AMID HARDSHIP… Northern Leaders Want Foreign Trips Suspended

In the face of significant economic struggles currently confronting the nation, leaders from the North Central region have made a compelling appeal to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, urging him to suspend for one year all foreign trips undertaken by government officials.

Expressing their deep concern over the ongoing hardships faced by the citizenry, they expressed belief that a pause on international engagements would significantly benefit the country’s financial health.

According to the regional leaders, the consistent trend of government officials traveling abroad for medical treatments, professional training, various conferences, seminars, and workshops is contributing to the ongoing significant drain on the country’s purse.

They assert that halting these expenditures for a year could allow the government to redirect valuable resources towards revitalising the moribund textile and steel industries, which in turn could generate much-needed employment opportunities for the nation’s youth.

Speaking through the national publicity secretary of the North Central Peoples Forum (NCPF), Rt Hon Audu Sule, they expressed their commitment to supporting the President to achieve success in his plan to revive Nigeria’s economy.

“We are genuinely concerned about the current state of affairs in our country, and we earnestly want President Tinubu to succeed in his endeavours,” Sule remarked, just as he stressed that the President must take bold and decisive actions that will etch his name in the annals of history.

“The President should immediately suspend all foreign training programmes, seminars, trips, and conferences for government officials for a period of one year. This crucial step will enable the government to invigorate the textile and steel sectors, ultimately leading to job creation and enhanced prosperity for our nation,” Sule said.

He added that all medical treatments for government officials should be conducted within Nigeria to ensure that savings are maximized and redirected towards domestic projects.

The leaders further articulated that if there is an absolute necessity for any official to travel abroad for specific engagements, the President should limit such travel to only one representative.

“To reinforce our commitment, we propose that all estacode allowances be suspended for the duration of one year. These are the sacrifices that those in government must undertake to steer the country back onto a path of stability and growth,” the leaders declared, highlighting the importance of prioritising funds for the rejuvenation of the textile and steel industries.

“There is a clear directive on where these funds should be allocated. We also urge the President to enforce that all financial transactions conducted within Nigeria be executed in our local currency, the naira,” they advised.

The leaders also recommended a moratorium on ceremonial activities related to the commissioning or launching of new projects for one year with projects supervised directly by ministers and not through middlemen.

The leaders insisted that their proposals are purely advisory in nature.

“Our role is to offer constructive advice. By eliminating all forms of financial leakages, there will be sufficient resources available to fund essential projects.

“We do not support distributing cash as palliatives to the populace. If the President can successfully revitalise the steel and textile industries, Nigerians will likely express their gratitude for his leadership as employment opportunities increase and prosperity returns to our land. This could also lead to stability in labour relations, minimising the risk of strikes,” the leaders said.

On his part, Anthony Sani, an elder statesman and leader from the North Central zone, challenged leaders to make sacrifices now.

Sani, a former secretary-general of the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), said reducing the number of foreign trips is one area of reducing the cost of governance, adding that one of the issues the president omitted in his broadcast was to let Nigerians know how the government intended to reduce governance costs for the express purpose of using any resultant savings for the development of the productive sector.

“Textiles is only one of the areas. Many aspects of the ailing economy are begging for attention. The major challenge as a nation is the lack of productivity. Palliative is consumption, not production.

“So, reducing government officials’ foreign trips is only one aspect of the sacrifices they are expected to make. This is because public officers are not supposed to live standards of life far above those of their constituents. They are, therefore, expected to lead the charge for the sacrifices needed in the collective efforts to recover the economy and dare the rest of Nigerians to follow,” Sani added.

Address hardship, ADC tells President

In a related development, the national chairman of the African Democratic Congress, ADC, Chief Ralphs Okey Nwosu, has urged President Bola Tinubu to listen to protesting Nigerians and immediately address the economic hardship.

Nwosu said the federal government’s economic policies are suffocating Nigerians and called on the President to be proactive in tackling the challenge.

Speaking to journalists, Nwosu said, “How do we deal with our issues? Proactivity is critical to leadership. The president should be proactive. The money that has been spent to stop the protest and palliatives, if it was channeled properly, would have solved part of the hunger problem.

“Moving forward, I wish we could be more proactive; Nigerians came outspoken, people died; a lot of people are dying on the street. Go to the mortuary, people have filled up the place; people cannot pay their bills, so the president should listen to Nigerians.“

He urged the APC-led government to look at wealth creation for the people and not to introduce policies that would cripple the nation.

Nwosu expressed disappointment that the opposition is not doing much to check the excesses of the APC government and called on leaders of opposition political parties in the country to rise to the occasion and hold the government accountable.