Abia State Governor, Dr Alex Otti; Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II; the Obi of Onitsha, Igwe Nnaemeka Achebe, and President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Joe Ajaero, among other notable personalities, yesterday, called for better democracy and stability built on economic policies, insisting that the country was in an economic crisis bedevilled with rising poverty, inflation, unemployment and suffering.

They made the call at this year’s lecture of The Niche Newspaper, themed: “Governing the Economy: Choices, Trade-offs and National Priorities,” in Lagos.

Sanusi said that Nigeria would not be in its current state and the crisis facing it if the subsidy had been removed in 2011, insisting that the country needed urgent stability to address the pains and sufferings the citizens were going through.

He recalled that the subsidy regime was not sustainable, especially since Nigeria is an oil-producing country, saying that subsidy removal was a good intervention.

“You cannot remove wastages and continue borrowing. You need to see the benefits. What are we borrowing for? If governance is all about making money, all the policies you put in place would be geared towards making money from the people,” he said.

Otti said it was impossible to achieve accelerated economic development when those who sit at the decision-making table are ignorant of the economic laws and dynamics.

He noted that the foundation of economic governance is built on the decisions made by those who hold the device of power, insisting that the political choices the citizens make would determine the political outcomes.

The Obi of Onitsha fumed at the much attention given to politics at the expense of governance.

He, however, expressed optimism about a ray of light in Abia State under the leadership of Otti.

Ajaero, who spoke on citizens’ engagement and voter apathy, queried the importance for the citizens to continue to vote when their votes don’t count, as he affirmed that in Abia’s 2023 elections, the votes counted.