NewStats: 3,261,835 , 8,175,320 topics. Date: Friday, 30 May 2025 at 06:07 PM 3p3673

$10 won’t buy you lunch in U.S, but $1 will get you meal in Nigeria – Tope Fasua, SSA to Tinubu

https://nairaland.unblockandhide.com/8390744/10-wont-buy-lunch-u.s





I find Dr. Tope Fasua’s remarks on the MicOnPodcast to be a perplexing blend of economic naiveté and selective storytelling that glosses over the stark realities of Nigeria’s economic landscape. His attempt to defend the naira’s value by comparing purchasing power in Nigeria to the United States is a classic case of apples-to-oranges reasoning, riddled with oversimplifications that undermine his credibility as an economic adviser.

First, let’s address his framing of multi-dimensional poverty. Fasua’s explanation—that it’s merely about the distance to schools or hospitals—betrays a startling disconnect from the lived experiences of millions of Nigerians. Multi-dimensional poverty, as defined by global indices like the UNDP’s, encomes not just access to services but also income deprivation, health outcomes, education quality, and living standards. To reduce it to a matter of geographic inconvenience is to trivialize the grinding, systemic challenges that define poverty in Nigeria. It’s as if he’s suggesting that a long walk to a dilapidated school somehow softens the blow of hunger or joblessness—a notion as absurd as it is dismissive.

Then there’s his dollar-to-naira comparison, which he wields like a rhetorical sledgehammer but with little precision. Yes, $1 equals roughly N1,500, and $10 won’t buy a decent lunch in the U.S. But this juxtaposition conveniently ignores the vast disparity in income levels and economic contexts between the two nations. The median annual income in the U.S. hovers around $70,000, while in Nigeria, it’s a fraction of that—closer to $2,000 in nominal . A $10 lunch in the U.S. represents a tiny sliver of disposable income for the average American, whereas N1,500 in Nigeria, though capable of buying “boli and fish” in Gwarinpa, is a significant sum for a population where over 40% live below the poverty line of $1.90 a day. Fasua’s example might resonate as a nostalgic anecdote, but it’s a flimsy shield against the reality of inflation, currency devaluation, and stagnant wages that have eroded purchasing power for most Nigerians.

His casual reference to “eyebrow places” (presumably high-end eateries) and the suggestion that one can simply “know where you are coming from” to eat cheaply further expose the elitism lurking beneath his argument. This is the language of someone detached from the daily scramble of ordinary Nigerians—market traders, civil servants, or rural farmers—who don’t have the luxury of choosing between roadside boli and upscale dining. Food inflation in Nigeria has soared past 40% in recent years, making even basic meals a stretch for many. To imply that N7,500 ($5) stretches far because it buys a modest meal is to ignore the broader context: that same amount might be a day’s wage—or more—for a significant chunk of the workforce.

Fasua’s defense of the naira’s value feels like a desperate sleight of hand, meant to deflect from the Tinubu istration’s struggles with economic policy. The naira’s freefall against the dollar isn’t just a statistic; it’s a daily burden that drives up the cost of imported goods, fuel, and essentials in a country heavily reliant on foreign exchange. Comparing it to the U.S. dollar’s purchasing power abroad is a distraction, not a revelation. A serious economic adviser would grapple with these structural issues—exchange rate volatility, subsidy removals, and productivity gaps—rather than leaning on folksy tales of roadside snacks.

In short, Fasua’s commentary is a masterclass in missing the forest for the trees. It’s not wrong to say $1 goes further in Nigeria than $10 does in the U.S.—it’s just irrelevant to the deeper economic malaise his government must address. I’d score this performance low: it’s a shallow, tone-deaf take masquerading as insight, better suited for a campaign trail than a serious discussion on poverty and currency value. Nigerians deserve sharper analysis, not platitudes wrapped in fish and boli.

FreeThinker from Pluto

The exchange rate, minimum wage and location is what you should consider. You can't compare

Chai

It's a wonder what such a far detached spoilt brat could be advicing T-pain about economic policies.
Nigerians are on a long journey with this highly deceptive government of APC .

Going through his CV, Tope Fasua is not fit to be an economic adviser for the president
He's a commercial banker and a finance expert but not into developmental economics at least from what I can see in his public resume
So one can't blame him. He's a square peg in a round hole
That's why he's had to dive headlong into putting out fires on his boss's behalf instead of coming up with economic strategies to improve the lot of Nigeria as a country especially at the macroeconomic level

These guys will be beating their own records for mumuism

smileyoo:
It's a wonder what such a far detached spoilt brat could be advicing T-pain about economic policies.
Nigerians are on a long journey with this highly deceptive government of APC .

