The Senator representing Kogi-West in the Senate, Senator Karimi Sunday, has warned that until inherent corruption and indiscipline in the country’s national life are contained, the federal government’s decision to float the Naira in the Forex market will not yield the desired results.
Sunday said what “greedy” and “privileged Nigerians” had done was simply to take advantage of the government’s single exchange rate by turning multi-billionaires overnight through owning financial houses all over the country.
The lawmaker also confirmed Tuesday’s disclosure by the President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio, that each of the 36 state governors recently received additional N30billion support from the federal government to cushion the effects of the current economic hardship on their people.
Akpabio had said that the N30bn was in addition to the regular statutory allocations of the 36 states, an indication that the states collectively took over an extra N1.080 trillion from the federal government.
Speaking on Wednesday night, Senator Karimi Sunday stated, “Floating of the Naira in the forex market is not working yet because of the inherent corruption and indiscipline in our national lifestyles.
“Let us face the reality; President Bola Tinubu means well for our nation by introducing the single exchange rate, instead of continuing with multiple exchange rates that he met, through which some priviledged Nigerians had turned themselves into multi-billionaires, owning financial houses all over the place at the expense of our country.
“Many Nigerians are not patriotic; the tendency is always to defraud the system and get rich quickly. They will cut corners, round trip, warehouse dollars with stolen funds.
“Most of the BDC today are owned by this same set of people. They are doing all sorts to frustrate the lofty plan of President Tinubu.
“The recent N30bn each given to state governments for palliatives to reduce the suffering masses, most of the money will find its way to the forex market thereby further devaluing the naira.
“As we attempt to get things right, we have to deal with the plague that is rooted in our national lifestyles. That plague of getting rich through any means, no matter how dirty. That’s the reason kidnapping has remained a big business in Nigeria.
“That is why people are stealing from the government every day and getting away with plea bargains.
“There is a need for national reorientation to deal with the root of all our problems.
“He that covereth its sins shall not prosper, but he that confesseth and forsake them, the Lord will have mercy.”
