The Lagos State House of
Assembly on Monday urged the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration to
redouble efforts at strengthening the value of the naira.
Mudashiru Obasa, Lagos Assembly Soeaker |
This followed a motion
jointly sponsored by 11 lawmakers and moved by Mr Rotimi Olowo, the Chairman,
House Committee on Budget and Economic Planning.
It was seconded by the
Chief Whip, Mr Rotimi Abiru.
The News Agency of
Nigeria (NAN) reports that the motion was titled 'Need to control the
continuous decline in the value of naira'.
The House called on the
Federal Government to put necessary infrastructure in place to create enabling
environment for increased local productivity, to strengthen the nation's
currency.
Several lawmakers took
turns to share their views on the present situation and the way forward.
The Speaker of the House,
Mr Mudashiru Obasa said :" Federal Government should be concerned with
policies that can make our local productivity improve. People should stop
chasing dollars.
"Government must
wake up to its responsibility so that people can patronise our schools,
hospitals and goods such that we will not need to seek all these services from
other countries.
"Let's start
patronising made in Nigeria goods."
Obasa urged Nigerians to
develop their own economy by changing their attitude to locally-made goods and
services.
Also contributing, Olowo
said: "Any nation that refuses to produce is exposed.
"Our import
surpasses our export, so the demand for dollars has been pressurizing the
naira.
"If we increase our
local production, demand for dollars will reduce.
"It is high time we
limited ourselves to Nigerian foods and services. We must defend and protect
the naira and value it."
Mr Gbolahan Yishawu, the
Chairman, House Committee on Waterfront Infrastructure, said: " we are already
dollarising our economy and we can't continue like this."
Yishawu, who urged the FG
to revive local industries with improved power supply, said that government
also needed to look into interest rates.
Mr Tunde Braimoh, the
Chairman, House Committee on Information, Strategy and Security, attributed the
continuous fall in the value of naira to ' fancies and fantasies' of Nigerians.
Also contributing, Mr
Yinka Ogundimu, the Chairman, House Committee on Finance urged the government
to move away from a monolithic to a diversified economy.
Ogundimu urged
development banks to assist Nigerians on production activities.
The House resolved to
call on Buhari to direct the Minister of Power, Works and Housing to intensify
efforts to improve power supply across the country.
It said such a step would
make key sectors like manufacturing achieve maximum productivity, which would
help the economy.
The lawmakers also called
on Central Bank of Nigeria to enforce compliance with the monetary regulations
prohibiting indiscriminate use of dollars for domestic transactions.
The Assembly urged the
Minister of Information to embark on sensitisation campaign on the need for
Nigerians to patronise locally produced goods.
NAN reports that the
House also passed for the second reading, a bill for a law to amend the Lagos
State Customary Court Law, 2011 and for connected purposes. (NAN)
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