TheCable

Nigerian Twitter users are trying to help the government figure out policies that the government can use to get the economy back on track after the COVID-19 pandemic.

The pandemic has caused a halt to economic activities across multiple sectors and the International Monetary Fund projects that the Nigerian economy will experience its worst recession in 33 years.

In a series of tweets on Wednesday, Joe Abah, the former director-general of the Bureau of Public Enterprise (BPE), asked followers governance questions and Nigerians attempted to find a solution to the country’s economic problems.

Here are the questions he posed:

“Assume you’re the president of Nigeria or governor of your state. You’ve recently raised the minimum wage from N18,000 to N30,000. Oil prices have now crashed. COVID-19 lockdown has decimated your revenue collection. What will you do? Sack some staff? What?

“Assume that because of the crash in oil prices and crash in revenue as a result of COVID-19, you approach NASS or your State House of Assembly to reduce their salaries & allowances, but they threaten to block your bills and even impeach you, what will you do?

“The biggest component of the cost of governance is personnel costs (salaries and allowances). Total NASS budget is about N120 billion. Total FGN Personnel cost is about N2 trillion. Even if you totally delete NASS, you only save N120 billion. What else will you cut?”

Here are some of the responses below:

We have two ministers per portfolio, take out the MINISTER OF and let's work with only MINISTER FOR.

Then, we shall see a great reduction because all of them have thousands of aides.

— Johnson Jking (@TweetsByJking) April 22, 2020

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Whatever option that's taken has grave consequence. However, if I am in charge of decision making, I will go for borrowing as a short-term measure while reducing cost of governance through staff rationalization will be the long- term measure

— Dr. Ben Gbenro (@bengbenro) April 22, 2020

A number of people seemed to favour slashing salaries and allowances. See their responses:

Salary cut can be easily achieved in Nigeria by carrying the people along in your agenda. Appear more on TV, grant interview, make occasional visits to people at work places, do things to appeal to their emotions and reason. Gain the trust of the people.

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— Olamibode™ (@buddy466) April 22, 2020

To reduce the cost of governance, I would focus on cutting down the size of the civil service.

1. Merge federal MDAs in-line with the Oronsaye Report;

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2. Implement a voluntary retirement scheme for the civil service — with a percentage payout based on number of years served;

— Olu W. Onemola (@OnemolaOlu) April 22, 2020

1. Eliminate the allowances of political office holders and reduce their salary is possible

2. Reduce the salaries of civil servants on level 12 and above

3. Reduce the allowances of high-court, tribunal, appeal court and supreme court judges.
4. I will focus on Agriculture

— Wada (@SuccessWada) April 22, 2020

I'll look into the remuneration of all arms of government with a need to reduce such by at least 50% through dialogue with all stakeholders. Capital projects already paid for will continue and the ones projected will be halted. Then empower SMEs with long term loans.

— umar ibrahim (@imp213x) April 22, 2020

Also Abolish allowances in public service- travel allowance, sitting allowance etc. cost of living e.g rents will come down because money in circulation will reduce. We can even do price fixing for some sectors- food medicine. We have to think out of d box

— ProfCS (@ProfCS5) April 22, 2020

Get everyone to into austerity measures. Cut down Salaries and Allowances, trim civil service, very lean govt ( 75% pol. appointees), collapse the hse of reps ( senate to legislate), return the nation to massive farming to mitigate hunger and stabilize homes. Diversify d economy.

— Wole Ajibade (@myleadafrica) April 22, 2020

Cut 12% from all govt workers. Tax relief for big companies. Inject money into small businesses. Reduce not just personnel cost but also cost of running the govt. When the economy has stabilized, say 2022, make a bonus payment to workers and gradually introduce tax.

— Okenwa (@UdochukwuOkenwa) April 22, 2020

1 Reduce personnel costs by 50%.
2 Increase tax on luxury items frm abroad.
3 Cut out importation of items equally produced here.
4 Increase fines over jail as punishment for offenses (fines + jail for criminal ones).
5 Return minimum wage to 18,000.
6 Mechanize Agric for export.

— Lanre Reactivated (@Coolboy_lanre) April 22, 2020

1. Negotiate with NLC to postpone implementation of new minimum wage
2. Show good faith to NLC buy cutting expenses by overhead
3. Halt purchase of fixed assets for MDAs – cars , computers furniture
4. Aggressive implementation of Orasanye report
5. Rein in all revenue gen agency

— Jude Chuka (@jcamii2018) April 22, 2020

https://twitter.com/Aybee_Mahn/status/1252907520017997826

The idea of salary cuts did not go well with some people. Rather than cut wages, they proposed other solutions.

Think outside the box and look for other revenue source like the informal sector that is untape for years. Make those collection into a central pool and you see that state have been seating on an idle gold mine all this while waiting for FG allocation every month.

— Peter Ebong (@PkEbong) April 22, 2020

PS: SALARIES OF MY PEOPLE WILL BE THE LAST THING I’LL ATTEMPT TO TOUCH.
– Cut all capital expenditures- ALL
– If things get much worse after cutting all capital expenditures, I’ll bring labour to the table and ask them what we can do ?
Salaries must continue being paid

— Austin Mathias O. (@austinmathias_) April 22, 2020

Clearly highlights a fundamental problem. It is laughable that a President sits in Abuja and somehow determines what the minimum wage for Sokoto and Bayelsa should be. We should all look to cancel this arrangement. It is not a workable one. Nigeria should be a federating state.

— Ehi Chethills (@Icee_chet) April 22, 2020

Sacking will make the government more unpopular…I would reduce the price of PMS to 50naira, raise taxes to 200%…Cut down the cost of governance by 80%…Sell off redundant Federal assets that are scattered around the country , and invest massive in commercial Agriculture.

— Engr Atasie T. C. -|Kingsman Monarch🗨|- (@chimezieatasie) April 22, 2020

Pushing for the establishment of tax free zones around port areas as well as investigating exports constituents of Asian countries like singapore and mirroring them.

Also removing the closure of borders to allow more trade which will be taxed.

— Pretty Swanker (@talldarkdude) April 22, 2020

This is a critical situation. As a President or Gov, slashing the salaries of my cabinet wouldn't amount to much. I think I will halt the implementation of some projects and redirect the money to people because it's better they're alive when we implement our projects. @DrJoeAbah

— AY Hassan (@AY_hassan_) April 22, 2020

Time to think outside the box. Block the leakages. The Refineries have been making losses for years, privatize them. Cut down the size of the presidential air fleet. Suspend the creation of every new tertiary institution less than 4 years.

— Ewere Nwali (@Eweroski) April 22, 2020

I will dip my hand into my savings to save the day just like PMB is taking 150M usd from the SWF to savage present reality. Even labourers and petty traders do thrift cos they know it can be rosy all the time. I need not sack workers so as to check mate increase in unemployment

— Engr B (@beeholer) April 22, 2020

Governor Akeredolu mooted the idea of cannabis oil, but we aren't doing anything about it. The coastline of Lagos, Ogun, Ondo, Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers, Cross Rivers and Akwa Ibom are grossly untapped. I'll maximally harness the tourism potential of my state/country.

— Gentleman (@olajideobe) April 22, 2020

Loan and and revise my budget…. I will try to force most youths into agriculture but will introduce commodity boards and segments for processing…. People must chop

— Ayodeji Oluyede (@ayodexAI) April 22, 2020