A Different Lens on Economic Strength
Let’s be clear: yes, the naira has weakened considerably, and inflation is a real threat. Nigerians are not living in economic luxury. But the way forward is not to frame our reality solely in the language of exchange rates. That’s like judging a yam’s worth by the size of a potato in another man’s farm.

What Nigeria must do—what Dr. Fasua is advocating—is to start developing an internal sense of value. Not one dependent on the dollar, but one built on local productivity, pricing, and practical standards of living.

The obsession with how our money performs abroad has blinded us to how it can be made to work better at home.

SmartEnergyng:

A Different Lens on Economic Strength
Let’s be clear: yes, the naira has weakened considerably, and inflation is a real threat. Nigerians are not living in economic luxury. But the way forward is not to frame our reality solely in the language of exchange rates. That’s like judging a yam’s worth by the size of a potato in another man’s farm.

What Nigeria must do—what Dr. Fasua is advocating—is to start developing an internal sense of value. Not one dependent on the dollar, but one built on local productivity, pricing, and practical standards of living.

The obsession with how our money performs abroad has blinded us to how it can be made to work better at home.

And what is that practical standard of living?

Agbegbaorogboye:
Going through his CV, Tope Fasua is not fit to be an economic adviser for the president
He's a commercial banker and a finance expert but not into developmental economics at least from what I can see in his public resume
So one can't blame him. He's a square peg in a round hole
That's why he's had to dive headlong into putting out fires on his boss's behalf instead of coming up with economic strategies to improve the lot of Nigeria as a country especially at the macroeconomic level

It’s one thing to critique policy. That’s fair game in any democracy.
But to discredit someone’s competence based on a surface read of their CV? That’s not analysis—it’s academic snobbery dressed in lazy thinking.

First, let’s get the facts straight.

**Tope Fasua is not just a “commercial banker.”/b] He holds degrees in [b]Economics from institutions like the London School of Economics, earned a **PhD in Public Policy & istration**, and is a fellow of several professional bodies. He has written extensively on economic reform, public finance, development economics, and policy architecture. That alone already puts him miles ahead of many “theoretical economists” whose only engagement with Nigeria’s economy is through Twitter threads and textbook quotes.

Second, your argument reveals a misunderstanding of what[b] **an economic adviser to the president**[/b] is supposed to do.
It’s not about drawing equations on a board or quoting Amartya Sen on TV—it’s about **understanding fiscal policy, interpreting data in real time, communicating strategy clearly, and advising on implementation in a complex, imperfect system**. And on those fronts, Fasua has demonstrated more depth and clarity than many of his peers.

Third, dismissing him as someone “putting out fires” for his boss is rich—coming from people whose own fire is often just Twitter rage and echo-chamber retweets, without the burden of actually solving anything.

Being “into developmental economics” isn’t a badge you wear—it’s a mindset applied to real policy issues. And if you bothered to read his work instead of skimming a resume like a lazy recruiter, you’d know he’s done plenty of that.

As we say, “A man who judges a book by the cover often misses the wisdom in the pages.”

So next time, come with a real critique. Not this shallow take that couldn’t an entry-level debate class.

Mindlog:


And what is that practical standard of living?

Ah, I see we’ve reached the[b] “ask-a-question-to-sound-deep”[/b] portion of the program.

But since you asked—practical standard of living [/b]means exactly what it says: [b]what the average Nigerian earns, spends, and survives on—daily. Not what the naira does in London or how it dances on a parallel market chart, but how it feeds a family in Lafia, gets a commuter from Gwagwalada to Wuse, or pays school fees in Enugu.

It means pricing goods, services, and wages based on local realities—not imported expectations. It means a policy mindset that says, “Let us raise our internal productive value,” instead of forever weeping at the feet of forex gods.

In simple ? It’s asking: how much boli, beans, rent, transport, and recharge card can ₦10,000 buy in Nigeria today? That’s the benchmark for the true value of the naira at home.

As we say, “The real worth of water is not in the bottle—it’s in the thirst it quenches.”

So before we obsess over international comparisons, let’s fix what the naira does on our own soil. That’s the conversation.

The Argument Was Not That Nigeria Is Fine—It’s That the Naira Must Not Be Judged Blindly
Let’s be honest: Nigerians are hurting. Inflation is biting, salaries are thin, and the naira has taken a beating.
But Dr. Fasua is not wrong to ask: What is the actual value of the naira in Nigeria? Not what it trades for in New York or Dubai—but what it can buy in Onitsha or Osogbo.

That’s not a distraction—it’s a conversation we must have, especially if we ever hope to build a productive economy that stops worshipping the dollar like an imported idol.

Value Is Not Just in Exchange Rates—It’s in Purchasing Power
Dr. Fasua’s point was not that Nigeria has no poverty, or that the naira is perfectly fine. No. What he was arguing is that when assessing the value of a currency, we must look beyond just what it converts to in dollars.
He was making a case for purchasing power parity (PPP)—a widely accepted economic principle. In plain language: How far does your money go in your own country?

