A statement issued by the Senate President’s Office said the meeting united all members of the caucus on the way forward for the country. The United Arab Emirate does not even allow people to have access to its oil wells, let alone sell them.
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In a debate on the current national economic challenges, which started yesterday, the senators chorussed “square pegs in square holes”, while those who can not fit-in should fit-out. So, when other countries are investing and we are planning to sell the investments we have, we have to be careful.
On suggestion for assets said, the lawmaker said, “I have heard about the issue of selling of our assets”.
“There is the need to also make probably the man in budget and planning (Enelama) to make to swap my friend Udo Udoma”.
Ekweremadu said the minister of finance, Kemi Adeosun, can be assigned to another ministry to give way to a more competent person due to the situation at hand.
Making a submission at plenary on Wednesday, the senator said taking such action will not get Nigeria out of its current economic state.
“If we must sell, we have to sell the non-performing assets so that people can turn them around and create employment”.
“We need to amend section 162 especially from 3,4,5,6 where each money in the federation account is made to be shared”, he said.
Senator George Akume cautioned against the calls for the sale of Federal Government assets “since the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, has said the country would come out of recession in the fourth quarter”.
He said between August and November last year, as a result of the implementation of the policy, about N1.8 trillion was withdrawn from the banking system, which increased to N2.8 trillion in January this year and N3.4 trillion now, leading to drastic reduction in lending capacities of the commercial banks with attendant effect on the country’s economy.
The Senate President said the agricultural sector and the agro-allied businesses should be directly supported to boost value addition and job creation.
Sani noted that finding scapegoats and shifting blame could not solve the problem, adding that the current situation in the country was not the first time a nation would be faced with economic problem.
Sani decried over-dependence on one source of revenue for too long, saying there is need for urgent diversification of the economy.
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As a short term measure to redress the recession, Ekweremadu called on the Federal Government to consciously release money into the economy to stem the financial decline.
