Saturday Southerner —Another View 

Saturday, January 10, 2026

Since this present administration assumed office in 2023, the debt profile of Nigeria has gone higher and still counting. The country’s debt is in multi-billion dollars and the President doesn’t seem to know how best to stop the continuous borrowing.

The future generations of Nigeria will be saddled with the payment of debts incurred by the past and present administrations. Many have asked, what is the essence of the “subsidy is gone” declaration by Mr. President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu during his swearing-in on May 29, 2023?

Nigerians had hoped that, money made from oil subsidy removal, taxes, petroleum sales, and others would be properly managed and utilized to prevent Nigeria from borrowing but alas, the country has gone deeper into the dark hole of debt.

There is nothing wrong with applying for loans but, there is everything fundamentally wrong with borrowing without investing the money in the growth and development of the country’s economy. All the money borrowed over the years cannot be said to have been genuinely used in the development of Nigeria’s dying economy.

Nigeria’s democracy is one of the most expensive in the world. So, over the years and till date, every government borrows to service the political class and not to advance the economy for the interest of all.

In the Federal Government, Presidency to be precise, there are several appointees whose roles cannot be explained. It is same at the National Assembly, where we have the Red and Green Chambers. These structures gulp billions of naira in payment of salaries, allowances and ‘projects.’

Our health sector is one of the worst in the world. That is why the ‘japa syndrome’ in that sector is alarming. Our health institutions are in disarray, in complete ruins. There is no organisation in our hospitals. They lack functioning facilities and, health personnel wail over non availability of facilities to work and poor welfare packages.

In Nigeria, it is hell for the sick to approach hospitals for medical treatment. Nigerian hospitals lack modern facilities to handle patients with chronic and severe ailments. It is mostly poor Nigerians who visit the hospitals for health care. The rich and highly connected travel to developed countries for medical care while the poor remain condemned to the already destroyed hospitals.

Many of our well trained and experienced medical personnel have left the shores of Nigeria for greener pastures because of the poor welfare packages. Almost every now and then, doctors and nurses embark on peaceful protests to demand for improvement in their working conditions. But their complaints are never taken seriously.

Our education is in comatose which has warranted teachers of the government owned schools to often embark on peaceful protests to alert government to their suffering but to no avail.

Education is the bedrock of development in any society. It is the easy access to reducing poverty and unemployment in a country. Nigerian children are deliberately denied every facility to support their enlightenment, and prepare them for tomorrow’s challenges. The country’s leadership is not investing in the lives of our children. Yet, it is only education that can secure the lives of these children.

Rather than build more schools, engage quality teachers and pay them well, our officials loot the treasury and stash them away in foreign countries.

Education prepares today’s child for tomorrow’s world economic challenges. Without education, the country’s chances of advancement become retrogressive. It is education that builds and sustains any country in the way forward.

The advanced and developed world is investing largely in education and trainings in commerce, science and technology to fit into the modern system while Nigerian leaders are more focused in looting the treasury.

Nigerian elites mortgage the future of millions of children for their own selfish interests and people unnecessary greed.

There are no industries standing that Nigeria can boast of. For instance, the Aladja and Ajaokuta steel complexes are dead. Same applies to all our refineries, as at today, none is functioning. Several companies have relocated to other countries because of the discouraging business climate in Nigeria.

How can a country allow such investments to die? Why are no governments interested in reviving them? Nigeria records the worst kind of electricity in the world.

In Nigeria, it is near total darkness. Nigerian citizens rely fully on generator sets to enjoy electricity. The Chinese government and business men have capitalized on our poor power system and government’s inability to provide power to its teeming millions.

The Chinese government and business men continue to suffocate the country with all manner of gadgets to aid power supply while the government shows no seriousness in ending the darkness. As it is, Nigeria may remain in darkness for a very long period of time.

Our roads are death traps. The roads in Nigeria have ended many lives and maimed several others. Some years ago, it was somewhere along Ore – Benin road that, late Prof. Chinua Achebe, one of Nigeria’s greatest writer had the accident that put him in a wheelchair before he eventually died.

This is 2026, the Ore – Benin road is still in a state of disrepair. This yuletide season, thousands of travellers travelling between South-West , South-South and South-East states using that corridor spent more than 24 hours for a journey of eight hours.

The state of Nigerian roads has made movement of goods and services extremely difficult and time consuming. This has added hugely to the dwindling effect on our economy.

There is no functioning railway system in the country. In a country as big as Nigeria, we do not have an existing railway system in place. Yet, billions of dollars have been spent in that sector.

The question many are asking is, where are the monies borrowed over the years actually channeled into? There is so much poverty and hardship in the land despite all the borrowing. All poverty alleviation programs of government have rather enriched the political elites and pushed millions of the poor into abject poverty.

Presently in Nigeria, life has become ‘short, nasty and brutish.’ Millions of Nigerians experience hardship daily. They have been condemned to poverty permanently except providence visits them.

The skyrocketing prices of food items in our markets should be a source of worry to the government as it has introduced starvation and hardship in the lives of most Nigerian people.

Again, the high price of food items is partly responsible for the increased sickness and diseases amongst the populace.

The decline in farming in the country has contributed negatively to the nutritious feeding of the masses. In most communities, especially in the far north and middle belt, farmers have been practically barred from accessing their farmlands by bandits. This has affected food supply and increased prices of the few food items available in the market thereby worsening the poverty level.

The state of insecurity in the country is not only terrible but disastrous. It has affected the country’s economy badly. No economy survives in an insecured and unsecured environment. Security of a place encourages investors.

For about 15 years now, Nigeria has witnessed very poor security situation with many lives cut short and others maimed. People have been kidnapped and ransom paid. Businesses have been destroyed and burnt. While others closed or have relocated their businesses.

Nigeria is no doubt, a poor country, not because of lack of natural resources but basically because of mismanagement and stealing of resources by our political elites.

Nigeria’s political elites ignore to build the country for all. They rather build themselves financially and economically against the general interest of the country.

It is the full responsibility of every government to organize its people, create and expand social and economic opportunities for citizens. But not so in Nigeria. The Nigerian government does not exist for her people. They exist for the protection and defence of the elites.

According to available World Bank reports of 2025, Nigeria’s poverty level has hit 75.5%. It is not just incredible but a dangerous phenomenon.

There is a clear proof of increased poverty and hardship in the country. This is due to the bad governance, worsening economy, insecurity and the high inflation that have gripped the country over the years.

But if the present government choses to right the wrongs, Nigeria will witness speedy development. Since 2023, Nigeria has made huge sums of money. However, they seem have chosen to mismanage and invest it in settlement of political interests.

Nigeria is poor not because of lack of financial and natural resources but basically the absence of proper management of resources and outright stealing which late Afrobeat king, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti described in one of his songs as ‘Authority stealing.’ Of course, authority stealing, he emphasized ‘pass armed robbery.’

Ordinarily, Nigeria is supposed to be leading in all fronts in Africa. Nigeria is in a position to give loans to African countries and the developing world but the reverse is the case. Our political leaders since 1960 killed the country’s hope to become the continent’s Giant in all fields.

The country is still groaning in the dark. There is no sign that we are moving towards socio-economic emancipation. The government of the day is not putting all necessary tools and policies that will free the people from economic slavery.

Its policies so far have not addressed the needs of Nigerians. The policies have instead created more hardships for the teeming population of Nigerians who have found it difficult to survive.