President Bola Tinubu says he could have chosen to keep the
previously multiple foreign exchange system and benefit from it, but instead,
he decided to unify the official and parallel market rates to save the country
from financial hemorrhage.
The president spoke at a civic reception organised in his
honour by the Lagos state government at the Lagos house, Marina, on Thursday.
According to a statement by Dele Alake, special adviser to
the president on special duties, communications, and strategy, Tinubu said he
took the decision in the nation’s best interest, just as he did with the
removal of petrol subsidy.
The president said it was imperative to take those decisive
actions in the early days of his administration.
“I could afford to
share the benefit by participating in the arbitrage, but God forbid! That’s not
why you voted for me,” he said.
“We need to take the steps to stop the bleeding of our
finances through speedy action on fuel subsidy. We have no choice,” he said.
Tinubu said as a way of ensuring good use of available
resources, the government would “re-engineer the effectiveness of the control
and management of our resources in order to meet the obligations to Nigerians
by political officeholders”.
He also solicited the support of governors present at the
event to work with him in ensuring the even development of the country.
“We will work together with an open-door policy. We will
bring Nigeria from the brink to a resilient economy. I want us to be partners
so that we can rescue our land and make it a born-again nation,” he said.
On June 14, the Central Bank of Nigeria announced the unification
of all segments of the forex exchange (FX) market, implying that the exchange
rate will rise or fall based on the supply and demand in the market.
On Tuesday, the naira appreciated by 0.67 percent to N763 to
a dollar at the investors and exporters (I&E) window.
The apex bank’s new policy followed a declaration by Tinubu
that the “monetary policy needs thorough house cleaning. The Central Bank must
work towards a unified exchange rate”.
Other significant reforms have been implemented in the
financial sector, including the removal of restrictions on inflows into
domiciliary accounts.
On Tuesday, the apex bank pegged daily transaction limits to
N50,000 for contactless payment.
Commending Tinubu’s reforms, David Malpass, former president
of the World Bank, had said Tinubu was “taking concrete steps to scrap
Nigeria’s harmful government subsidies and multiple exchange rates.”
“These are important
steps toward currency stability, lower inflation, and reduced corruption in
Africa’s most populous country,” he added.
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