Presidency: Atiku recommending Emefiele’s ‘failed policy’ as solution to forex crisis

The Presidency says attempt by former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar to rubbish the foreign exchange policy has failed, saying the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is currently implementing policies to stabilise the naira.

Atiku had said the Forex policy of the present administration failed because it was hurriedly put together without consulting relevant stakeholders.

But responding in a statement on Sunday, Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information & Strategy, said Atiku got his facts muddled up, adding, “Juxtaposed with the policy options being implemented by the CBN, Atiku’s alternative of a controlled floatation of the Naira is similar to the policy of Godwin Emefiele, when an estimated $1.5 billion was spent monthly to shore up the Naira, while arbitrage or round tripping went on unhindered.”

Onanuga said it is “false and preposterous for Atiku to claim that CBN’s FX management policy was hurriedly put together without proper plans and consultations with stakeholders and that the apex bank is hamstrung by Tinubu’s government in implementing a sound FX Management Policy ‘that would have dealt with such issues as increasing liquidity, curtailing/regulating demand, dealing with FX backlogs and rate convergence.

“Contrary to former VP Atiku’s claim, Cardoso’s CBN is implementing a raft of policies to stabilise the Naira and end volatility in the market and this is already yielding some positive results.

“Capital importation into the country is increasing, according to the latest NBS report. In the fourth quarter of 2023, Nigeria recorded a 66.27 percent increase in capital inflow, compared with Q3, before Cardoso’s arrival at CBN. In Q3, capital inflow was $654.65 million. It rose to $1.09 billion in Q4.

“Alhaji Atiku will agree that the rise in capital inflow suggests massive investors’ confidence in Nigeria and the policy direction of the Tinubu administration.”

The presidential aide also said it was not true that President Tinubu’s meeting last Thursday with the 36 State Governors was centred on discussing foreign exchange crisis and currency fluctuation.

He said the main topic of discussion was food supply and how to drastically reduce the food prices, adding that the Minister of Information, Alhaji Mohammed Idris, gave a briefing about the meeting, revealing the highlights.