“FG is trying to pass a mildly expansionary budget” – Oby Ezekwesili
– Former minister of education and Bring Back Our Girls (BBOG) campaigner, Oby Ezekwesili has said that the federal government is trying to pass a mildly expansionary budget
– The former minister advises the president and his team on how to improve the economy
“The federal government is trying to pass a mildly expansionary budget” – Oby Ezekwesili
Former minister of education and Bring Back Our Girls (BBOG) campaigner, Dr. Oby Ezekwesili has said that the federal government is trying to pass a mildly expansionary budget, which makes economic sense.
The former World bank vice-president who was a guest on Thursday, March 24, on Focus Nigeria on AIT, spoke on the 2016 budget and the recent cases of girl abduction.
On the speed of kidnapping or abduction of innocent girls taken from one part of the country to another and then converted to another religion and marry them off.
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She said: “I think all of this is to awaken us to the fact that for too long as a people we ignored the way our girl children are treated. The fact that early girl child marriage was almost ignored and so over time our people sort of accepted that it was normal for a girl to be missing in the neighborhood and it really is that she has become a wife at an age where she should still be taken care of.
Now that we are awakened to the fact that are voices from every part of the country sort of saying that no, our daughters need to be preserved when they are still young they ought not to be taking care of any man. It is actually repulsive to imagine that any man in today’s world would look at any child under the age of 18 which is what our constitution states and see anything that is attractive in a child that cradles manship and we should all stand up against it.”
One the 2016 Nigeria budget that was passed N6.06trillion, revenue estimate of N3.86trillion that leaves a deficit of N2.204trillion, capital expenditure N1.5trillion which is the biggest ever.
The former minister said: “It is clear that we need to improve in terms of the swiftness with which the budget is submitted, deliberated at the National Assembly and then passed because there is a timing provision within the physical responsibility act that schedules the period for the budget process. We need to do better with that and I hope that the government does that in the coming year.
On the substance of the budget itself, I think that based on the conditions that we find ourselves where we are faced with the collapse in oil prices which is the dominant, as the prices account for 70% of our revenue as a country that’s sad after fifty something years and then the fact that the global economic outlook is not charitable to economic growth.
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“The government trying to pass a mildly expansionary budget makes some economic sense. I think the main issue there is how you are going to finance thedeficit. The fact that when you look at our tax to GDP it is below African average which is between 10 and 12% tax to GDP and our own is just 7% so there is something about taxation we need to look at. I believe the whole conversation on Value Added Tax (VAT) which in a way is not to painful for the lower segment of our society, the more you consume something the more you are likely to be affected by it. It is n
The expansion of the capital budget is going to be funded by the deficit , is that a good place to be, no which is why expanding the scope of the revenue should be an important thing,” she added.
The former vice president of the world bank advised the president and his team on how to improve the economy by not crippling the private sector and allowing data to guide them.
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