Nigerians are querying campaign promise of raising a US $10 billion by the PDP Presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar.
BASIC FACTS
- Atiku Abubakar of the PDP has said he will invest US $10 billion in his first 100 days in office.
- The PDP presidential candidate made the statement this week at an event in Lagos.
- Nigerians on social media has since been questioning how he intends to raise the money.
WHAT WE KNOW
Nigerians on Twitter responded to Atiku Abubakar’s claim to invest US$10 billion (approximately N7 trillion) in an economic stimulus fund within his first 100 days in office if elected president.
Some Nigerians have called out the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, to explain how he would source the US$10 billion (approximately N7 trillion) he promised to invest in an economic stimulus fund within his first 100 days in office if elected president in the 2023 general election.
Particularly, these Nigerians want the PDP candidate to explain how he seeks to raise the money within 100 hundreds.
Atiku had put up on his Twitter handle his campaign promises and is attracting scrutiny from Nigerian electorates.
NOTABLE QUOTES
In his tweets, Atiku Abubakar had said, “Within the first 100 days in office, I will create an Economic Stimulus Fund with an initial investment capacity of approximately US$10 billion to prioritize support to MSMEs across all the economic sectors”.
RESPONSES
As of Thursday night, the tweet had attracted over 5,500 comments with most of them being critical of the proposal.
Faisal Umar Kaita @FaisalKaita tweeted in response to the US$10 billion economic stimulus plan pledge:
“That would be great! The question is how would you raise such funds within 100 days? Selling public assets? How, Sir? How?”
Other tweets querying the promise includes: “Where will the $10,000,000 come from? I do not want to hear that it is from crude oil…Tell me you have an alternative route of generating it…”, Mark Lodam @OGLodam tweeted.
Efe Nosa @efe_nosa14 tweeted: “By and large, creating an economic stimulus without ensuring a stable energy source, and improving the purchasing power would result in creating money illusion; which in turn would spur an upsurge in inflation, thus devaluing the Naira even more; and leaving the masses worse off.”
To Aloy Achife @ChifeDr, the pledge by Atiku is a recipe for more external debts.
Another respondent, Woye @woye1, tweeted: “Lamba $10bn from where? We have so many ongoing MSMEs financing options. You can’t create Economic Stimulus Fund without National Assembly’s approval. Certain laws must be amended. To raise $10bn is mainly loan. NASS must approve. It can’t be done within 100 days. This is not USA.”
Omar Kim @newlife_age tweeted “Are you joking? How would you do that exactly? We know that game better now. You won’t do anything, Sir…”
“How exactly are you going to get that amount of money in your first 100 days?” Idris A. Oni @IdrisAOni1 also asked the PDP candidate.
Chizzy_cynthia_ @Chizzy_Genny asked: “Excuse me, Sir with which money because going by what we are seeing, we are currently borrowing to sustain the economy, pay salaries and even build infrastructure. So where will the funds be coming from because 100 days in office is like 3 months plus. I just want clarification.”
Olomo Olomo @drealOlomo replied to Atiku’s plan this way: “Why didn’t you help Buhari achieve this when you helped him become President in 2015? Why didn’t you offer same idea to Obasanjo when you were his vice, at least that would have made you continue from where he stopped.”
Musa Dawa @Dawa404 also seemed not to believe Atiku. He hit back: “Story for the gods, musa don hear free meal, 5k per day for all unemployed young but it turned out to be the biggest fraud of the century. Purposeful abi na Incentive economic Fund is another sham”.
“Stimulus? In this very high inflation and devaluation of the naira lol…oga are you trying to print or borrow more money?”, tweeted Mr E @Mreworld.
Emmanuel Eze @emmaeze11 tweeted “I am glad Nigerians are wiser, it’s no longer acceptable to promise heaven on earth in the front of a cameraman to attract votes. Nigerians are asking the damn hard questions. Where is US$10 billion gonna come from within 100 days in office @atiku?”
Alao Abiodun @biodun_alao tweeted: “Why do you need to create again? Is there no plan for continuity or perhaps modification of this existing idea under the current administration?”
Casmir Elemi @Princecasy replied to Atiku this way: “Na so una go begin throw figures out of thin air. D external debt is already reaching $40b. Who will in their right senses want to increase it by 25% within 3 months when we are even in danger of defaulting before May 2023. This abstract economics is what we don’t need going 4wd.”
CATCH UP
PDP flagbearer Atiku Abubakar on Tuesday while presenting his economic blueprint at a private sector forum organised by the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industries (LCCI), Atiku made many promises, which were also posted on his twitter page.
So far, Atiku has been taking some positions on campaign issues even before the formal opening of the campaign season by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
TAKEAWAY
Perhaps Nigerians are wiser now. In 2015, the message of change was taken hookline and sinker. Today everybody can the result of the unscruntised promises.
It’s indeed the best way to go, politicians can make promises, but electorates should inquiry how such promises will be met.
Another way is to look at the antecedent of politicians in previous public office and their private lives.
If you can’t properly account for your past, we should query why you want us to accept promises.
If we say this of a promise, it’s worse for a person making no promises at all or relying on what he predecessor achieved as his
