By Daniel Maduka
The escalating prices of essential commodities and its negative impacts on Nigerians should not be blamed on President Bola Tinubu, according to Dr Iliayasu Kwankwaso.
The opposition parties, particularly the peoples Democratic Party PDP, he posited, are misdirected and misinformed on their scathing criticisms of the performance of the All Progressive Congress APC led Federal Government.
These were the highpoints Kwankwaso, a chieftain of the APC in Kano, during an interview with a section of the media in Kano on Saturday ,February 10 2024
Kwankwaso, immediate past Kano State Commissioner for Rural Development,and cousin to the Presidential candidate of the New Nigerian Peoples Party NNPP Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, said prices of all items are being determined by market forces as a result of the liberalization of the foreign exchange rate and the bold and patriotic steps taken by the president in abolishing the much abused petroleum subsidy regime ,.
The arch political rival of his cousin and former Governor of Kano state Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso, said the present difficult situation is but fleeting,as the federal government is doing everything humanly possible to stabilize the economy.
He lauded the recent directive for the release of about 102 metric tons of grains ,espressing optimism that the measure will go a long way in crashing prices of essential commodities.
According to him , the plan is for the Federal Ministry of Agriculture to make available an initial 42,000 metric tonnes of maize, garri, milet and other related food items, while Rice Farmers and Millers across the country ,through the instrumentality of their umbrella body will provide about 62 000 metric tonnes .
In an apparent reaction to an alleged leaked memo on the purported approval of an initial N500m out of a budgeted one billion Naira for the inauguration of a 37 man Tripartite Committee on the New minimum wage alleged to have been circulated by the PDP National Spokesperson, Debo Ologunagba, Dr Iliayusi Kwankwaso while dismissing the allegations as empty ,called on the opposition to engage in constructive criticisms.
“The opposition should criticize constructively and strive to give positive advice to the federal government on how to move the country forward.
“They should desist from casting aspersions on the government of the day ,as well as creating unnecessary tensions and anxiety in the country. Not everything should be politicized”
Dr Kwankwaso ,also, appealed to all those hoarding essential commodities to have a rethink, as their actions are inflicting unnecessary hardship on the hapless masses of the country.
“Look, Government knows where the major distributors and dealers are . If they refuse to heed the calls for the commodities to be released in to the markets, Government will take a decisive action to ensure that these products are made available to the people. Dr Iliaysu Kwankwaso stated.
