Nigeria can’t cope with drop in crude oil price – NECA

The Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, had recently said the federal government has put in place contingency plans to deal with the dwindling price of crude oil.
But speaking at a press conference in Lagos, Director-General of NECA, Mr. Olusegun Oshinowo, said government ought to flesh out such plans as well as explain the implications of the fall in the price of crude oil to Nigerians and how the nation would cope with the development.
He warned that the country is prone to serious economic crisis if there are no concrete plans to deal with the situation and advised Nigerians to cut down on their skyrocketing expenses.
He reasoned that the fall in price of crude oil should have been used by the federal government to phase out fuel subsidies to petroleum marketers, saying the regime is no longer sustainable for the nation’s economy.
He also advised the federal government to jettison what he called sloppy attitude to privatisation and fully embrace the policy with a view to strengthening the nation’s economy.
Oshinowo noted that nothing stops the federal government from privatising the nation’s ailing refineries having recorded success in the privatisation of the power and telecommunication sectors in the country in recent times.
He also advocated the need for government to privatise the nation’s airports in order to give room for efficient service.
On regulation in the country, he said some of the federal government agencies function as a clog in the wheel of the economic progress because of ill-defined roles.
Citing the Consumer Protection Council of Nigeria as one of the agencies that has no defined roles, the NECA DG said the agency is now competing with the Nigeria Security and Minting Company and other agencies of government.