Dr. Reuben Abati, a veteran journalist and former Senior Adviser on Media and Publicity to former President Goodluck Jonathan, has explained why Nigerians should not have expected Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala to tell President Bola Tinubu anything different from what she said about Nigeria’s economy.

Abati said that Okonjo-Iweala is an International diplomat and therefore simply echoed what the IMF, World Bank, and others had said about the economy.

Abati maintained that there is not enough productivity, saying Nigeria is still a monocultural economy, with the bulk of its revenue coming from oil.
UGAMATV reported that Okonjo-Iweala, on Thursday commended Tinubu for working to stabilize Nigeria’s economy, saying reforms under his administration are moving in the right direction.

She spoke to State House correspondents after a courtesy visit to the President.
However, speaking on Friday during Arise Television’s Morning Show programme, Abati said Nigerians weren’t relying on statistics but on reality.

He said, Dr Ngozi Okonjo was in Nigeria originally to launch this $50 million fund concerning getting Nigerian women into the digital space. And the main proposition is that Nigerian women need to be further empowered. And I think that on the surface of it, that greater involvement is marching in the digital space, even for Nigerian women and other categories, is an important proposition. I think that we should not lose sight of the major mission in Nigeria.
“Now, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, who is Director General of the WTO for the second time, is an International diplomat. No one should expect that she will go to the president of Nigeria and tell him anything other than as an international diplomat.

“Yes, she will echo, and what she’s done is not even original. She simply echoed the IMF and the World Bank. After her consultative session outcome, she said, ‘Oh, President Tinubu, reform is going very well, and those reforms are important and all that.’

“But both the IMF and the World Bank added the same caveat about the need for social safety nets. She said exactly the same thing. She said, Okay, the reforms are working, but now we need growth. In other words, she’s also saying the same thing that the IMF and World Bank said that we need to do more.

“So when Minister Edun comes on the sidelines and says, Oh, we’re doing well. You know, the budget is doing well. We are, you know, paying attention to all regular payments and all that. That’s government talk. The emphasis is on growth, which Dr Okonjo-Iweala pointed out, how do we grow this economy? And the counterargument is, is there enough productivity in this economy to ensure growth?

“I’ve consistently said there is not enough productivity, and then we’re still a monocultural economy. The bulk of what we get is still from oil.
“We need to do a lot more in terms of expanding this economy. You know, making it grow 3.4 3.5% growth is not enough. Those who know the subject have said, Look, can we get to Nigeria to a double-digit growth level, which was where this economy was going at a certain time, removing subsidy and having additional revenue.

“Yes, it may solve initial problems, but there are more fundamental problems that an international diplomat will not stand in front of President Tinubu and spell out.

“But the point is that, you know, government needs new ideas to achieve that objective of growth that Dr Okonjo-Iweala pointed out. So it’s not enough to say we have stabilized the economy, you have stabilized the economy. That’s why the international diplomat was saying you have to provide social safety nets.
“There are people we see daily who are saying, they are groaning that there is hardship in the land, that they cannot survive under the same reforms that are working. The last common denominator is what the ordinary man thinks, how the ordinary man feels, and how the ordinary man survives when there is prosperity in your house.

“The point I’m making is that we just want a country where everybody is prosperous and safe. We are not relying on statistics, we are relying on reality, and there is that social safety net that everyone from Okonjo-Iweala to the IMF and World Bank ambassador is talking about.”