Nigerians are worse off today than they were before the Muhammadu Buhari-led administration took office in 2015, this verdict came on Tuesday from the Presidential Candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar.
According to Atiku, living conditions of the people have taken a turn for the worse with food insecurity and high costs of goods and services across the country.
“Nigeria’s GDP grew at an average rate of less than 1% since the APC assumed power in 2015. Compare this with an average growth of 6.5% in seven years earlier.
“For per capital income, a measure of citizens’ well being has progressively fallen since 2015 because of declining output and a fast growing population.
“Nigerians are worse off today than they were in 2015. Job losses ,declining purchasing power of per capita income and lack of citizens access to basic amenities have pushed more than 90 million people below the poverty line and created more misery for the poor in towns and villages,” he said.
Atiku spoke while presenting his economic blueprint for Nigeria at the Private Sector Economic Forun on the 2023 presidential election organized by the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI).
The former Vice-President said Nigeria under the APC federal government has consistently run on budget deficits since it assumed power in 2015.
“For the first time in Nigeria’s history, the Federal Government paid more in debt service than it earned by spending more than 100percent of its revenue for debt service.
“Nigeria is breaching one of the applicable debt sustainability thresholds. The APC led government is dressing Nigeria in borrowed robes,” Atiku said.
Lamenting that Nigeria’s economy rated in the Goodluck Jonathan administration by the World Bank as the biggest economy in Africa has been crawling instead of growing, Atiku promised to lead the country out of darkness if elected as president in 2023.
He also advised Nigerians not to allow political slogans to take the place of developmental plans, stressing that political propaganda on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram is never a substitute for proper social, economic and political agenda.
“In all my endeavours whether as a businessman or as a public officer, I have always nurtured the desire to create abundant opportunities for people and enhance their capability so that they live a happy, healthy, productive life. There is nothing I enjoy, like making you rich
“When I create opportunity, I don’t envy and I don’t jealous. Creating economic opportunities for Nigerians will represent significant implication for social cohesion and national security.
“Economic prosperity is an integral part of my five point agenda, soon to be officially unveiled that seeks to restore Nigeria’s unity, strengthen national security to foster economic prosperity, and education for delivery and restructure,” Persecondnews quotes Atiku as saying.
“My government will take strategic steps to heal and rebuild the economy of our dreams. I will lead Nigeria out of darkness.”
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