Yes, $10 may barely buy a sandwich in New York, but N10,000 in Abuja can still get you a decent meal, a ride, airtime, and change. That’s not to say life is cheap—it’s to say that value is contextual. Money works differently in different economies.

But instead of engaging that conversation, the critics missed the forest and set fire to the leaves.

SmartEnergyng:



Ah, I see we’ve reached the[b] “ask-a-question-to-sound-deep”[/b] portion of the program.

But since you asked—practical standard of living [/b]means exactly what it says: [b]what the average Nigerian earns, spends, and survives on—daily. Not what the naira does in London or how it dances on a parallel market chart, but how it feeds a family in Lafia, gets a commuter from Gwagwalada to Wuse, or pays school fees in Enugu.

It means pricing goods, services, and wages based on local realities—not imported expectations. It means a policy mindset that says, “Let us raise our internal productive value,” instead of forever weeping at the feet of forex gods.

In simple ? It’s asking: how much boli, beans, rent, transport, and recharge card can ₦10,000 buy in Nigeria today? That’s the benchmark for the true value of the naira at home.

As we say, “The real worth of water is not in the bottle—it’s in the thirst it quenches.”

So before we obsess over international comparisons, let’s fix what the naira does on our own soil. That’s the conversation.

N1,000 today can not buy me a filling lunch, nor can it cover my transport fare to work and back, shuttling between Fagba and Lekki, it can not power my I better my neighbour generator.....what real thirst does N1,000 quench.

By the way that N1,000 can buy me a loaf of bread of less than 50 pence.

It is mind-boggling how the apc government and its ers have thrown all sense into the gutter.

The reality of the terrible state of things is staring all Nigerians in the face, yet, they chose to play vile politics.

To publish a paper in a fairly reputable academic journal cost about $70. That is over N105,000.00...

Let's put this into perspective using a senior lecturer.

The average salary of a senior lecturer in the US is about $5,500 p/m. So, at $70, the publication fee is just 1.2% of his monthly salary. Such a lecturer can afford to pay for almost 80 publications if it was possible to use the whole salary for publications.

In Nigeria, a senior lecturer earns about N350,000.00 or let's say $230 p/m. At publication fee of $70, the Nigerian lecturer can only afford to pay for 3 papers... that $70 is over 30% of the Nigerian lecturer's salary.

In 2014, a senior lecturer earning N200,000 or $920 p/m, could afford to pay for 13 publications in a month.

Look at the difference... and some government clowns and thier ers will be yapping trash about how it is better in Nigeria.

Bat must go in 2027. That should be the goal of every sane Nigerian.

Mindlog:


N1,000 today can not buy me a filling lunch, nor can it cover my transport fare to work and back, shuttling between Fagba and Lekki, it can not power my I better my neighbour generator.....what real thirst does N1,000 quench.

By the way that N1,000 can buy me a loaf of bread of less than 50 pence.

Ah, and there it is—the *Fagba-to-Lekki standard* being used to measure the naira’s national value.

Let’s be honest: **N1,000 won’t take you from one end of Lagos to the other, feed you like a king, or fuel your generator for a week**. But here’s the thing—it was never meant to.

When we talk about the naira’s[b] **practical value**[/b], we’re not benchmarking it against **commutes between high-end districts or boutique bread from a Victoria Island bakery**. We’re talking about It’s about how that same ₦1,000 can still buy you a decent "akara burger"—Agege bread with hot akara—or a plate of grilled yam with pepper sauce at the street corner in Osogbo, Owerri, or Makurdi.
No, it won’t buy you lunch at a highbrow spot in Lekki, but it will fill the stomach of a roadside trader, a student, or a mechanic trying to push through the day.

That’s the point Dr. Fasua is making: let’s stop obsessing over how the naira performs abroad or in luxury bubbles, and start asking real questions—like how to reduce the cost of beans and oil, so akara becomes cheaper.
Fix local production, stabilize the transport of farm produce, reduce energy costs, and suddenly your ₦1,000 buys more.

That’s how you build real value—by working on what people eat, use, and pay for daily. Not by chasing the dollar like it’s the only god of economics.

As we say, “It’s not the market price that feeds the family—it’s the price of what’s cooking at home.”


So rather than reduce the argument to *“what ₦1,000 can’t do for me in my Lagos bubble”*, let’s step back and ask: *How do we build an economy where ₦1,000 means more across the board—not just for the elite corridor between Fagba and Lekki?*

Now that’s a conversation worth having.

ivandragon:
It is mind-boggling how the apc government and its ers have thrown all sense into the gutter.

The reality of the terrible state of things is staring all Nigerians in the face, yet, they chose to play vile politics.

To publish a paper in a fairly reputable academic journal cost about $70. That is over N105,000.00...

