Prof. Usman Yusuf is a former Government Secretary of the Nationwide Well being Insurance coverage Scheme (NHIS) and a member of the Northern Elders Discussion board (NEF). On this interview, he speaks on President Bola Tinubu’s state go to to France and its implication on Nigeria’s economic system and safety, amongst different points, ANAYO EZUGWU reviews
Nigeria-France relationship isn’t new, and it’s a major one. France is Nigeria’s greatest commerce companion in Europe. What positives do you see from this relationship, significantly on the subject of safety and economic system?
To be sincere, I’m nervous and each Nigerian needs to be. Okay, let’s take a look at our relationship with France previous, current, and the long run. France has been in all these Francophone African nations for 60 to 66 years, and so they’ve been kicked out.
They’ve been kicked out of Chad, Senegal, Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso. 5 of your neighbours kicked out a colonial grasp, and abruptly, you’re hugging that individual. There’s something you guys know that we don’t know.
However let’s take a look at the historical past of France in Africa or wherever else on the earth. It’s not been good. Have a look at all these nations; it is advisable ask your self, why was France kicked out of these locations? You’re sucking their sources and there’s no improvement in any of those nations.
You go to Chad, you go to Mali, you go to Burkina Faso, you go to Niger, there may be nothing to see, however they’ve been sucking their uranium and gold. Abruptly, President Bola Tinubu is on this love fest with President Emmanuel Macron and France. We’re asking ourselves, why? What do we’ve got in widespread with France?
Actually nothing! You take a look at our historical past with France, it has been one of many main nations that was imagined to have united Nigeria. France opposed the formation and the creation of ECOWAS.
France opposed the creation and sabotaged the creation of a single ECOWAS forex, the Eco. And France sabotaged ECOWAS by the younger navy juntas leaving ECOWAS. Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso, ECOWAS is now only a shell.
Wherever France is, it’s no good. Mr. President isn’t speaking to Nigerians. You’ll do not forget that after the coup in Niger, the president had simply began and he had not even assembled his crew, he stated we’re going to assault Niger, and I’m certain prodded by France.
We within the North resisted vehemently. We stated that we’re not going to permit Nigeria to invade Niger as a result of the combat was going to be a proxy conflict. America of America had one of many greatest drone bases in Niger.
Their cause was that they’re going to combat Islamists and all that. However insecurity has been a lot worse the place you’ve got bases by these overseas nations. The rationale France is courting Nigeria, and President Tinubu is permitting them, is as a result of they’re on the lookout for a spot to situate their navy base after being kicked out however we are going to resist it.
We within the North, which is a spot they wish to find these bases will vigorously resist any overseas navy boots on our soil. Mr. President must know that we shouldn’t have any historic ties, defence, financial or linguistic relationship with France.
And all this cosying the French are doing, the reception they gave Mr President was match for a king. He is not going to get that if he goes to England or the USA or wherever on the earth. What’s France getting for that? France desires three issues.
President Tinubu is actually bringing the Lagos mannequin to the massive stage. What’s the Lagos mannequin? Tax, tax, tax, tax, tax however you can not overtax your residents to a stage that they can not pay
One, it desires the best to concessions to use our minerals, that are predominantly within the North, which is what they’ve been doing in Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso. Quantity two, they need concessions in oil and fuel. I heard the spokesman of the President saying that Whole goes to speculate $750 million in fuel.
And I requested myself, is that this true or is that this fiction as a result of the identical Whole, 17 months in the past, exited Nigeria and bought all its stake at $860 million to a Mauritiusbased firm. Their causes had been sabotage, theft, oil spillage and excessive price of lawsuits.
So, what has modified in 16 months that they’re coming again once more? After promoting its stake for $860 million and leaving city, now they’re coming to speculate $750 million, we had been informed. I t’s not going to occur.
They’re on the lookout for three issues. They wish to come and exploit our mineral sources, predominantly within the North. They wish to discover oil and fuel, which they ran away from, and quantity three that’s most significantly, most worrying, they’re on the lookout for a navy base.
However, we are going to resist vehemently any try by President Tinubu’s authorities to permit any overseas navy base on our soil, significantly within the North as a result of it’ll be a harbinger of hassle. All these Lakurawa stuff you’re listening to, it’s the French that began all of them. Wherever France was in West Africa, there was no peace.
So, why would President Tinubu convey them again with out consulting anyone? A navy base, whether or not by France, America or any nation shall be resisted vigorously by all of us, as a result of it is a nation we love, and we’re not going to permit recolonization of this Nigeria like they’ve performed within the different nations.
In Hausa, there’s a saying that for those who see the beard of your neighbour catches hearth, dampen water on yours. France has put hearth everywhere in the Sahel, and we’re inviting them into our family. No! we’re not going to permit that.
And I’m calling on our sleepy, do-nothing tenth Nationwide Meeting to get up to its duty. They’re those we elected; they’re those who ought to checkmate President Tinubu in all of the opaque issues he’s been doing.
He disappears into France for a working vacation, and no one is aware of what he’s going to do there. Like he’s been referred to as for session, it is a democracy, not a navy rule, and we have to know what our authorities and our president are taking us into.
