BEFORE TINUBU, NIGERIA WAS SPENDING MONTHLY $1.5BN TO SUBSIDISE NAIRA – RENO OMOKRI
A former presidential aide, Reno Omokri, has claimed that before President Bola Tinubu’s economic reforms, Nigeria was spending a staggering $1.5 billion every month to subsidise the naira—money he says was borrowed and “wastefully spent.”
“The Federal Government of Nigeria was spending $1.5 billion every month to subsidise the naira. Please assume I’m a liar and go and fact-check me—$1.5 billion every month subsidising the naira. And this was not money that we had. This was money that we were borrowing.
“We weren’t spending $1.5 billion every month on healthcare, on education, on roads. We were spending it subsidizing the naira,” he said.
According to him, the subsidy was fuelling unsustainable consumption patterns, including luxury imports.
“We were spending $200 million annually on importing human hair for our women to wear. We were spending $75 million on French champagne and £25 million on Scotch whisky,” Omokri stated.
Defending President Tinubu’s decision to float the naira, Omokri said the current exchange rate, where the naira trades at over ₦1,500 to the dollar, reflects its true value without government interference.
“The reason why the naira is now ₦1,560 to the dollar is not because President Bola Tinubu is a terrible president. No. It’s because he started floating the naira and stopped subsidising it,” he said.
He added that under previous administrations, including that of ex-President Muhammadu Buhari and when he served under ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, the naira was not valued at its real worth.
“I was presidential spokesman when the naira was ₦165 to a dollar. Then, the naira was being subsidised. What you were seeing as a Nigerian wasn’t the actual value,” Omokri said.
Omokri further praised Tinubu’s fiscal and trade reforms, noting that they have led to positive outcomes, including a reduction in national debt and the creation of a trade surplus.
“President Tinubu met a debt profile of $108 billion. Right now, our debt is $94 billion. It has been reduced by $14 billion. So there is no way you can call such a person someone who’s addicted to debt. With all due respect, President Asiwaju Bola Tinubu has exceeded the expectations of most reasonable Nigerians,” he stated.
“He’s increased our trade surplus. In fact, we didn’t even have a trade surplus before. This man came in, Nigeria was the number one petrol importer in Africa. Right now, we are not. South Africa has now overtaken us. We are now instead the number one petrol exporter in West Africa,” he said.
Asked whether the Tinubu administration’s economic reforms have exacerbated hardship among ordinary Nigerians, Omokri acknowledged the suffering but insisted it is a necessary sacrifice for long-term stability.
“There is still a lot of suffering in the land. Nigeria is not a rich country. So if you have a father who is not rich and you are suffering, you can’t be complaining and saying, ‘Well, I’m suffering.’ No. Your father is not rich. Nigeria is an oil-poor country,” he said.
He added that the president’s decision to float the naira has begun yielding structural benefits for the local economy.
“The reason why we now have a trade surplus is that President Bola Tinubu has done what worked in Vietnam. He has floated the naira and made imports so expensive that Nigerians have no other choice but to buy made in Nigeria.
“And look at me—everything I am wearing from head to toe is made in Nigeria. And that’s how we are going to grow our economy,” Omokri declared.
