Nigeria’s economy excites Buhari as NBS decries decreasing CPI

• PDP flays FG over N1.3 trillion investment on capital project

President Mohammadu Buhari has expressed satisfaction with the steady progress being made on different fronts of his administration to revive the country’s dwindling economy.

The President spoke in Abuja yesterday while meeting with the Minister of Budget and National Planning, Senator Udoma Udo Udoma; the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun; and Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Godwin Emefiele; who were in the Presidential villa.

The ministers and the CBN governor updated the president on the improving state of the economy, implementation of the 2017 budget, preparation for the 2018 budget, revenue strategies, combined cost reduction and debt management.

A statement signed by the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, said the closed door meeting, which lasted over two hours discussed monetary policy strategies and their economic impact, among others.

President Buhari, while reminding the team that reviving the economy was one of the major planks on which the campaign of the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led administration was predicated, expressed gladness that things were looking up after two years.While also urging them to keep at it, the president noted that the main aim of government was to bring succour to Nigerians across all walks of life, the statement said.

However, the National Bureau of Statistics(NBS) has decried a six months consecutive reduction on the year-on-year Consumer Price Index (CPI) record.
In a statement released yesterday in Abuja, the NBS noted that the CPI which measures inflation, increased by 16.05 per cent year-on-year in July 2017, confronted a 0.05 per cent decrease, that was lower than the 16.10 per cent rate recorded in June making it the sixth consecutive decline in the rate of headline year on year inflation since January 2017.

The Bureau disclosed that much increase was recorded in all the classification of individual consumption by purpose (COICOP) divisions that yield the Headline Index, adding that, on a month-on-month basis, the Headline index increased by 1.21 per cent in July 2017, 0.37 percent points lower from the rate of 1.58 per cent recorded in June.

NBS pointed out that the percentage change in the average composite CPI for the 12-month period ending in July 2017 over the average of the CPI for the previous 12-month period was 17.47 per cent, 0.11 per cent point lower from 17.58 per cent recorded in June 2017.

NBS further disclosed that the average price paid by consumers for premium motor spirit (PMS) increased by 0.3 per cent year-on-year and decreased by -1.4 per cent month-on-month to N148.2 in July 2017 from N150.3 in June 2017, adding that, states with the highest average price PMS were Yobe N170, Borno N160.50 and Adamawa N160.

It added that states with the lowest average price of premium motor spirit (petrol) were Bauchi (N145.4), Lagos (N145.3) and Abuja, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross River, Delta, Edo, Ekiti, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Ogun, Ondo, Osun and Sokoto (N145.0).

Similarly, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has flayed the Federal Government over its claim of investing N1.3 trillion in capital projects in 2016.The party described the claims as the ‘worst scam of the year’ stating that if such amount was invested in projects, the infrastructural decay in the country would not be so visible.

The Publicity Secretary of PDP in Rivers State, Mr. Samuel Nwanosike, stated this in Aluu community, Ikwerre Local Government Area of Rivers State when over 200 supporters of the All Progressives Congress decamped to the PDP.

Nwanosike stressed the need for transparency and sincerity from the Federal Government, noting that the people of Niger Delta region are not feeling the impact of the said project.

He expressed worry over the deplorable state of the East-West road, hence calling for urgent attention.He said: “The Federal Government said they have spent N1.3 trillion on capital projects. We want to see one project done with the money.’’