How Buhari’s govt borrowed $400bn to stabilise dollar to naira rate – Senator

Chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriation, Senator Solomon Adeola (popularly known as Yayi), has claimed that the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari borrowed more than 400 billion dollars in a bid to stabilise the naira against the US dollar.

Speaking at the 2nd Edition of the Town Hall Meeting/Mega Empowerment and Thank You Tour held in Ayetoro, Yewa North Local Government Area of Ogun State, Adeola, who represents Ogun West, said Buhari’s government also spent trillions of naira on fuel subsidy, benefitting a small fraction of the Nigerian population.

Highlighting the critical economic decisions made under President Bola Tinubu’s leadership, Adeola credited the removal of fuel subsidy and the floating of the naira as actions that saved Nigeria from economic collapse.

According to the senator, past efforts to defend the naira led to significant borrowing and subsidy payments, but Tinubu’s administration has reversed that trend.

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He said, “When the president assumed office, he carried out two major policies that hit Nigerians hard. We now heave a sigh of relief.“First, he removed the fuel subsidy. He removed the fuel subsidy because the subsidy payment ended up in the hands of people who are less than 1% of Nigerians. Yearly, the former president would have to borrow huge amount of money in the tune of trillions of naira in order to pay fuel subsidy.

“But when the current President, my father, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, assumed office, the payment of subsidy elapsed the day the immediate past president handed over power to Tinubu. So, there was no fund budgeted for the continuous payment of the subsidy. The government that left had stopped subsidy payment and when our father (referring to Tinubu) got to power, he said he could no longer afford to be borrowing huge amount of money that will end up in the hands of less than 1 percent of the country’s population, whereas the payment is made for all Nigerians.”

Adeola explained that under the current policy, market forces now determine fuel prices, discouraging the misuse of subsidy benefits.“Today, anyone can bring in fuel and sell it at your own price as far as it pays off. One person can own ten cars and the country is expected to pay subsidy on all the cars. But if there is no subsidy, your cars won’t be more than one or two,” he said.

He also addressed the second major policy change:“The second policy has to do with the floating of the naira. Before, in order to stabilise the dollar to naira rate, we have to borrow money. We borrowed to suppress it.By the time this government assumed office, the amount borrowed is well above 400 billion dollars. In order to stabilise dollar to naira rate, we were also paying subsidy. That President had to stop that.”

Adeola noted that as a result of these bold reforms, “Nigerian economy is now flowing in the right direction.” He appealed for continued patience and support for Tinubu’s administration, saying the economic policies were beginning to yield tangible benefits.