‘Many Nigerians Would Have Fallen Into Poverty’ – Zacch Adedeji Defends Tinubu’s Economic Reforms

The chairman of the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS), Zacch Adedeji, has said that many Nigerians would have gone into poverty if the administration of President Bola Tinubu had not implemented its economic reforms.

Naija News reports that Adedeji, during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Sunday, said the impact of the reforms should be assessed based on the progress made from the situation inherited by Tinubu’s administration.

According to him, state governments are no longer heavily reliant on federal support to pay salaries, while more civil servants are benefiting from improved access to credit.

Adedeji also cited the student loan scheme as an example of how the government’s policies have benefited ordinary Nigerians.

He said, “If you remember where we are coming from… if we’ve not done what we are supposed to do, possibly double of that population will have gone to poverty, and I’m telling you that progress is what we should measure.

“Before now, nobody talks about student loan. Based on the last check, more than one million students in 300 higher institutions have been disbursed more than ₦303 billion to them in the last three years. This has never been in existence.”

Speaking further, Adedeji said the foreign exchange market reforms had also helped to improve capital inflows by eliminating distortions created by multiple exchange rates, stressing that the disparity between the official and parallel market exchange rates previously discouraged investors from bringing capital into the country.

He stated, “When you have exchange rate at ₦463 and the official rate is roughly at ₦1,200, you have zero capital importation.” 

The NRS boss also said the removal of petrol subsidy was necessary to ensure domestic refineries were operating, adding that Nigeria’s refining capacity had increased from about 30,000 barrels per day before the Tinubu administration to about 700,000 barrels per day.

He said, “If Mr. President had not removed subsidy, there is no way [the] refinery will work.”