Let's put this into perspective using a senior lecturer.

The average salary of a senior lecturer in the US is about $5,500 p/m. So, at $70, the publication fee is just 1.2% of his monthly salary. Such a lecturer can afford to pay for almost 80 publications if it was possible to use the whole salary for publications.

In Nigeria, a senior lecturer earns about N350,000.00 or let's say $230 p/m. At publication fee of $70, the Nigerian lecturer can only afford to pay for 3 papers...

In 2014, a senior lecturer earning N200,000 or $920 p/m, could afford to pay for 13 publications in a month.

Look at the difference... and some government clowns and thier ers will be yapping trash about how it is better in Nigeria.

Bat must go in 2027. That should be the goal of every sane Nigerian.

Ah, the all-too-familiar cocktail of emotion, half-truths, and imported comparisons—shaken, not stirred.

Let’s begin with the academic publication analogy. Yes, publishing a paper in a decent journal costs about $70, and yes, a Nigerian lecturer earning ₦350,000 may find that steep. But comparing that to a U.S. lecturer earning $5,500 is like **judging a Keke fare in Aba using Uber rates in California.** It misses the context completely.

Let’s not forget that **a U.S. lecturer pays over $1,500 in rent**, hundreds in health insurance, utilities, transport, and student loans. That $5,500 shrinks real quick. Meanwhile, the Nigerian lecturer—though underpaid—doesn’t spend $800 on monthly insurance or $400 filling a gas tank. Again, **context matters.**

If your only measure of economic well-being is *“how many articles I can publish abroad,”* then what you're really asking is **why Nigeria isn’t America**, not why Nigerians are suffering. And that’s a lazy argument disguised as logic.

Now to the 2014 nostalgia: "a lecturer earned $920/month back then!" Yes—but at what cost? That was the era of[b] **subsidized illusions**,[/b] where oil sold at $110, yet we had power outages, unpaid salaries, and disappearing budgets. The dollar was cheap—but so was **fiscal discipline.**

Today’s realities are tough, no doubt. But this government didn’t break Nigeria—it inherited a system that was already eating its own tail. The painful reforms—subsidy removal, FX unification, push for local production—are not **anti-people**, they’re **anti-pretense**. You can only “manage” your way out of trouble for so long before the bill arrives.

You say “APC has thrown sense into the gutter”? No sir—**what’s really in the gutter is our obsession with dollar benchmarks.** [/b]We can’t keep living in naira and thinking in dollars. It’s like [b]**pricing okra soup using sushi standards.**

Instead of dreaming of 2014 exchange rates, let’s ask:
- Why are we not producing our own academic journals?
- Why must a Nigerian lecturer validate his intellect through a foreign platform that charges in dollars?
- Why can’t we peg costs to local realities and **build value internally**?

These are the questions serious people ask. Not just “Bat must go.”
That’s not strategy—that’s **emotional karaoke**. What comes after he goes? Do we reset the exchange rate by protest? Or fix the economy with bitterness?

*As we say, “You don’t throw away your canoe because the river got deeper—you strengthen the paddle.”*

This is the time for[b] **institutional maturity**[/b], not social media tantrums. Nigeria won’t be fixed by rage—it will be fixed by reform, realism, and responsibility. If you truly care about lecturers, start asking how to make the naira work at home—not how to stretch it abroad.

SmartEnergyng:



Ah, and there it is—the *Fagba-to-Lekki standard* being used to measure the naira’s national value.

Let’s be honest: **N1,000 won’t take you from one end of Lagos to the other, feed you like a king, or fuel your generator for a week**. But here’s the thing—it was never meant to.

When we talk about the naira’s[b] **practical value**[/b], we’re not benchmarking it against **commutes between high-end districts or boutique bread from a Victoria Island bakery**. We’re talking about It’s about how that same ₦1,000 can still buy you a decent "akara burger"—Agege bread with hot akara—or a plate of grilled yam with pepper sauce at the street corner in Osogbo, Owerri, or Makurdi.
No, it won’t buy you lunch at a highbrow spot in Lekki, but it will fill the stomach of a roadside trader, a student, or a mechanic trying to push through the day.

That’s the point Dr. Fasua is making: let’s stop obsessing over how the naira performs abroad or in luxury bubbles, and start asking real questions—like how to reduce the cost of beans and oil, so akara becomes cheaper.
Fix local production, stabilize the transport of farm produce, reduce energy costs, and suddenly your ₦1,000 buys more.

That’s how you build real value—by working on what people eat, use, and pay for daily. Not by chasing the dollar like it’s the only god of economics.

As we say, “It’s not the market price that feeds the family—it’s the price of what’s cooking at home.”


