Emir of Kano, Muhammed Sanusi II, has insisted that Nigeria spends over 70% of her earnings on debt servicing, despite spending so much to pay for fraudulent subsidy which has led to the country being on the high way to Bankruptcy.
Sanusi spoke in Kano at the third National treasury workshop organized by the office of the Accountant General of the federation. He was invited as a former Central Bank Governor to give an insight into the economy. But he did not mince words: he declared that Nigeria has gone bankrupt by every ramifications.
“Two days ago, I read that the percentage of the government’s revenue going to debt services has risen to 70.
“And then, you continue subsidizing petroleum products; and spending N1.5 trillion per annum on petroleum subsidy. And then we are subsidizing electricity tariff. And maybe, you have to borrow from the capital market or the Central Bank of Nigeria to service the shortfall in the electricity tariff, where is the money to pay salaries, where is the money for education, where other government projects,” he said.
As at two months ago, this Magazine had reported that 60% of earnings are used for debt servicing. Obviously things have gone worse within such a short period.
“The country is bankrupt and we are heading for bankruptcy. What happened is that the federal government do pay petroleum subsidy, pay electricity tariff subsidy, and if there is a rise in interest rates, Federal Government pays,” he says.
“What is more life-threatening than the subsidy that we have to sacrifice education, health sector and infrastructure for us to have cheap petroleum.
“If truly President Buhari is fighting poverty, he should remove the risk on the national financial sector and stop the subsidy regime which is fraudulent.”
Buhari has told the nation during his 2015 campaign that subsidy is a fraud being perpetrated under the Peoples Democratic Party regime. But within four years, he has paid more subsidy than was paid by PDP in sixteen years.
Sanusi has once accused Buhari of making more millionaires through his cronies that own and operate the Bureau de changes. Nigeria has been operating multiple forex regimes. Some few powerful individuals buy forex at N200 per dollar and send to their Bureau de change outlets to sell at N360 per dollar.
“(You) continue subsidizing petroleum products; and spending N1.5 trillion per annum on petroleum subsidy. And then we are subsidizing electricity tariff. And maybe, you have to borrow from the capital market or the Central Bank of Nigeria to service the shortfall in the electricity tariff, where is the money to pay salaries, where is the money for education, where other government projects,” he said.
