President Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari said today that his government will no longer devalue the Nigerian currency, The Naira, shooting down suggestions by some economic experts, especially from outside Nigeria, calling for the measure.

He was asked whether another round of Naira devaluation will follow the continuous decline in the price of crude, the main foreign exchange earner for the country.

But President Buhari said he would rather stick with the present policy of restricting foreign exchange spendings.

“The Naira has been devalued. It used to be N160 to the dollar but it is now around N200 and above.”, the president reminded his interviewer on France 24.

“I don’t think it is good to devalue it further. That is why we want to continue to make some modifications in terms of making foreign exchange available for essential services, industries, raw materials. However, Nigeria can produce enough toothpick and rice. We don’t need to give our hard currency for those who want toothpick from China; they can source for the hard currency and buy it.”

On whether the delay in unveiling a cabinet is affecting his government’s response to the volatility now in the bond market, he responded:

“We learnt this from the western world. The civil service provides continuity in government. Civil servants are the technocrats who do most of the work. Politicians make a lot of noise but the real work is done by the technocrats. They are there and provide the continuity. If you see my team, you will see perm secs, finance, trade and industries, and others. They provide the continuity, dig into the records as long as possible, they guide us. They have been there, some for 15, 20 years. I think that this custom of ministers is political. People from different constituencies want to see their own sons and daughters in government and see what they can get out of it.”