So rather than reduce the argument to *“what ₦1,000 can’t do for me in my Lagos bubble”*, let’s step back and ask: *How do we build an economy where ₦1,000 means more across the board—not just for the elite corridor between Fagba and Lekki?*

Now that’s a conversation worth having.

There is nothing elite abou the reality of that worker who have to commute from Fagba to Lekki for work, he/she is also living in Nigeria?

Lagos bubble?...What is about Lagos, that is a bubble?

By the way, I don't live in Lagos.

Mindlog:


There is nothing elite abou the reality of that worker who have to commute from Fagba to Lekki for work, he/she is also living in Nigeria?

Lagos bubble?...What is about Lagos, that is a bubble?

By the way, I don't live in Lagos.

Of course, there’s nothing elite about the hustle of a worker commuting from Fagba to Lekki—it’s a real struggle, and that worker is very much living in Nigeria. Deeply so. But the point remains: Nigeria is not only Lagos, and Lagos is not even fully Lagos, if we’re being honest.

When I said “Lagos bubble,” I wasn’t denying hardship—I was referring to the cost structure, lifestyle expectations, and inflated perception that often comes with using Lagos realities as the national measuring stick. You know, where Agege bread suddenly becomes ₦1,200 because it’s sliced in Ikoyi.

Also, thanks for the geography update—I’ll inform the council of assumptions that you don’t live in Lagos. 😄
But wherever you are, the principle stands: the cost of living in one part of Nigeria shouldn't define the entire narrative about the naira’s value.

SmartEnergyng:



Ah, the all-too-familiar cocktail of emotion, half-truths, and imported comparisons—shaken, not stirred.

Let’s begin with the academic publication analogy. Yes, publishing a paper in a decent journal costs about $70, and yes, a Nigerian lecturer earning ₦350,000 may find that steep. But comparing that to a U.S. lecturer earning $5,500 is like **judging a Keke fare in Aba using Uber rates in California.** It misses the context completely.

Let’s not forget that **a U.S. lecturer pays over $1,500 in rent**, hundreds in health insurance, utilities, transport, and student loans. That $5,500 shrinks real quick. Meanwhile, the Nigerian lecturer—though underpaid—doesn’t spend $800 on monthly insurance or $400 filling a gas tank. Again, **context matters.**

If your only measure of economic well-being is *“how many articles I can publish abroad,”* then what you're really asking is **why Nigeria isn’t America**, not why Nigerians are suffering. And that’s a lazy argument disguised as logic.

Now to the 2014 nostalgia: "a lecturer earned $920/month back then!" Yes—but at what cost? That was the era of[b] **subsidized illusions**,[/b] where oil sold at $110, yet we had power outages, unpaid salaries, and disappearing budgets. The dollar was cheap—but so was **fiscal discipline.**

Today’s realities are tough, no doubt. But this government didn’t break Nigeria—it inherited a system that was already eating its own tail. The painful reforms—subsidy removal, FX unification, push for local production—are not **anti-people**, they’re **anti-pretense**. You can only “manage” your way out of trouble for so long before the bill arrives.

You say “APC has thrown sense into the gutter”? No sir—**what’s really in the gutter is our obsession with dollar benchmarks.** [/b]We can’t keep living in naira and thinking in dollars. It’s like [b]**pricing okra soup using sushi standards.**

Instead of dreaming of 2014 exchange rates, let’s ask:
- Why are we not producing our own academic journals?
- Why must a Nigerian lecturer validate his intellect through a foreign platform that charges in dollars?
- Why can’t we peg costs to local realities and **build value internally**?

These are the questions serious people ask. Not just “Bat must go.”
That’s not strategy—that’s **emotional karaoke**. What comes after he goes? Do we reset the exchange rate by protest? Or fix the economy with bitterness?

*As we say, “You don’t throw away your canoe because the river got deeper—you strengthen the paddle.”*

This is the time for[b] **institutional maturity**[/b], not social media tantrums. Nigeria won’t be fixed by rage—it will be fixed by reform, realism, and responsibility. If you truly care about lecturers, start asking how to make the naira work at home—not how to stretch it abroad.

Your submission is a mix of wilful ignorance, purposeful deceit and a desire to justify incompetence. Your attempts to sound enlightened only exposes the crass underbelly of your fickle understanding.

What is the base point of your comparison? All your comments are hanging in the air, devoid of any foundation to your points. Do you know the government has policies that mandate lecturers in Nigerian institutions to have a certain amount of international publications?

The incompetence of bat is felt in all sectors of the economy, I only used the academics as an example, but your desire to defend incompetence makes you blind to reason.

You talk about 2014 being about subsidzed illusions, but those in power today keep subsidising thier own expenses and in fact, have increased spending on themselves & cost of governance. How come the illusion has not been removed from them? Or is it only the masses that should suffer from the removal of illusions as you so caually put it?

