TheCable

Femi Adesina, special adviser to President Muhammadu Buhari on media and publicity, says the president sold his property to access foreign exchange (forex) for his child’s education.

Adesina, who could not confirm if the president got forex from official sources or the parallel market, said one would have to ask the president himself.

Speaking in an interview with Osasu Igbinedion on The Osasu Show, Adesina said the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), is experiencing a paucity of forex.

Corroborating Adesina’s stance, the president himself had earlier said in an interview with Al Jazeera that it would henceforth be “tough luck” for those who are (or wish to school abroad) to access forex”.

“Those who can afford foreign education for their children can go ahead but Nigeria cannot afford to allocate foreign exchange to those who decided to train their children outside the country,” he said in March.

Asked if the president could afford the education of his children abroad, Adesina said: “You will need to ask him.”

“Don’t forget that it was in the public domain even before he became president that when one of his children needed to go abroad he had to sell his property; maybe it was his house in Lagos or somewhere,” Adesina said.

“Anybody that wants to train a child abroad must be sure that he or she can afford it. If you can afford it no problem.

“At a time like this when there is paucity of foreign exchange, what the president is simply saying is that central bank may not be able to provide forex but you can always buy your forex at the parallel market if that is what you want.”

Though the CBN has not officially banned the access to forex for education and medical bills, the president has said explicitly that the country cannot afford it.