A former Bayelsa Senator, Ben Murray-Bruce, has urged Nigerians to consume locally-made goods and services, rather than patronising foreign brands in order to strengthen the naira.
He also advised Nigerians residing in overseas countries to invest their businesses in Nigeria.
Murray-Bruce made this known via a post on X on Friday stressing that “the decision to float the Naira and stop defending it with our reserves and other dollar stockpiles is the way to go.”
This is coming as Nigeria’s local currency fell from about 450 per dollar to an average of 760 per dollar.
The naira further weakened to 1045 per dollar on Thursday at the parallel market.
According to the business magnate, Nigerians should engage with made-in-Nigeria products in the cinemas, cement, and airtime, including flights and vehicles, which should be their sacrifices to make the naira stronger.
Murray-Bruce wrote, “The decision to float the Naira and stop defending it with our reserves and other dollar stockpiles is the way to go. It was never sustainable, and it was taking us the way of Zimbabwe and Venezuela.”
“The best way to strengthen the dollar [sic] is organically. When we #BuyNaijaToGrowTheNaira, the Naira will rise. Watch Nollywood movies at Silverbird Cinemas. Use Glo over foreign brands. Fly Air Peace and other domestic airlines over foreign carriers.
“Use Dangote Cement to build your homes. Drive around in Innoson vehicles, like I do. And the Naira will be strengthened. And most significantly, we must encourage our diaspora to repatriate their wealth back home.”
“If we continue the previous practice of spending $20 billion a year to prop up the value of the Naira artificially, we will eventually go bankrupt, and at that time, we will be talking ₦100,000 to $1,” he added.
Vanguard reported that former Minister of Finance, Olusegun Aganga, said the naira would continue to experience a free fall if Nigeria remains an import-dependent country.
He said it was not a wise decision to defend the naira with billions without appropriate investments in the manufacturing sector to drive the country’s exports.
Aganga made this known on Thursday at the 3rd Adeola Odutola lecture, during the 51st Annual General Meeting of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria.
The ex-minister added that Nigeria must produce for local consumption and more importantly for export, for the naira to be strong.
“What is the wisdom in spending billions defending the naira when it continues to fall instead of investing in genuine manufacturers and exporters of high-value products that would earn Nigeria foreign income and more,” Aganga said.
Source | Vanguard
