THE TINUBUNOMICS: TAX AND TAX AND TAX THE COMMON MAN

Tinubu started his regime with a gaffe that saw him announce end of subsidy even when he later came out clean to say that the issue was not on his inaugural speech ab initio. That singular act threw commotion into Nigerian economy.

Perhaps Tinubu thought he was still on campaign trail and forgot that his words as a President are taken seriously by all stakeholders and quasi-law considering our Presidential system of Govt that confers so much power on the President.

The after effects of that decision which was taken without due consultation with stakeholders  expectedly has rippled across all sectors of the economy adversely.

After that announcement, long queues surfaced across petrol stations with prices moved so fast to more than 300% to around N600 or more.

Prices of all good and services and transportation followed suit at the highest possible level with inflation rising to 23% or more.

While the market was still struggling to digest the negative effects of subsidy removal on households, the Govt came up with another policy floating the Naira leaving it at the mercy of demand supply, a situation that has devalued the Naira and pushed the exchange rate to around N800/$ for now and about N1000/Pound, the worst for more than 40years.

Simultaneously, the Govt which is yet to provide any cushion or so called palliative to the common man to dampen the effects of subsidy removal, came up with another tax cum levy of N1000 for all vehicle owners. 

In the same vein, the Govt continued in that trajectory of tax and tax the common man, hence came up with a plan to increase VAT from 5% to 7.5%.This is being debated right now as we speak.

Accordingly, another rumour came that the Govt has planned to increase electricity tarriffs on household, an implication that will increase Electricity bills.

The implications of all these hush economic policies without plan and consulation is that the common man is being strangled the more to the point that many jobs are being lost as we speak, many now trek to work daily while crime level continues to increases as the pressure to survive is raised to the highest power than before.

Naira is completely debased to the lowest minmum in an economy that is import dependent. No serious Govt floats their currency when they are import dependent. Devaluing your local currency can only achieve result if you are an export driven economy like China. Nigeria is hugely import dependent hence cannot in all decency float its already weak currency to compete with strong Dollar, how possible please?

Subsidy removal has completely destroyed the market with inflation on double digit above 23% and very high transportation cost that has left many Nigerians trekking to their various destinations thereby wasting more man-hours daily.

Increase in VAT is to further deplete the disposable income of households. Manufactures and businesses will shift the price increase on goods and services burden to the consumers who are already gasping for breath with all these policies pushed into their throat..

Stakeholders have also continued to attack the subsidy removal strategy by saying that the Govt was supposed to go after the corruption in the system and arrest oil bunkering syndicate to gross up our revenue instead of taking out its frustration on the common man.

Weak economy like ours will certainly find it difficult to survive the after effects of subsidy removal. Venezuela is still suffering the repercussions  today as it completely destroyed their economy.

Strong economic managers do not take World Bank and IMF advices hook lime and sinker because these bodies do not care about the common man on the streets of Nigeria. They only dwell on so called economic theories that are mainly for the books and archive and  do not reflect a real life situation.

The Govt cannot continue tax the average Nigerian that provides his energy needs, water, and security with Govt sleeping on its primary duties only to strangulate the common man to shore up its revenue deficiences which is a fall out of Govt inefficiencies to manage our resources and revenue sources transparently. Nigeria is blessed with alot of resources but poor resource managers and the elite political class that specializes on waste continue to to destroy our economic  resources in their greed. 

APC propagandist have taken to the media daily to say Tinubu is doing well, a complete contrast to the situation on ground deceitfully when people on the street have long christened Tinubu policies to #RenewedShege by the masses, an indication that their situation has worsened as against Renewed Hope they were promised. The level of frustration, hunger and anger on the street can actually boil water to the highest degree as people are feeling the worst form of economic crunch since after COVID.

The "Japa" syndrome or emigration drive is back at the highest level as many Nigerians do not have hope in their country again hence prefer being slaves in foreign land than to remain in this hell on earth where they cannot guarantee their daily meal.

Tinubu brought his Lagos template of tax the life out of the citizens to Abuja, forgetting that Nigeria is not Lagos state.

Its left to be seen how our economy will survive these policies when there is no road map to revalue our Naira neither have we seen a concrete plan to inject good economic stimulus that will revive the economy and put money back into the hands of households.