How come those in power today did not know it was an illusions then when they said they could do better? When they said N217 to $1 was too high? Did you know it was an illusion then?

SmartEnergyng:

A Different Lens on Economic Strength
Let’s be clear: yes, the naira has weakened considerably, and inflation is a real threat. Nigerians are not living in economic luxury. But the way forward is not to frame our reality solely in the language of exchange rates. That’s like judging a yam’s worth by the size of a potato in another man’s farm.

What Nigeria must do—what Dr. Fasua is advocating—is to start developing an internal sense of value. Not one dependent on the dollar, but one built on local productivity, pricing, and practical standards of living.

The obsession with how our money performs abroad has blinded us to how it can be made to work better at home.

Why are you guys like this? Speaking from both sides of your mouth. Dr. Fasua was wrong and his comparison was outright false. That is the point of this thread.

If you want to discuss about what is "advocating" that is an entirely different conversation.

I wanted to insult you but I am not sure if you are the real Dr. Fasua Incase you are you be olodo now we know how you got your position.

ivandragon:


Your submission is a mix of wilful ignorance, purposeful deceit and a desire to justify incompetence. Your attempts to sound enlightened only exposes the crass underbelly of your fickle understanding.

What is the base point of your comparison? All your comments are hanging in the air, devoid of any foundation to your points. Do you know the government has policies that mandate lecturers in Nigerian institutions to have a certain amount of international publications?

The incompetence of bat is felt in all sectors of the economy, I only used the academics as an example, but your desire to defend incompetence makes you blind to reason.

You talk about 2014 being about subsidzed illusions, but those in power today keep subsidising thier own expenses and in fact, have increased spending on themselves & cost of governance. How come the illusion has not been removed from them? Or is it only the masses that should suffer from the removal of illusions as you so caually put it?

How come those in power today did not know it was an illusions then when they said they could do better? When they said N217 to $1 was too high? Did you know it was an illusion then?

Ah, we’ve arrived at the part of the debate where[b] **volume replaces clarity**[/b], and[b] **insults substitute for insight**.[/b]

You say my submission is “a mix of wilful ignorance and deceit”? Interesting. But where exactly is the deceit? Is it in quoting **purchasing power parity**, an internationally recognized economic concept? Or in saying that **₦1,000 means different things in different localities** across Nigeria?

You say my points “hang in the air”? Then tell me—what, specifically, did I say that isn’t grounded in the economic reality of a country trying to **recalibrate from years of structural decay**? Or would you rather I hang them on your personal outrage, since that seems to be the only structure you’ve built?

Now let’s talk substance—since you claimed to bring some.

---

1. **“Lecturers are mandated to publish internationally!”**

Yes, and that’s precisely the point:
If we *mandate* international publications while **ignoring the dollar-based cost attached to them**, shouldn’t our anger be directed at the[b] **policy**[/b], not the naira?
So tell me—should the economy bend to fit a broken academic policy, or should the policy be reformed to match **economic reality**?

Shouldn’t we be asking: *Why are we benchmarking academic output in dollars in a naira-based system?*

---

2. **“BAT’s incompetence is felt everywhere.”**

A sweeping statement. But how do we measure incompetence?

Is it by removing decades-old fuel subsidies that were swallowing ₦4 trillion annually?
Is it by allowing the naira to find its real value in the market, rather than propping it up with borrowed dollars?

You call it incompetence. Others call it **correction of years of convenient silence**.

Let me ask: *What would you have had them do—pretend a $1 to ₦450 rate was still possible when Nigeria was bleeding foreign reserves like a busted pipe?*

---

3. **“They are subsidising themselves while removing subsidies for the poor!”**

Ah, the classic—but again, let’s be specific.

Yes, the cost of governance is too high. I agree. But are you saying this government **invented** [/b]that problem?
Did you protest in 2012 when the same cost structure existed under a different party? Or is your outrage [b]**freshly activated** by the person in office?

If hypocrisy had a subsidy, it would be fully funded.

And if you genuinely care about cost of governance, then let’s debate[b] **budget items, MDAs, and legislative reform**[/b]—not recycle Twitter slogans.

---

4. **“Why didn’t they know it was an illusion in 2014?”**

Let’s flip that back to you: *Did you know?*
Did you speak up when crude oil was over $100 and we were **still borrowing** to fund capital projects?

Did you know that the exchange rate of ₦217 to $1 in 2014 was sustained by **propping the naira with reserves we weren’t replenishing**?

Or were you among those who called anyone who raised a red flag “anti-progress”?

It’s easy to see clearly in hindsight—but leadership requires you to act when it’s **unpopular but necessary**.

You’ve said a lot—ion, no doubt. But ion without precision is **just noise with confidence**.

You haven’t addressed a single **economic principle** I raised. You haven’t contested the reality of purchasing power. You haven’t proposed a viable alternative—just more blame and vibes.

