Former presidential aide, Reno Omokri, has argued that the naira’s historically low exchange rates under previous administrations were artificially maintained through a costly subsidy system—one he claims drained more resources than the country’s long-criticized fuel subsidy.
Speaking during an interview on Channels Television, Omokri dismissed claims that the exchange rate was ever truly N196 or N400 to the dollar under former Presidents Goodluck Jonathan and Muhammadu Buhari, when the government spent billions monthly to artificially hold the naira at a lower exchange rate against the dollar, despite market realities. “Our exchange rate has never been 196 or 400 naira,” he said. “At that time, our exchange rate was being subsidized. People make the mistake. They forget that the subsidy on the naira was actually higher than the subsidy on fuel. We were spending about $1 billion every month on fuel. But we were spending $1.5 billion every month to subsidize the naira, and that was what was keeping the naira at that rate. It was not the real value of the naira.”
Omokri credited President Bola Tinubu for halting the practice after taking office, describing it as a step toward economic discipline. “When President Tinubu came in, he said no, that cannot happen. Because we were not using that subsidized naira to do things that were going to be valuable for the economy,” he said.
His remarks contribute to ongoing national conversations around subsidy reforms, exchange rate unification, and the long-term health of Nigeria’s economy.
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