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Nigerians caused this recession for themselves -Ex Gov Egwu

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Nigerians caused this recession for themselves -Ex Gov Egwu

Former Governor of Ebonyi State, Senator Sam Egwu has said that the current economic recession in the country was caused by the recklessness of past leaders and the populace.

According to him, “The country imported virtually every item without paying attention to production, with the populace having the wrong notion that all locally-made goods are inferior.

Egwu who spoke on Monday at his home in Umuebe, Ohaukwu Local Government Area of Ebonyi state, lamented that “The country depended entirely on oil revenue as the government worsened the situation by giving concession to import goods which discouraged manufacturers and intending ones.

“The situation made the manufacturers view importation as an easy way to make money and we got to a point that the country depended on its foreign reserves for importation.”

The former minister on Education noted further that the nation’s foreign reserve was depleted because importation could not be done with local currency, a situation that affected the country economically.

In the allegations of budget padding in the federal legislature, Senator Egwu, faulted the claims by the sacked Chairman of the the House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations, Abdulmumin Jubrin, as belated.

Read also: Doguwa insists Jibrin has psychiatric issues, House to ignore him

According to Egwu, Jibrin’s spoke out at the wrong time, insisting that should have made the allegations a long time ago.

Egwu, who represents Ebonyi North on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, said issues arising from allegations from Jibrin formed part of the things that delayed the passage of the 2016 budget, adding that other legislators that belong to the appropriation committees had alleged that Jibrin caused the problems that delayed the budget.

The former Ebonyi governor said: “Jibrin had the choice to make the allegations long ago, as I am aware that many legislators wanted to belong to the appropriation committees of both arms of the National Assembly.

“The issues of budget padding among other things gave rise to the controversies surrounding the 2016 budget and this affected its smooth passage at the National Assembly.”

Continuing, Egwu said: “The legislators even alleged that Jibrin hijacked the budget process and handled the whole process and its activities alone.

“One can then ask why he is shouting now because he should be among those that should be investigated, being part of the process from the beginning.”

By Timothy Enietan-Matthews ….

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