President Muhammadu Buhari has blamed collusion between Nigerian elites and some foreign institutions as the reason Nigeria’s foreign reserves remained low despite years of earning over $100 per barrel on oil.
According to a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, President Buhari made this known while receiving a contingent of All Progressives Congress members from Kebbi State in the Presidential Villa, Abuja on Friday.
The president added that high food import bill presented by the Central Bank of Nigeria at the beginning of his administration left him uneasy, adding that it was later found to be a fraudulent scheme by Nigerian elites to deplete the nation’s foreign reserves.
While not naming the Nigerian elites involved, Buhari identified the foreign elements as insurance firms, shipping companies and other financial institutions.
Buhari said, “When I was told that the CBN had no savings after the windfall of selling oil for more than $100 per barrel for many years and the production was 2.1 billion barrel per day, I did not believe them.
“I did not believe them because majority of Nigerians cannot afford imported food; they rely on what is locally grown. It turned out that 50 per cent of the export bills were fraudulent. That was what the Nigerian elite did.
“Unfortunately, we will not know all that happened because the elite worked in collusion with institutions in developed countries, like insurance firms, shipping companies and other financial outfits, to perpetuate the fraud.”
The president also said that farmers returning to their farms in the North East zone signified a gain for his administration in the area of security.
He assured his guests that his administration would continue to strive to implement ongoing reforms in the agricultural sector to drive national economic growth.
He added, “Beyond self -sufficiency, we must strive to become net exporters of food commodities.
“We are not doing badly in the agricultural sector and Nigerians, and the world, are beginning to appreciate our efforts . We will not be satisfied; we will work harder until we start exporting food.
“We are happy that rice and beans importation into the country have gone down by over 90 per cent , and visibly everyone can see how productive states like Kebbi have turned out to be and states like Lagos , Ogun and Ebonyi are following the example.”
Buhari said that Kaduna, Katsina, Kano and Sokoto states had already reported remarkable returns in the agricultural sector, which has encouraged more youths to take entrepreneurship.
He assured that the health and educational sectors would also not be left behind.