A former deputy governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Prof Kingsley Moghalu has expressed belief in the ongoing monetary reforms introduced by the Tinubu administration.
Moghalu who spoke in an interview on Arise Television morning programme, berated the central bank for contributing to inflation through illegal financing of the federal government’s massive deficits.
The former apex bank deputy governor put a caveat on his support, saying that it is important that Nigerians are not carried away by the joy of foreign investors being attracted by the policies.
Instead, Moghalu said that the goal of the reforms should be to make a transparent market and a corruption free one despite the discomfort it may cause for the masses.
“The central bank contributed to inflation through illegal financing of the Federal Government’s massive deficits. This happened due to the government’s poor fiscal management. If the federal government becomes more responsible with its budget and spending, it will help the central bank manage inflation. It’s very important for us to understand that these are very difficult but necessary decisions that should have been taken years ago, start with petrol subsidy to the forex subsidy but they were not taken so, it requires a lot to begin to tackle these issues now, of course that courage was also driven by the desperate situation the Nigerian economy has found itself, it’s bound to be rocky for a while but I believe that the reforms are moving in the right direction”, he said.
“An economy is meant to sell the people of Nigeria. And the reality is that the people of Nigeria have suffered greatly because the cost of living has risen far beyond their means so the government cannot move fast enough. For example, on the matter of the new minimum wage. On the matter of what to do and is there a way to subsidise transportation? Things like this should be addressed with alacrity. They should be addressed with the same determination we have seen in terms of this reform”, he noted.
“I believe that the reforms are moving in the right direction and there are structural bottle necks that must be opened.
“These reforms are just the first stage. They are the beginning of a series of reforms that have to take place in the Nigerian economy, the goal should be to make a transparent market and a corruption free one despite the discomfort it may cause for the masses,” he added.
