More substantial reductions in governance costs needed to impact economy—Peter Obi

The 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, has said that more substantial reductions in governance costs are needed to impact the economy.

Obi, a former Anambra State governor stated this while reacting to the decision of President Bola Tinubu to cut official travel entourages by 60 per cent

He described the entourage cut as “one positive step towards the reduction of cost of governance and a way of halting wastage,” but stressed that “this measure is just scratching the surface, as it is limited in scope and can only lead to a negligible saving.”

“We are yet to be told how much savings this will amount to. While this modest step may be commendable, what is desirable should be both a 60% reduction in federal official overseas trips as well as a 60% reduction in the size of delegations,” Obi said.

He also stressed that Nigeria’s economic troubles demand even bolder action – a 60% cut in the total cost of governance at the federal level.

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“This implies that the recently passed federal budget needs to be revised to cut all wasteful and unnecessary items. This is the level of cost-cutting and savings that can meaningfully impact the present state of the economy,” he noted.

He further stated that the savings from governance cuts be channelled into productive sectors and social investments in education, healthcare, and poverty alleviation.

“Such savings should be used to fund the productive sectors of the economy and the much-needed social investments, especially in three key areas: education, healthcare, and the migration of millions of Nigerians from poverty.

“It is not enough to announce arbitrary cuts in the size of federal official entourages. The nation needs to be informed of how much the measure will save and where such savings will be applied,” he said.

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He decried token populist gestures by the government, insisting details must be provided on cost-cutting measures for transparency.

“For a government that has made a hobby of indiscriminate borrowing, the only way to salvage the economy is to drastically cut the cost of government by reducing wasteful expenses and spending on inessential luxury items,” Obi added.