So let me leave you with this:
*“The man who blames the lamp for the darkness but refuses to strike a match will always live in shadows.”*

If you have a better idea, bring it. But if all you have is insult and generalizations, then I’m afraid this conversation is above your rhetorical pay grade.

dettolgel:


Why are you guys like this? Speaking from both sides of your mouth. Dr. Fasua was wrong and his comparison was outright false. That is the point of this thread.

If you want to discuss about what is "advocating" that is an entirely different conversation.

I wanted to insult you but I am not sure if you are the real Dr. Fasua Incase you are you be olodo now we know how you got your position.

Ah, now we’ve arrived at the *“I was going to insult you, but let me casually throw one anyway”* section of the debate.

Let’s clear a few things up—no, I’m **not Dr. Fasua**, though I’ve read enough of his work to confidently say[b] **he needs no one’s defense—but deserves informed engagement, not internet chest-beating.**[/b]

As for your claim that I’m “speaking from both sides of the mouth”—that’s rich, coming from someone who can’t even decide whether to argue, attack, or audition for a street corner insult contest. You say the comparison is false—but you didn’t bother to explain *why*. You just screamed “wrong” and expected that to be enough. That’s not a counterpoint. **That’s lazy commentary with WiFi.**

And calling me *“olodo”*? Please. If disagreement threatens you that deeply, maybe it’s your intellectual stamina that needs rest—not my opinion.

Let’s make this simple: if you want a debate, bring **substance**.
If you want attention, find a mirror.
And if you want to insult someone, at least do it with **grammar, logic, and a little finesse**. Not this spray-and-pray method you’ve employed here.

*As we say, “The lizard that nods doesn’t mean it understands the proverb—it may just be soaking sun.”*
Try comprehension next time. It works better than pre-loaded tantrums.

SmartEnergyng:



Ah, we’ve arrived at the part of the debate where[b] **volume replaces clarity**[/b], and[b] **insults substitute for insight**.[/b]

You say my submission is “a mix of wilful ignorance and deceit”? Interesting. But where exactly is the deceit? Is it in quoting **purchasing power parity**, an internationally recognized economic concept? Or in saying that **₦1,000 means different things in different localities** across Nigeria?

You say my points “hang in the air”? Then tell me—what, specifically, did I say that isn’t grounded in the economic reality of a country trying to **recalibrate from years of structural decay**? Or would you rather I hang them on your personal outrage, since that seems to be the only structure you’ve built?

Now let’s talk substance—since you claimed to bring some.

---

1. **“Lecturers are mandated to publish internationally!”**

Yes, and that’s precisely the point:
If we *mandate* international publications while **ignoring the dollar-based cost attached to them**, shouldn’t our anger be directed at the[b] **policy**[/b], not the naira?
So tell me—should the economy bend to fit a broken academic policy, or should the policy be reformed to match **economic reality**?

Shouldn’t we be asking: *Why are we benchmarking academic output in dollars in a naira-based system?*

---

2. **“BAT’s incompetence is felt everywhere.”**

A sweeping statement. But how do we measure incompetence?

Is it by removing decades-old fuel subsidies that were swallowing ₦4 trillion annually?
Is it by allowing the naira to find its real value in the market, rather than propping it up with borrowed dollars?

You call it incompetence. Others call it **correction of years of convenient silence**.

Let me ask: *What would you have had them do—pretend a $1 to ₦450 rate was still possible when Nigeria was bleeding foreign reserves like a busted pipe?*

---

3. **“They are subsidising themselves while removing subsidies for the poor!”**

Ah, the classic—but again, let’s be specific.

Yes, the cost of governance is too high. I agree. But are you saying this government **invented** [/b]that problem?
Did you protest in 2012 when the same cost structure existed under a different party? Or is your outrage [b]**freshly activated** by the person in office?

If hypocrisy had a subsidy, it would be fully funded.

And if you genuinely care about cost of governance, then let’s debate[b] **budget items, MDAs, and legislative reform**[/b]—not recycle Twitter slogans.

---

4. **“Why didn’t they know it was an illusion in 2014?”**

Let’s flip that back to you: *Did you know?*
Did you speak up when crude oil was over $100 and we were **still borrowing** to fund capital projects?

Did you know that the exchange rate of ₦217 to $1 in 2014 was sustained by **propping the naira with reserves we weren’t replenishing**?

Or were you among those who called anyone who raised a red flag “anti-progress”?

It’s easy to see clearly in hindsight—but leadership requires you to act when it’s **unpopular but necessary**.

You’ve said a lot—ion, no doubt. But ion without precision is **just noise with confidence**.

You haven’t addressed a single **economic principle** I raised. You haven’t contested the reality of purchasing power. You haven’t proposed a viable alternative—just more blame and vibes.

