Party tasks FG on diligent budget implementation

The All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), has said that Nigeria could pull out of the current recession fast if the Federal Government funded its 2017 budget diligently.

Dr Victor Oye, the APGA National Chairman, gave this advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Awka on Tuesday.

Oye attributed the poor economy to poor implementation of the 2016 budget, which he said, “passed through a series of political and administrative bottlenecks’’.

“The government should be more proactive; the problem with budget implementation is lack of sincerity.

“We have the capacity to implement our budget and that is why you cannot compare Nigeria with her contemporaries as India and China.

“The budget has recently been presented to the National Assembly; it must be properly implemented because that is the way to drive the country out of recession.

“Government must spend through diligent funding of the budget; this will make contractors go back to site and create employment and other business opportunities for the masses.

“We must say that the implementation of the 2016 budget was poor. Some people said it was about 59 per cent; that is poor by our own rating.

“Any government that is serious about revamping the type of economy we are in now should aim at 75 per cent and above.

“I am hopeful, next year will be much better but it demands action, sincerity and good planning to achieve that,” he said.

Oye called on the Federal Government to issue bailout to some strategic sectors of the economy that are experiencing setback due to the recession.

“The Nigeria’s economy can be likened to what President Barack Obama met in the United States back in 2009 and to tackle it, he immediately announced a stimulus package.

“Obama also issued a bailout to critical sectors of the US economy and that was how they bounced back to prosperity,” he said.