioritize.
