Nigerians have been reassured by the nominees for the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) that the MPC will endeavor to promptly tackle the foreign exchange problem and food inflation.
The names of candidates for the Monetary Policy Committee of the top bank were sent to the Senate by President Bola Tinubu last week for approval, in advance of the MPC meeting the following week. The Senate examined these candidates on Wednesday for membership in the MPC.
Six of the twelve nominees were vetted by the Senate through its Committee on Banking, Insurance, and Other Financial Institutions, with the majority of the inquiries centered around potential remedies for the food crisis and currency instability.
Lamido Yuguda, the Director-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), was the first nominee to be examined. He told the committee that the SEC will have the necessary voice in monetary policy with his nomination to the MPC.
He bemoaned the fact that the Naira’s current value is unreal as it no longer has intrinsic worth, but he was optimistic that the MPC, which takes office on Monday, would work with other interested parties to restore stability to the currency.
“Any currency’s worth is determined by the goods and services it can purchase; the Naira’s current value is insufficient and is being closely examined,” he stated.
Mustapha Akinkunmi, the nominee from Lagos State, stated in his submission that focusing on the exchange rate rather than inflation is the current course of action, as doing so has yielded little success.
“Targeting the exchange rate itself rather than inflation is a more proactive way for the CBN to address the current Naira volatility issue.”
“The primary cause of the current inflation the nation is experiencing is food inflation, which affects not just the CBN but the entire nation.”
“Aggressive exchange rate targets would help to stabilize the Naira with a necessary increase in productivity, while production and distribution of food commodities across the country would help to reduce food inflation,” he stated.
Aku Odinkemelu, the nominee from Imo State, stated in a similar submission that productivity is the key to stopping the Naira’s instability and food inflation.
Alloysius Uche Ordu, who spent thirty years working at various times for the World Bank and Africa Development Bank, Bamidele Amoo from Kwara State, and Murtala Sagagi from Kano State were the other nominees that the committee interviewed.
Tokunbo Abiru, the Committee Chairman, informed the nominees in his concluding remarks that Nigerians anticipate solutions to the country’s growing inflation rate, the escalating volatility of the Naira in the foreign exchange market, and the general revitalization of the economy following the meeting.
