Selling Of Public Assets To Fund 2019 Budget Is Fiscally Irresponsible – Atiku
BY AMOS DUNIA, ABUJA – The Atiku Presidential Campaign Organisation (APCO), on Wednesday declared that it makes no sense to sell public assets simply to fund a ‘business-as-usual’ budget that is essentially 70% recurrent.
A statement by the Atiku Orgisation specifically said that the government’s planned sale of assets will cause long term pains and only provide short term gains.
APCO also said that it is just as it is irresponsible to part with valuable assets simply to consume the proceeds (Like selling your family house to take a trip overseas on holiday).
The organisation which was reacting to a policy statement by the Muhammadu Buhari administration evincing a plan to sell National Assets to fund the 2019 budget, stressed that the action by the Buhari government has the effect of ridiculing their principal.
APCO recalled that on Monday the 29th of October, 2018, President Buhari accused past leaders of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), of not building public infrastructure, while delivering the 75th Anniversary Business lecture of the Island Club, Lagos.
It further said; “However, some of the assets listed for sale in the policy document of the Buhari Administration, were assets built or established under the PDP administrations that governed Nigeria between 1999 and 2007.
“Some of them were the brain child of the Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar. Our question is this: If the PDP did not build infrastructure, as alleged by President Muhammadu Buhari, who built these assets that this administration wants to sell to fund their 2019 budget?
“As head of the Economic Management Committee during the Obasanjo administration, His Excellency, Atiku Abubakar, supervised the successful policy of privatisation.”
The APCO explained that privatisation works because it is a long-term strategy to engender efficiency in the economic system and expand the frontiers of private sector activity, adding that its primary goal is NOT to raise money for short term stabilization of what is clearly a fragile fiscal system.
According to APCO; “We knew that such a day would come, which is why His Excellency Atiku Abubakar has on various occasions made it clear that what is needed at this time is fundamentally fiscal restructuring to eliminate our addiction to oil revenues and strengthen our internal revenue generating capacity and a restructuring of the budget in favour of capital spending.
“For instance, last month, the PDP Presidential candidate questioned the wisdom behind the Federal Government sharing $322 million Abacha loot to certain Nigerians, only to obtain a $328 million loan from China, allegedly for ICT development.
“Rather than share that money, the Buhari administration ought to have put that $322 million in an escrow account to be used for funding the 2019 budget.
“Also, we recall that $43 million was found in an Ikoyi apartment. While we note the failed promise of the Buhari administration to come clean on who was behind those monies, we make bold to say that those funds should equally have been placed in escrow for use in funding the 2019 budget.
“It is a testament to our candidate that he helped build and develop national assets that are now so valuable that they can be sold. Creating more of such assets is at the core of his agenda to Get Nigeria Working Again.”
APCO expressed hope that the Buhari government will accept this patriotic pro bono advise and retrace its step accordingly.
