Prof. Sheriffdeen Tella (Lecturer, Department of Economics, Olabisi Onabanjo University) and David Adonri (Chief Executive Officer, High Cap Securities Limited)
Many times, one has looked at the state of the Nigerian economy and wept silently. This is more so when, as an economist, one cannot just visualise but possesses the knowledge of the sizes and varieties of natural resource endowment, human and non-human, Nigeria owns, and the quantum of revenues the various governments have derived from these resources. The majority of Nigerians below 45 years have never known affluence, except those born with silver spoons. Yet, the resources have always been there, been exploited, and been stolen by the privileged few.
I can recall that under the National Party of Nigeria between 1979 and 1983, with President Shehu Shagari as head of the government, corruption reached a scale unimaginable, and the condition was so bad that poor Nigerians turned to dustbin scavengers to feed their families. When there were complaints of deep-seated poverty, the top-notch in the NPN, including the Minister of Information Garba Wushishi, waved away the situation with a statement, “We have not seen Nigerians picking food from dustbins.” How would they know when they were living in opulence in secluded areas?
