 You're welcome back. It's time now to go to the papers and see what the headlines are and we're going to be doing that with Professor Fagge who has joined us here today to X-ray some of these headlines and make sense of aid. Professor Fagge, good morning and welcome to the program. Good morning and thank you. Okay, so we're going to begin with the punch newspaper to take some of the headlines that we are seeing here. The biggest headline here or the boldest headline here is federal government may spend 3.27 trillion Naira on palliatives and loans and the writers on that story that 15 million households to get 1.13 trillion Naira for three months 125 billion Naira for MSMEs and others Then PWDs demand more palliatives from Somolu. Quarra IDPs get relief materials. Okay, federal government may spend 3.27 trillion Naira on palliatives. That is in the next three months. Your comments, please, sir. Yeah, this shows the negative effects of subsidy removal and the devaluation of the Naira which has been the major plank of this administration policy in the last four months and now what it shows that in order for the government to you know be able to push in the effect of These twin policies it needs about three point something trillion Naira and this will deepen the economic crisis in the country because one the palliatives may be too short and too small and they may not be able to take the poor people out of The situation that they have been plunged into as a result of this policy Secondly by borrowing money, we are going deep deeper and deeper into the data crisis which means Will be running in cycle The intended effect of the oil removal a subsidy removal and the devaluation of Naira Will not in any way Take us out of the delgram on the contrary It will push us deeper and deeper into the same because a date of about 3.2 trillion date and you know subsidy is just showing that We are not addressing the real Challenges and problem in the country. It is really funny because when I was reading up on this I found that in the 2023 budget the Nigerian government budget at three point six trillion Naira for petrol subsidy for six months Ending in June so from January to June it cost us a 3.6 million Naira to subsidize fuel and now we are going to spend That same amount for palliatives and say that we have removed fuel subsidy and This money will be spent in three months for people For subsidies that may not even get to anybody Yes, you see it is not going to anybody and that is why right from the beginning Some people are of the opinion that The government should not have removed the subsidy in the past place What they need to do is to take measures policy measures to see who are sabotaging The subsidy who are benefiting from it and then they deal with them according to the laws of the land But somehow the government bought into the idea of subsidy removal and here we are We are going to spend more than what we used to spend on subsidy What we are now planning in three months will be is higher or equivalent to what we spent on Subsidy in six months and the subsidy is such that no matter what it benefited greater Number of Nigerians, but now with the removal We statistic showing over 63 percent of our Nigerians are and our multidimensional You see that shows that We have a policy disaster by removing that subsidy and after all those who are targeted Who used to corner the oil subsidy will still benefit from what is going on So so long as the government will not take the bull by the horn and you know face those who are Sabotaging economy And they just take the easiest way to pass it on to the common person. I think that will Still show how dangerous the policy is Okay, well We'll move on to other things They the president has sworn in new ministers the the headline there is tinobu sweats in new ministers as fact meets Today, so we had like 48 ministers. We're still having them We may still have more ministers before before the end of this tenure Maybe we'll have up to 50 or 60 ministers before the end of this tenure I don't know how you feel about the fact that we some people were talking about cutting the cost of government And this government is may is expanding the cabinet and doing other things that we thought they would not do Yes, you see since we return to a civil rule in 1999 today, which is 25 or 26 years now we have never had such a large Cabinet then now and Ironically, we are having such a large cabinet at a time when the economy is Terribly down. Okay. So we think The government which promise that they are going to implement the Permission report which Advocate to the downsizing of the government people were jubilating. We're happy that yes Yes, the government that would seriously implement that but on the contrary we are seeing the government and legend itself and To this is a double jeopardy in that our economy is in crisis and yet we are increasing the cost of governance and Why the third element is like I said earlier on that the people are getting So I think The government needs to look at this issue also seriously and see how it cuts at the size of the governance and We shouldn't put more emphasis on political consideration because a large in the cabinet is more political consideration rather than an Economically viable policy rather than you know a judicious policy. So I think Even at this size It is too much for the country later alone as you Joaquin believe Well according to IMF that's a different headline now according to IMF Nigeria, okay, the Naira is under pressure and Nigeria may seek dollar loan. That's what the IMF is saying We have been saying or the government has been saying that there will be no borrowing Zero borrowing for this government and we are seeing borrowings upon borrowings upon borrowings And now IMF is saying that that we might need another loan to In order for us to survive Yeah, you see taking on will push us deeper into the law Death trap already We spoke earlier on on this pilot if the government need what is planning to borrow money And now we are saying we need loan in order to support the Naira I think these these are the government has to look at these issues as well Look with the policy that we have done In the last four months, I think We since we are in a democratic government The government should be Responsive to the aspirations and the onions of Nigerians, of course I am a tip on pushing Seems to us. I think even yesterday it was I the same Punch that carried the news that IMF is Recommending that the government has to increase its attacks. Okay, so now they are pushing us into more taxation They are pushing us into more loans while we are going deeper and deeper into the economic crisis So I think we did the government and its advisers should look at this issue At least we know that we have tried Policies and they have been after all since the time we took