Fred Itua, Abuja
Senators elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), yesterday, berated the poor economy and how President Muhammadu Buhari-led Federal Government has handled it.
This is even as professional economists declared that the nation’s economy is nose diving as a result of exclusion of qualified and knowledgeable economists in the National Economic Management Team ( NEMT) .
The senators who were taken aback by the disclosure, said they were not surprised at the parlous state of the nation’s economy since those managing it have little or no knowledge on how to make it vibrant.
Lamenting on the exclusion of economists in the NEMT under the President Buhari-led government, the President of Nigeria Economic Society ( NCS), Professor Sarah Anyanwu during courtesy visit on the Senate Minority Leader , Enyinnaya Abaribe, said since the exclusion of NEC members from NEMT, the Nation’s economy has been nose diving .
“Members of the Nigeria Economic Society ( NES), had in the past included in the National Economic Management Team for the required professional advice and guidance on whatever economic policy to be adopted by the federal government .
“The practice assisted past government in making sound economic policies required by circumstances or situations on ground .
“But the exclusion of economists in the National Economic Tram under the present administration , has glarringly shown the adverse effects on the economy which by those who can read the indices and indicators correctly , is nose diving .
“Our exclusion from the NEMT, is seriously making the Nation’s economy to be unstable and somewhat direction less,” she said.
Beside being excluded from the NEMT , the NES President also lamented that the various MDAs , are not patronising them for required expertise and capacity training of staffers .
She, however, requested the National Assembly to expedite action on consideration and passage of the bill NES forwarded to both Chambers early in the year .
Irked by her lamentation , the Senate Minority Leader, Abaribe and other PDP senators like Emmanuel Bwacha , George Sekibo , Sahabi Yau and Chukwuka Utazi , said they were not surprised at the parlous state of the Nation’s economy.
Abaribe said: “We are not surprised that the economy went into recession and moving towards that direction again , since as disclosed here , required knowledge from the experts are not even sought for,”
He, however, assured the NES members that expeditious consideration , will be given to their bill , already before both Chambers of the National Assembly.
On the Entourage of the NES team, were Professors Peter Shibayan of the Department of Economics, University of Abuja , Eyilola Olaniyi also from the same Department , University of Abuja etc.