Yemi Obafemi
Human rights lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Femi Falana, has called on citizens to take a more active role in holding public officials accountable by scrutinizing government budgets and tracking their implementation at all levels.
He stated this while Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Monday.
“I want to challenge Nigerians to appreciate that budgets are presented to the National Assembly by the President. Governors also present budgets to their respective Houses of Assembly. Nigerians must take these budgets, identify the items one by one, and ensure we follow up and monitor their execution,” he said.
Falana decried the worsening economic hardship faced by ordinary Nigerians, blaming the government’s continued reliance on policies dictated by international financial institutions such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World BBank.
He criticised top government officials for what he described as their detachment from the suffering of the masses.
“For members of the government and I’m talking of top officials it’s been very rosy. One of them was singing a week ago that things are getting better.
“Of course, for the rich, the bourgeoisie, things are getting better. But for the masses of our people, things are getting tougher because they are going through an excruciating economic crisis.”
While acknowledging President Bola Tinubu’s repeated appeals for patience, Falana maintained that the administration’s current economic direction is deepening poverty.
“In fairness to the President, on many occasions, he has asked Nigerians to bear with him, to exercise patience, that our economic programme will lead to prosperity,” he stated.
“Whether you believe that or not is another matter, but the government itself realises that there is a crisis in town—that people are hungry, that many are about to withdraw their children from school because of the rigid implementation of neoliberal policies dictated or endorsed by the IMF and World Bank.”
Falana urged the government to abandon the economic advice of Bretton Woods institutions and chart a course that prioritises local interests.
“My position, which I have made repeatedly clear, is that the government must abandon the prescriptions of the Bretton Woods institutions and have confidence in Nigeria so that Nigerians can be given the opportunity to run this country in the interest of our people,” he said.
He warned of the consequences of devaluing Nigeria’s currency without structural reforms. “If you devalue the currency of a country that is import-oriented, you are going to have an astronomical rise in the price of goods and that is what has happened to our country. You devalue the currency, and you lose interest.”
Falana also expressed concern about the politicization of governance, urging the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to enforce regulations on premature electioneering.
“I have seen a lot of politics going on and had expected INEC to intervene by saying, ‘We haven’t lifted the ban on electioneering; therefore, concentrate on governance for now,’” he added.