Since the time of SAP We have been trying the same policies and they have never even once taken us out Output of the economic crisis and as the saying goes that you cannot Only a push pass can be doing the same thing to expect different results Since 1985 today, we have been trying these measures of the And they have been paying us so I think it's high time now we take the bull by the phone Alternative policies That will take us out of the pan am geldron that we're in now Okay, well, we'll move over to the Guardian newspaper God and newspaper leads with firms killed down production opt for trade over effects income concerns firms scale down production opt for trade over effects income concerns What are your comments, please? Yeah, my comment is that these two is related to the issue that we are talking about Already We are seeing the side some have some companies or firms have cut down their production some like Glasgow Smith Winding up and getting out of the company. That's what the Guardian reported that they are taking out time and they are winding up and going out of the Country and there is also fear that these will push us into a recession because the purchasing power of Nigeria's have been eroded so you can't expect companies To now produce where people will not Consume what they produce and in addition you can't expect country companies to work and the function Where are you have? You know the foreign exchange is so high and it's not that it's unavailable so with all these policies what we are going to see is Depression Which is a basic thing even elementary economy will tell you that where now you have such things there will be an employment and then People will not have the purchasing power to buy the things so The end result will be a factories will cut production. They will also cut They will retrench their workers and then we will have more serious problems and as guardians say In the same thing There's also the danger that if this thing passes it may even lead to civil arrest so I think these are all the same that shows us that This IMS opposite the policy is a disaster for us and that We need to do something about the policy As they say a stitch in time Okay, oh Zebrudaya will say a stick in time saves Nama. I don't know if you know Zebrudaya Okay. Well, there's this small headlines Down below inside the Guardian Khan that is the Christian Association of Nigeria blames poor leadership for Nigeria's exclusion from UN council remember that the UN general assembly elected 15 new members to the Human Rights Council and So many other small countries in Africa got very very substantial votes Some of the people who got these votes or the countries that got these votes Malawi top the voting for African nations with 182 votes followed by Côte d'Ovoire for with 181 Ghana 179 votes Burundi 168 votes and Nigeria had three votes When every other country was getting up to a hundred plus Nigeria got three votes Into that council the UN general assembly Human Rights Council We couldn't even get up to 10 votes. We had three votes now the Christian Association of Nigeria is blaming Poor leadership for this disaster that we face because that's how a lot of people see it Well, yes, you see it is a real disaster and It is also a shampoos in diplomatically Nigeria used to be called the giant of Africa and the where when you know We provide the leadership wherever Nigeria went at that time other countries said But now in a situation like this where you have in one smaller countries at you know Getting more than a hundred times a more than let's say not a hundred times more than 10 times or less a 20 times the vote we got this will tell us that something is wrong and particularly the issue of Leadership quite agree with Khan on this issue that Poor leadership is what is taken as the soul. Yeah, we shouldn't Play the ostrich, you know to hide ourselves and our head and see if we have beaten ourselves We have to look at this Even though we look at it as if it is domestic policies It has a little serious International repercussions and these are some of the price that We are paying for bad governance or bad leadership So I think this one also is something that we need to seriously look at Because if we think what we are doing is right and we are deceiving ourselves that we are doing the right thing By the time things like this happen We are Going to have a shocker and this is a very serious shocker that we we are sitting now on the international scale and in addition to Poor leadership, which is also related to that We cannot go into issues like human rights where we have Serious adjuses of human right where we have serious conflict at home For years now we are unable to address these issues We seem to be turning our heads away from the crisis So I think this will show our leaders that there is needs to critically look at our stuff and Especially the issue of leadership so that we can put Nigeria once more into you know leadership position in the world and that will earn us respect and You know in world and it will also enable us to address issues that Challenging us Okay, we really do hope that Nigeria will return to that to being that giant of Africa But as we are the Giants the components of this giant the the body of this giant needs to be very healthy I'm talking about the people in Nigeria because right now still on the Guardian there Two headlines importers grown over 200 percent surge in duty and meet Naira fluctuation And there's also anxiety as MTEF is yet to arrive National Assembly two months after Dateline let's begin with import duties skyrocketing to 200 percent Yeah We are now increasing in for duty at the same time so we are seeing one of our major economy policies track boring investment, so you can't Attract boring investment where you have such huge Put it in a way like taxation and that is why even the ones you have at home One they will not be able to import You know economics or investors are very sensitive to Issues like our security instability Taxation and other things a corruption. These are all some of the things that Scare investors not to Invest in the country and why we don't have the indigenous industries, you know capable of meeting our own Needs we have to depend on foreign investors and now when you take the policy of increasing, you know duty and taxation on things that come in then along with a poor, you know Wicked Monetary system now weaker Volume of the Naira you don't you are just shooting yourself in the foot and Things will not go on well because the investors will not Come in even those who are in They may either wind up and go out or they may cut down their production because Industries depend largely on foreign importation and why you have such a heavy Taxation, I think people will not Invest where they will lose seriously Okay Well, we do hope that They will look