However a overseas navy base is a no-no. And exploiting our mineral sources behind our backs isn’t going to occur. It’s going to be clear, there’s going to be an open bid, and all of us stakeholders have to be concerned.
Contemplating the present rivalry between Western powers and China for affect within the international South; how does Nigeria’s embrace of France match into this dynamics, and will this partnership place Nigeria as a important participant in balancing international energy, or is there a threat in alienating different potential allies equivalent to China or Russia?
France is simply going to make use of us as a pawn and we’re primarily protruding our neck and giving it to them. And, the combat isn’t between the West and China.
The combat is between the West and Russia. Have a look at what simply occurred in Syria. Have a look at what’s taking place in Ukraine.
Have a look at what’s taking place in Israel. It’s going to be a proxy conflict between NATO and Russia, as a result of all these French West African nations, are inviting Russia after kicking out America and China. So, it’s going to be a proxy conflict, and we’re not going to be a part of it.
However we’re going to resist it, particularly all of us within the North, who’re going to bear the total brunt of any recklessness of bringing any overseas foot onto our soil.
We’re not going to just accept it. So, it’s not about China. It’s about the USA, NATO and Russia.
So, Mr. President, whom we elected, should communicate to us He mustn’t commit us to any overseas navy presence within the Federal Republic of Nigeria. And no matter investments he makes have to be vetted by our Nationwide Meeting.
However I name on all Nigerians, significantly our elders, our governors, our conventional rulers and clerics, to be looking out as a result of hazard is coming. Mr President’s romance with France is not any excellent news for Nigeria.
How would you need President Tinubu to embrace France, which is our greatest commerce companion in Europe simply as we’re their greatest commerce companion in Africa?
That’s the scary half as a result of if France may assist any nation with safety, why didn’t it assist Mali? Why didn’t it assist Niger? Why didn’t it assist Burkina Faso? Why didn’t it assist Chad?
They’ve been there for lengthy. Their troops have been there for lengthy. Do you suppose in the event that they didn’t assist them with all their bases, they’ll assist us?
Let’s get up! Solely Nigeria might help herself by liberating herself from these colonial forces which can be doing nothing however stirring hassle within the Sahel. So, for anyone to suppose that France is coming to assist us with safety is deluding himself.
The most important drawback we may have is, and that’s the reason President Tinubu is misfiring tips on how to deal with the state of affairs after the coup in Niger, which is the growing insecurity coming to Nigeria as a result of Niger, Chad and Cameroon have been doing numerous heavy lifting on our behalf, preventing Boko Haram and bandits and ISWAP.
Now, you’re not going to speak to them. You’re preventing them. They raise their ft off the brakes and these guys roll in. France isn’t going that can assist you with that.
These neighbouring counties are solely ones that may make it easier to with this Lakurawa nonsense as a result of this optics we’re seeing in Lakurawa is suspect, I’ll let you know.
I heard the opposite day from the spokesperson of the Defence Headquarters in Nigeria saying in his press briefing that Lakurawa is new and that it’s associated to the coup in Niger.
Hi there, Mr. Spokesperson, it’s best to know higher. This Lakurawa, as we all know it in the present day, has been round on this nation. They’ve been right here for seven years, since 2017, on the invitation of native communities to assist them combat bandits, to assist them do the job that safety providers couldn’t do.
They got here underneath the nostril of the Federal Authorities, underneath the nostril of the state governments, underneath the nostril of all safety providers, underneath the nostril of all our intelligence providers. And now, abruptly, we’re doing this.
The query Nigerians needs to be asking is, why did we permit non-state actors to come back into Nigeria, settle and proceed its actions for the previous seven years? And why abruptly are we saying Lakurawa simply to offer a cause for France to come back in? That’s the solely cause.
Fellow Nigerians, you’ll be able to by no means cease this Lakurawa, Boko Haram, all these bandits and terrorists, for those who don’t have a very good relationship together with your neighbours, not France. Bringing France in goes to make us a hotbed for terrorism. It’s going to make us poorer and it’ll make us second-class residents.
They are going to open a base in Katsina State and be digging our gold and I can’t go there as an individual from Katsina. We’ve seen that in Niger, we’ve seen that in Mali.
That’s what they’ve been doing. So, fellow Nigerians, we must always open our eyes. We within the North will vigorously resist any try by President Tinubu’s authorities to permit overseas navy bases on our soil. Finish of story; I don’t understand how else to say it.
Don’t you suppose that President Tinubu is making an attempt to place Nigeria as a commerce companion and never only a companion to be extracted sources from?
Commerce companion; how a lot is he getting from France. They stated $750 million funding by Whole. For goodness sake, that’s a paltry sum for a rustic like Nigeria. The opposite day, they went to Qatar, how a lot did they are saying they acquired, $600 million and Qatar denied that.
The opposite day, in Saudi Arabia, they stated $800 million. All of those investments, lower than a billion for a rustic like Nigeria? That’s paltry. Why is Nigeria not attracting the massive funding that it’s worthy of?
