Ifeyinwa Ifediegwu, a businesswoman and resident of Asaba, Delta State, has said Nigerians deserve certificates of survival for making it all through President Muhamumadu Buhari’s eight years in office.
Buhari, who will exit power next week upon the completion of his second term in office, is expected to hand over to President-elect Bola Tinubu.
In an interview with BusinessDay, Ifediegwu said the outgoing President made things extremely difficult for Nigerians, adding that the cost of foodstuff skyrocketed as a result of border closure and ban on several items.
She said landlords took advantage of the situation by increasing their rents outrageously.
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She said: “The eight-year of Muhammadu Buhari’s reign has taught me a harrowing experience and I thank God it’s going to be over on May 29. It’s happy survival for me and my family and to all Nigerians who are alive to see the end of the Buhari administration. May we never experience an administration such as this again in the history of our nation!
“Buhari made things extremely difficult for Nigerians. His ill-thought-out policies birthed many Yahoo-Yahoo and Yahooplus boys, some are already dead, some imprisoned and some are walking corpses. The closure of borders made things worse for our people and as a result, they took to crimes. It bleeds the heart of what transpired these past years.
“Cost of foodstuff skyrocketed as a result of border closure and ban on several items. Buhari said the essence of such ban and closure was to encourage local producers amongst other things. But he forgot that Nigerians depend on foreign countries in terms of technology. For you to do commercial agriculture, you need modern farming implements and those equipment are not produced in Nigeria. Big-time farmers find it difficult to operate because of lack of equipment and necessary farm inputs. So, when you don’t produce, how would you have food security as a nation not to talk of exporting? So, the aim of the ban and border closure was defeated and no sector of the economy was spared.
“Personally, as an entrepreneur, I experienced huge setbacks in my business. I used to deal on just one item (Ghana Must Go bags) and make huge sums of money but Buhari’s policies banned such. I had to become a general merchandise (varieties) entrepreneur in order to survive.
“Even landlords took advantage of the ugly situation to increase their rents outrageously. You struggle to pay house rent and at the same time pay shop rent, school fees and other bills. Thank God that I’m still in business and my family survives on it. Indeed, we deserve certificates of survival for making it all through Buhari’s harrowing eight years in office.
“I advise the incoming president of Nigeria to review all the policies that do not have a human face, which Buhari imposed on Nigerians.”
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