The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) accused the President
Muhammadu Buhari-led government on sunday of planning to impose a communist economic
regime on Nigerians, stressing the the recent foreign exchange transaction
restrictions by this government are illegal, unlawful and void.
The party while stating that the delay in forming an
economic team three months into this administration is leading the country into
economic hazard and stagnation, alleged that Buhari has plans to unlawfully
repeal the provisions of the Foreign Exchange Monitoring And Miscellaneous
Provisions Act and replace it with unilateral imposition of new regulations. It
stressed that the recent series of bans amounts to complete clampdown on free
trade.
A statement by the party signed by its national publicity
secretary, Olisa Metuh, said:
In the past, we had given examples of the devastating
effect of lack of an economic team and a clear-cut fiscal policy by this
administration as evidenced in the lull and painful decline in the stock
market, spiral rate of inflation, the disastrous outing of the government team
in bilateral talks during the recent visit to the United States of America and
the shambolic state of our economy at present.
“This confusion has been extended to operations and
regulations of the foreign exchange transactions in Nigeria wherein the
government is making it impossible for honest Nigerians to engage in free trade
and regulate their personal activities as guaranteed by the constitution, and
this is clearly an agenda to illegally impose a communist economic regime on
Nigerians.
“In a desperate attempt to create a semblance of movement
out of the clearly motionless and stoic state of affairs of this government,
they have reeled out bans and complete clampdown on free trade. One begins to
wonder therefore whether we are not heading back to the era of import duty
licenses and regulation of commodity prices.
“The most disturbing aspect of this communist economic
agenda is the illegal and unlawful attempt to repeal the provisions of the
Foreign Exchange Monitoring And Miscellaneous Provisions Act, otherwise known
as Decree No 17 of 1995 and replace it with unilateral imposition of new regulations.
“This Act remains the subsisting law regulating the
operations of domiciliary accounts in Nigeria and by its provisions therefore,
Nigerians are empowered to freely open and operate domiciliary accounts.
“As such, any enactment and or regulation inconsistent
with the provisions of this Act are deemed void. Thus, the recent foreign
exchange transaction restrictions by this government are illegal, unlawful and
void. Besides the provisions of the law, the PDP declares this administration’s
archaic communist economic agenda as unworkable and unsustainable.”
The party reminded Buhari “that this is 2015 and not
1984; we remind him that trade and import restrictions are archaic and
outdated; and we remind him that we are practicing a proper democracy and not
the dictatorship of the politburo under a communist regime.
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