into this but the second one I mentioned was that they Medium-term expenditure of framework is yet to arrive National Assembly two months after The deadline was given and I don't know how this will affect our economy and the planning process for everything Yeah, you see once you don't have Vegetary system I mean an effective budget You know the government will shut it up Even though we have not been able to see it like in other countries where the government will shut down Once the budget This is a very serious issue that two months after the deadline we Proposal of the recent budget is yet to reach the national assembly So even if it reached there now it will take no less than another one month for the government I mean for the budget to be Deliberated and and then you see if it's not taken but once you know less than All three months ahead before the the budget as I will start in being implemented. So I think this Will cripple the government, huh? And it will be highly unconstitutional For the government to approve. I mean to operate without an approved budget Even if they will see the the main one has not expired But I think that is something bad and beside it is also a political You know the problem for the government, you know when this government Was about to be sworn in one of the things that and there is a real that raise the hope of nigeria is that The president promised that he will hit the ground running on the very day that he was sworn But these are things that are showing that The government is not Hitting the ground or has not hit the ground to take up because Two months after the deadline. I think that is something in other claim. This is going to be a you know a major Legal or constitutional problem where you have a deadline and You just cannot meet it for two months Well feck is meeting today and the economy Takes the center stage according to the nation newspaper the economy takes a center stage as feck meets today Uh, I don't know If if you had the opportunity, what would take the center stage? Is it the economy? Is it security? Or everything is intertwined You see now a government is a Literally they said this is a it's a giant So we Yes, the issue of economy and the issue of security should have been the Major issues not that we we should ignore others But these are the most daunting challenges that we are facing now In security and the the economy So I think this should have been the major Issues or a state and after all Without either of these two, I don't think The the country can go anywhere So I think it is not just to deliberate on the issue But to take a serious as state policy measures on the various twin problems of economy and Insecurity post other elements if you are able to address this in other elements for You know easily be addressed like the issue of unemployment like like Other things, you know when you address economy when you address security. I think that that will be a major step, but like I said Concussion on this does not mean we ignore the others but this should have been In the major priorities of the attack today Okay, let's let's take the discussion out of Nigeria Finally, this is the final question that I'm bringing to you Way and Boykai neck and neck in Liberia poll. So generally how would you assess what is happening in Liberia? Where is the sitting president and there's another person who is going neck and neck with him in this present election? so in terms of The preparation and the delivery of the electoral body in that country and the piece or otherwise in that country How would you rate the? How would you rate rather? I wanted to say assess. How would you rate the election in Liberia? Okay, so far we can rate it very good because in you know one of the The issue of Incompensability factor, but here we are in a place where the president And the opposition are running neck to neck. So I think if Anything we show this will show that there is some element of fairness at least The opposition is not being muzzled and Perhaps if these things Go as expected We are likely to see a change or at least we are going to see an election that will reflect The wishes of the people because like I said, we have cynical view in Africa about Incompensability factor in other places you will not even hear of the opposition Or even if you hear about them, they will be running far distant behind the incumbent President but in Liberia what we're hearing now It's an indication that at least some level playing ground field is allowed in The political processes of the country Okay, well That is the country that Holds the Guinness book of records for the most fraudulent election in history where a population of about 15,000 voted and in an election And somebody won with over 127,000 votes In the country 15 million. Yeah, and then he had About 127 million votes in that country registered voters were way Below the amount of votes he had but that means if they have reached this point, like you said, there's a Possibility that it is very very transparent But let me just by way of information. We are hoping to get tomorrow A family two young Siblings one is nine years. The other one is 13. I think that developed an app That will help the country or any other country to conduct elections seamlessly and without any room for fraud Now the question is will they be recognized in Nigeria and would that their potential be tapped into there was a global competition and these people out of 2000 Plus participants from about 18 countries They came they were among the last 15 standing and after that they won In their category So tomorrow we hope to have them on the show uh to showcase the thing but the fear is No matter how good that might be Will they be recognized? Is there any mechanism in Nigeria to recognize people like that? We remember that when they were looking for the logo for Nigeria airways They contracted it outside and spent millions of money to get a logo that could have been A competition within secondary schools even in Nigeria or tertiary institutions or whoever can do it And then they design it and even if they have to spend that money, it would have been spent in Nigeria So I don't know how this will go, but that is just another site. It's not a question I just told you what if you have the Time to watch tomorrow you should watch and see what these little kids have been able to do Genesis that are from Nigeria and we do hope somebody very important Will be watching tomorrow to see what can be done with this We'd like to thank you professor for coming on the show this morning Okay, thank you very much We've been talking with professor Camilo Vaghe A public affairs analyst he's we've been talking to us on the headlines on some of our national Dailies we will take a short break when we return we'll start our first hot topic And we hope that you're going to still be there