TheCable

Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar says if elected president, his administration will operate a liberal economy and lower taxes for small businesses.

Atiku, who formally declared his intention to run for the 2023 presidency on Wednesday, said business can only grow in a tax-friendly environment.

“We will operate a liberal economy that allows small businesses to grow through lower taxes for small businesses and low-income earners,” he said

“We will encourage the expansion of the private sector to spur economic growth.

“For our population to have a positive impact, we must equip our people with modern competitive skills and provide the right environment for them to thrive.”

On the state of unemployment in the country, the former vice-president said he has the experience to create more jobs.

He said: “More than 100 million Nigerians are either unemployed, underemployed, or unemployable. How could our ever-increasing population be of added value if we do not create opportunities for our people?

“I know how to create jobs. I built several successful businesses and companies within Nigeria, and as a result of which thousands of people are gainfully employed.

“If I can manage my businesses well, I can manage the Nigerian economy well.”

According to Atiku, all the macro-economic indicators are not favourable under the All Progressives Congress (APC) administration.

“APC inherited single-digit inflation; they now increased it to about 16 percent. When APC came into power, unemployment was around 9 percent; now, unemployment is more than 33 percent,” he said.

“The exchange rate was N197 to a dollar in 2015, but in the hand of APC, naira suffered the worst devaluation ever. As we speak, the exchange rate is more than N400 to a dollar, the official rate.”