A Nigeria that has a really massive inhabitants, a Nigeria that may be very wealthy, a Nigeria that has a really educated inhabitants. Why are we not attracting huge funding? It’s an insult to inform me you went to France and acquired $750 million or Saudi Arabia, $800 million, or Qatar, $600 million. The President himself de-marketed Nigeria twice in Doha.
Bear in mind, after they went, he stated there was corruption and he warned the Qatari delegates: ‘If anyone asks you for a bribe, come and inform me.’ Hi there, Mr. President. Thanks for de-marketing your nation. And at G20, you heard what he was saying. There may be insecurity.
There may be starvation. There may be this. There may be that. You’re the chief advertising and marketing officer of your nation and you’re demarketing the nation. I’ll let you know, actual nations that wish to put money into troubled spots, they think about all these and so they even get insurance coverage and simply are available and pillage the nation and depart.
We can’t belief France or any nation with our safety. Doing that may be foolhardy. Sure, there may be insecurity within the North however it’ll get a lot worse with France round
So, we wish to see actual funding that interprets into bettering the lives of our folks. We haven’t seen that up to now. All of the loans they’ve been getting, the World Financial institution loans, the Chinese language loans, the place are we seeing them? They haven’t impacted on the folks.
They haven’t helped the Naira. Ithey haven’t introduced inflation down. Only in the near past, they acquired a mortgage of $2.2 billion. They acquired approval from the Nationwide Meeting. It took solely 48 hours for the donothing Nationwide Meeting to offer them approval to go and get loans. For what!
The President is proposing a invoice of $47.9 billion and the gathering companies stated they’ve collected N51 trillion up to now. So, why are you getting all this cash? He will get all these loans and the Nationwide Meeting doesn’t ask him what are these loans for and we don’t see the profit.
So, we should query, particularly, in a state of affairs the place we’re anxious there’s a state seize by the President and his enterprise associates. You see them signing MoUs in France, on whose behalf, positively not on my behalf, not on my grandmother’s behalf. They aren’t in authorities. No person is aware of about these guys.
Do you see them signing on behalf of Nigeria? Do you’ve got your small business associates working this nation? No person can inform me how a lot the Federal Inland Income Service (FIRS) has collected or how a lot the Customs has collected. No person is aware of what is available in and what goes out.
The reason being that our Nationwide Meeting is complicit, it’s there in mattress with this dangerous governance. This can’t proceed. We should all get up. Funding from France isn’t going to resolve our drawback.
Get funding wherever you’re going to get funding however we’re very nervous about this love fest between our President and France and her president. It’s a harbinger of dangerous issues to come back due to France historical past round us. And we can’t belief France or any nation with our safety.
Doing that may be foolhardy. Sure, there may be insecurity within the North however it’ll get a lot worse with France round. Do they wish to go and combat? Allow them to go and do their preventing. We’ll remedy our issues right here.
Do you’ve got any considerations in regards to the Tax Reform Payments and the way can the federal government stability this pressing want for income technology? President Tinubu is actually bringing the Lagos mannequin to the massive stage. What’s the Lagos mannequin?
Tax, tax, tax, tax, tax however you can not overtax your residents to a stage that they can not pay. You’ve eliminated subsidies, and also you’ve made them poorer. You’ve floated the Naira, you’ve devalued the forex.
Persons are poorer. Why are you taxing them? What it is advisable do is broaden the tax web as an alternative of overtaxing residents. That’s primary. Quantity two, folks will say these which can be in opposition to this tax invoice, they haven’t even learn the payments.
It isn’t the duty of residents to go and skim; it’s the duty of the federal government that’s going to convey any coverage to folks to come back and sensitize and clarify to them and get their approval.
You can’t simply pay employed consultants. They go into their room, convey out an encyclopedia of how we wish to do the tax, throw it to the Nationwide Meeting and rush it. I let you know, 99 per cent of the members of the Nationwide Meeting members haven’t learn the invoice.
No person has time to learn this invoice. So, primarily, all this brouhaha you’re seeing, I took time to learn it as a result of I discuss in all places. A few of it’s good, however the greatest drawback is that there’s lack of belief. Nigerians don’t belief this authorities.
The final time you probably did, Mr. President, you flippantly eliminated the gasoline subsidy. You flippantly floated the Naira and stated tomorrow can be higher. Our individuals are dying. Tomorrow isn’t higher. Yesterday was higher than in the present day. Individuals don’t belief this authorities, that primary.
Quantity two is that this authorities, regardless of its over-bloated media crew of about 13 advisers, isn’t connecting with the folks. They aren’t, they suppose they are going to keep in Abuja and discuss, and other people will take heed to them.
They aren’t connecting with the folks. You may see from the National Security Adviser’s speech the opposite day, their frustration that the federal government isn’t connecting with the folks.
That was why he stated ‘critics, we are going to shut you up.’ We wish to be shut up with information, with advantages for our folks, not propaganda. The federal government isn’t connecting with the folks.
The federal government has not defined something to the folks. Members of the Nationwide Meeting don’t even perceive the invoice. And take a look at the clumsy manner it was offered on the Senate the opposite day. Senator Godswill Akpabio thinks he shall be intelligent by half, recused himself, and put the Deputy Senate President from the North to combat his folks.
Please comply with and like us:
