Lawyer Idam to Tinubu: Nigeria needs economic substance, not political grandstanding

• He said Dollars can’t crash with politicians as ministers 

Right activist, Madubuachi Idam, on Thursday blamed the inability of President Bola Tinubu to resolve the naira-dollar crisis or crash the prices of foodstuffs in his cabinet on Thursday.

Idam said appointing career politicians as ministers was behind Tinubu’s inability to resolve the naira-dollar crisis and crash the prices of food.

In a statement, the constitutional lawyer said appointing former governors whose economic trajectory was building culverts and bridges won’t help crash the dollar rate.

According to Idam, Nigerians must stop rating politicians by the number of bridges they built while in office.

He said: “You cannot have a presidential cabinet dominated by career politicians and expect the dollar to crash against naira, or that food prices should fall.

“How can you surround yourself with ex-governors whose economic trajectory is only the building of bridges and culverts and you expect not to fail in your mandate?

“For instance, one of the cabinet members of President Tinubu sunk 48 billion naira from his state’s poor treasury into building an idle airport that has remained fallow till date, even after one year of its commissioning. And such a person is heading his Ministry of Works and you expect things to go right?

“Lavishing the sum of 48 billion naira out of the state’s budget to build a colourful airport that serves no purpose other than decoration, was the height of economic cluelessness that could be exhibited by any leader anywhere in the world.

“Till date, no plane has either landed in Ebonyi State Airport or taken off from it, ever since the stage-managed landing by the then-Governor during its commissioning in 2023, which was arranged for optics.

“Nigerians must stop rating politicians by the number of bridges or flyovers they built while in office.

“Ebonyi State House of Assembly must commence an investigation into the funds spent in building that airport. We cannot continue to sit idly and watch our common patrimony wasted on white elephant projects that serve no interest of the state except to score cheap political points.”