President Bola Tinubu has said that his administration has so far cleared the Ways and Means debt of N30 trillion since it came on board in May last year.
The President made this public while addressing the nation in his nationwide broadcast marking the 64th Independence Day anniversary on Tuesday.
The president, who admitted that he inherited an ‘economy faced many headwinds,’ said he had to embark on tough economic reforms to save the country from collapse.
He said, “My administration took over the leadership of our country 16 months ago at a critical juncture. The economy faced many headwinds, and our physical security was highly impaired.
“We found ourselves at a dizzying crossroads, where we must choose between two paths: reform for progress and prosperity or carry on business-as-usual and collapse. We decided to reform our political economy and defence architecture.
“The economy is undergoing the necessary reforms and retooling to serve us better and more sustainably. If we do not correct the fiscal misalignments that led to the current economic downturn, our country will face an uncertain future and the peril of unimaginable consequences.
“Thanks to the reforms, our country attracted foreign direct investments worth more than $30 billion in the last year.
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“Fellow compatriots, our administration is committed to free enterprise, free entry, and free exit in investments while maintaining the sanctity and efficacy of our regulatory processes. This principle guides the divestment transactions in our upstream petroleum sector, where we are committed to changing the fortune positively. As such, the ExxonMobil Seplat divestment will receive ministerial approval in a matter of days, having been concluded by the regulator, NUPRC, in line with the Petroleum Industry Act, PIA. This was done in the same manner as other qualified divestments approved in the sector.
“The move will create vibrancy and increase oil and gas production, positively impacting our economy.
“The more disciplined approach adopted by the Central Bank to monetary policy management has ensured stability and predictability in our foreign exchange market. We inherited a reserve of over $33 billion 16 months ago. Since then, we have paid back the inherited forex backlog of $7 billion.
“We have cleared the ways and means debt of over N30 trillion. We have reduced the debt service ratio from 97 per cent to 68 per cent. Despite all these, we have managed to keep our foreign reserve at $37 billion. We continue to meet all our obligations and pay our bills.”
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