NIGERIA, AN ECONOMICALLY DESTABILIZED ENTITY.

By Chimpuruimeihenile Immanuel Ukoha (Abia writers)
Edited by Livingrich Ezeikpe
The poverty in Nigeria courtesy of economic illiteracy is mind blowing. Yet some people still call Nigeria the giant of Africa. Calling Nigeria the giant of Africa is an irony. If Nigeria is the giant of Africa as it stands presently, it means that Africa has nothing to give to humanity.

Life in Nigeria is very miserable as nothing is actually working. Business in Nigeria is in its worst state currently. The wealth of Nigeria does not reflect the lifestyle of the citizens. The suffering in Nigeria is unimaginable despite the natural and human resources endowed it by nature. To an average Nigerian, it is an upheaval task to place a three square meal on the table, let alone pay house rents or dabble into multi million businesses.

For donkey years now, this contraption called Nigeria has never experienced any form of economic growth. Economic growth is the measure of the increase in the inflation-adjusted market value of the goods and services produced by an economy over time. It is conventionally measured as the percent rate of increase in real gross domestic product (GDP), usually in per capita term. According to Wikipedia, GDP has to do with the total monetary value placed on the goods and services produced by a country over a specific period of time.

Based on these definitions, we can pass a more accurate judgment on the Nigerian economy. There has been nothing done to checkmate the rate at which inflation is skyrocketing in this country. Goods and services now sell costlier than they were sold the previous years. The value placed on oil has drastically depreciated in the international market. And Nigeria will never look for means to diversify her economy so as to better the lives of her citizens. What do they know?

The sufferings or say slavery in Nigeria is as a result of economic recession, which is an aftermath of some factors;

Economic and political illiterates at the helm of affairs: the Nigerian state can only boast of illiterates running the country. These corrupt politicians will never make or implement policies that will better the lives of the general public. They are occupying those political spaces for personal aggrandisement. The last time the governor of Enugu state, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi said that the state couldn't function without the monthly allocation from the federal government, instead of creating an opportunity for internal revenue. How can the federal government run a country as big as Nigeria without pronouncing the yearly budget?

Accumulation of debts: The Nigerian government is hell bent on borrowing from the western world, and will still mismanage these funds lining their pockets. In the western world today, Nigerian politicians have the taxpayer’s money resting in personal accounts. The European Union, recently stopped lending Nigeria more money, saying that Nigeria is now rich or maybe the god of Nigeria (Britain) is no longer a member of the EU. There are trillions of hard currencies owed by Nigeria in foreign countries and world Banks and the current minister of finance is insisting on continuous borrowing. What are these funds used for? Who will pay these debt incurred on daily basis? So many questions; yet no answers are forthcoming. Only in Nigeria can these happen.
High-interest rate: The banking system in Nigeria is nothing to talk about; it is just a mess of banking. This system can never create opportunities for acquisition of soft loans by the young entrepreneurs or investors, who lack the capital to start up a business. The interest rates are so high that investors can purchase their services. Hence increase in unemployment.

The high cost of goods and services (inflation): The cost of goods and services in Nigeria are so high that the poor masses because of low purchasing power can't even afford to buy foodstuffs. Petroleum, which is one of the natural resources and the mainstream source of Nigeria's income, and the only bond between Hausa/Fulani, Yoruba and Biafrans, has kerosene and petrol as by-products, but these commodities are sold at very exorbitant prices making it impossible for even the citizens of Nigeria to lay hands on them.

Poor infrastructural development: Facilities such as good road networks are not available in the contraption called Nigeria, there by making it impossible for people to convey their goods to places where they are needed. All of a sudden, Nigeria has forgotten that transportation (good road network) is one of the aids to trade. There is a very poor supply of electrical energy in Nigeria, hence making business bad for people who require electricity for the optimal function and growth of their businesses. When people complain, their lives would be threatened, just like the recent issue of the two brothers (Psquare), the "do me I do you crooners”, whose lives were threatened by the APC led government, for standing out to castigate their government.

Bad economic policies: Most of the policies made by the government, don’t encourage the growth of firms and industries, especially the young ones. To grow an economy, there shouldn't be a monopoly of any type. Monopoly does not allow competition, it favours just part of the people and not the entire citizenry.

Mismanagement of resources both human and material is also a contributory factor to the recession Nigeria has plunged into. That is also a reason Nigeria must divide since it isn't working. We Biafrans want a country, where our potentials will be harnessed and be used to better the lives of people. We don't wish to be part of an entity where our wine is always turned into water on daily basis. We wish to be free, to run an economy, which one day would become a world power.