Osita Chidoka, a former Aviation Minister, has provided a detailed account of how former President Muhammadu Buhari allegedly undermined Nigeria's economic standing during his eight-year leadership tenure.
Chidoka asserted that had the 2023 election been won by the Peoples Democratic Party's (PDP) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, and Peter Obi of the Labour Party, they would have faced similar challenges as Bola Tinubu is currently grappling with.
Chidoka, a prominent figure in the PDP, made these claims during an appearance on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics program.
He remarked, “The eight years of Buhari were a destroying eight years. The APC-led Buhari government destroyed value in a significant and unprecedented manner. Now, to cure that damage, there is no switchboard you can just light and change everything overnight.”
“That government actually acquired 23 trillion in Ways and Means and borrowed money in dollars, which has significantly hindered the government’s ability to have foreign exchange because you need to service those debts in dollars.
“So, any government that comes in would have faced significant headwinds, whether it was Atiku, Obi, or Sowore.
“The difference that the President is suffering is not economics. Nigeria was going barely up. We were going to pay for the foreign exchange they were manipulating and selling to themselves at N400. This president has said we should pay the price.
“Tinubu’s challenge is that he lacks political consensus in Nigeria in making these tough decisions. People who voted for him are a minority in Nigeria; 63 percent of the voters did not vote for him, so he needs to woo them.”
Watch below:
"The damage by the Buhari government was humongous, to cure that damage there is no switchboard you can just light and change everything overnight, any government that comes in would have faced significant headwinds whether it was Atiku, Obi or Sowore."
Osita Chidoka,Former… pic.twitter.com/9i7mnN5E3i
— SeunOkin Channels tv (@seunokin) March 4, 2024