President Muhammadu Buhari has said that he felt like "running
away" when he learned of the deep financial crisis facing Africa's largest
economy after he took office last year. He said falling oil prices and
mismanagement by the previous government had left him with a huge
problem.
"Actually, I felt
like absconding because 27 out of the 36 states of Nigeria could not pay
salaries and we know the lower income groups depend on salaries to pay rent and
manage their families.
"I asked if there
were any savings and I was told there were no savings. I asked what they did on
agriculture, power, rails and roads. There was nothing.
Buhari added that his government could not be blamed for
the recession.
"In the last one
and half years of this administration, the economy has experienced some tough
times, particularly with the decline in oil revenues, which has some harsh
impacts on Nigerians at the grassroots.
"It is also
important to note that the economic recession is not the making of this
administration, but rather a consequence of bad management of the economy in
the past couple of decades. Nor is recession limited to Nigeria; there are far,
far worse cases than Nigeria."
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