Wednesday 31 October 2012

How govt will deal with oil subsidy thieves, by Jonathan

AMID widespread pessimism that the Federal Government will only play politics with the oil subsidy probe reports that indicted some prominent Nigerians, President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday reiterated the commitment of his administration to sternly punish the culprits.
The President, speaking in Abuja at the launching of a book written by the Finance Minister who also coordinates the Economy Dr. Okonjo Iweala, said government was pursuing all legal means to ensure that all those who have done business with and defrauded it in any way would be made to pay back and punished mercilessly.
His words: “We are going after all those who committed various economic crimes and corrupt practices with impunity. As you may be aware government is taking every legal measure to ensure that all those who defraud government in the petroleum subsidy scheme are made to pay back the stolen funds and also are severely punished.”
Jonathan, represented by Vice President Namadi Sambo, said the book entitled, “Reforming the Unreformable. Lessons from Nigeria,” fills the void created by the dearth of literature and good systematic account of the reforms and institutional changes that have occurred in our country since the beginning of our democratic journey in 1999.
“Some hear of the debt relief from the Paris Club, Excess crude account and other such economic measures or initiative of government from newspapers but here is a concise well organized explanations to the policy measures without technical jargons.”
The occasion which attracted ministers, Governors, Heads of Government, the diplomatic corps and Captains of Industry, according to Jonathan, is centered on the theme of hope, given that “many people claimed that the political and economic institutions of this country can never be reformed” but “the hope that Nigeria can grow to become one of the world’s most dynamic economies continue to spur us on above the criticisms.”
Reviewing the book, Paul Collier, Professor of Economics at Oxford University, said Nigeria’s over-dependence on oil does not help the economy because of international market price uncertainty and the fact that it is a diminishing product.
This depletion and price volatility makes government’s revenue also volatile. “And if there is a political will to correct, then there must be a long term strategy that would make room for a replacement for the depleting assert,” Collier said.
Anambra State Governor Peter Obi who also reviewed the book noted the clamour for increased wages by university teachers whereas the standard of education has continued to fall.
“Minimum wage should translate to minimum productivity… The culture of sharing every money gotten is a wrong concept, because the idea behind the Excess Crude Account has saved the country from total collapse”.
South Africa’s Finance minister Pravin Gordhan said it was a document that countries in the continent should use as a guide towards economic reforms as “it provides tremendous inspiration for recognising our challenges and dealing with it, as well as address the structural challenges and deal with them accordingly as we face them.”
TheGuardian

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