Tuesday brief: Osinbajo goes rogue?
+ Resident doctors & EndSARS anniversary
* The Naira/Dollar rate was calculated by averaging buying rates from several Nigerian FinTech startups.
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Osinbajo criticises CBN’s forex policy
Without making much of a fuss, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Monday offered a scathing review of the Central Bank’s foreign exchange policy, describing the naira as being kept “artificially low”.
But the criticism was also for his boss, the President.
Since 2015, the Muhammadu Buhari administration has sought to defend the naira through restricting foreign exchange access to a number of services, including food importation. But after two recessions, the last triggered by a global pandemic, the gap between the official and parallel market rates has only widened.
“As for the exchange rate, I think we need to move our rates to be more reflective of the market as possible,” Osinbajo said on Monday. “This, in my own respectful view, is the only way to improve supply. We can’t get new dollars into the system when the exchange rate is artificially low. And everyone knows by how much our reserves can grow.
“So I’m convinced that the demand management strategy currently being adopted by the CBN needs a rethink.”
Analysis: I’m not sure what Osinbajo was thinking, because will the CBN float the naira, that is allow the value to be decided by demand and supply, about 18 months to an election year? But since the President isn’t seeking re-election, maybe he will have the gumption to sanction the move.
Comment: This isn’t the first time Osinbajo has called for devaluation, forcing the CBN to adjust rates. But devaluation alone isn’t a magic wand to save the Nigerian economy, writes Mayowa Tijani for The Cable.
FG, resident doctors at loggerheads again
It’s barely a week since they suspended a six-week-old strike, but the National Association of Residents Doctors are already accusing the federal government of stopping the payment of the medical residency training fund and salary arrears.
NARD President, Dare Ishaya, confirmed the development to Punch.
Minister of Labour, Chris Ngige, in response, said the doctors will not be paid for the months they did not work, as the matter is still in court.
He also said the payment of the medical residency training fund was experiencing some “mix-ups” which is being worked on.
These are not good signs. The resident doctors only suspended their strike for six weeks to allow the federal government to address its demands. Creating room for another strike action is totally unnecessary.
Police threaten #EndSARS anniversary celebrations
The police in Lagos on Monday said they would not hesitate to suppress any form of protests in commemoration of #EndSARS, last year’s campaign against police brutality.
According to the police, the protests can lead to a breakdown of law and order, as happened during the tail-end of the #EndSARS protests last year.
But criminalising any form of protest is a slippery rope for any democracy. For example, is remembering those who lost their lives during the protests deemed a security threat by the Nigerian police?
What about asking who ordered the shooting at Lekki toll gate on October 20, 2020? Is that too heavy a question?
What else is happening?
Godwin Obaseki: The Edo State Governor says it doesn’t make sense to pass an anti-open grazing bill into law without adequate provisions for the implementation of the law.
2022 budget: The federal government has allocated N4.2bn to the moribund Ajaokuta Steel Company Limited.
Muhammadu Buhari: The second Niger bridge and the Lagos-Ibadan expressway will be completed by 2023, the President said on Monday.
Fake news: An insidious Twitter handle reported that Wole Soyinka is dead. The Nobel Laureate remains well and alive.
Pandora Papers: In its latest exposé, Premium Times lists 21 Nigerians who have up to N117 billion in assets stashed away in tax havens.
Amina: Directed by perfectionist filmmaker Izu Ojukwu, the much-anticipated movie will premiere on Netflix in November.
Made in Lagos: It took less than a year for Wizkid’s latest album to hit one billion streams across all platforms.
And that’s it for today. Let’s do this again tomorrow.