So let me leave you with this:
*“The man who blames the lamp for the darkness but refuses to strike a match will always live in shadows.”*

If you have a better idea, bring it. But if all you have is insult and generalizations, then I’m afraid this conversation is above your rhetorical pay grade.

You have said nothing worthwhile.

Those that claim to have the solution and are in power today, what have they done? Are Nigerians better off today then they were 10 years ago?

Like I said, your arguments hang in the air, no foundation, no substance. Just a lame attempt at justifying why those failing in governance today should be excused.

I speak to real world issues. Facts and figures, not conjectures and assumptions as you are steeped in. And since you chose to float around, then, you have no foundation to base your deceptive principles.

What economic principles have you raised? That subsidy must go? What is the usefulness of an economic principle if it only serves to further impoverish the masses?

What is the usefulness of an economic principle if those who propose it, develop it and implement it do not follow it?

You speak about looking inwards to strengthen the economy, yet the president goes on medical junkets abroad every 6 months and goes to to 'reflect' on failed policies.

You are filled with polluted hot air... and your lame attempts at subtle insults will not be ignored.

SmartEnergyng:

A Different Lens on Economic Strength
Let’s be clear: yes, the naira has weakened considerably, and inflation is a real threat. Nigerians are not living in economic luxury. But the way forward is not to frame our reality solely in the language of exchange rates. That’s like judging a yam’s worth by the size of a potato in another man’s farm.

What Nigeria must do—what Dr. Fasua is advocating—is to start developing an internal sense of value. Not one dependent on the dollar, but one built on local productivity, pricing, and practical standards of living.

The obsession with how our money performs abroad has blinded us to how it can be made to work better at home.

I agree with you on the part of developing internal value but first let's cut down on government spending and reinvest it in sectors such as Healthcare, Agriculture, Industry etc. Also increase of minimum wage which can sustain the needs of the common man. 70,000 naira cannot sustain one at all. Even the 77k being paid to youth corper is less than the value of 33k paid 5 years ago. It's sad that a doctor in Sierra lonne earns more than a Nigerian doctor.

Chibuezem:

I agree with you on the part of developing internal value but first let's cut down on government spending and reinvest it in sectors such as Healthcare, Agriculture, Industry etc. Also increase of minimum wage which can sustain the needs of the common man. 70,000 naira cannot sustain one at all. Even the 77k being paid to youth corper is less than the value of 33k paid 5 years ago. It's sad that a doctor in Sierra lonne earns more than a Nigerian doctor.

Thank you sincerely for your[b]**civil tone and willingness to engage thoughtfully**[/b]—this is exactly the kind of exchange we need more of in our national conversations.

You're absolutely right about the need to **cut down on the cost of governance**. [/b]I’ve made this same point repeatedly—even in my response to others who pretend that defending economic reform means excusing wasteful spending. [b]**It doesn’t.**
Reform must be *wholesome*, not selective. If the people are tightening their belts, then government must be seen tightening its agbada too.

On[b]**reinvesting in critical sectors**—yes, again, spot on. Healthcare, agriculture, and industry are the engines of long-term national value. Without real investment in **production and productivity**, even the most carefully managed naira will remain under pressure.

Now, on the issue of **minimum wage and corpers’ allowance**—you make a valid observation about purchasing power erosion. ₦70,000 today does not carry the same weight ₦33,000 had years ago. But here’s the delicate balance: **raising wages without fixing productivity, inflation, and revenue sources just prints more money and fuels inflation further.**

What we need is[b] **a wage increase tied to value creation**[/b]—both in the private and public sector. Otherwise, we’ll just end up giving people more naira that buys them even less.

As for the **Sierra Leone comparison**, I’d caution that cross-country salary comparisons can be tricky. Yes, some professionals may earn more on paper, but we must factor in taxation, cost of living, inflation, and currency stability. Still, your sentiment is valid—it’s frustrating that **Nigerian professionals aren’t rewarded enough**, considering their talent and workload.

But we fix that not just by paying more, but by **rebuilding the economy that pays them**—through better tax policy, export earnings, and service-sector growth.

In short, we’re not far apart. We all want a Nigeria that works—for everyone.
I just believe **we have to build internal value before external rewards can be sustained.**

Let’s keep talking—and thank you again for keeping the tone respectful and the ideas flowing.

ivandragon:


You have said nothing worthwhile.

Those that claim to have the solution and are in power today, what have they done? Are Nigerians better off today then they were 10 years ago?

Like I said, your arguments hang in the air, no foundation, no substance. Just a lame attempt at justifying why those failing in governance today should be excused.

I speak to real world issues. Facts and figures, not conjectures and assumptions as you are steeped in. And since you chose to float around, then, you have no foundation to base your deceptive principles.

What economic principles have you raised? That subsidy must go? What is the usefulness of an economic principle if it only serves to further impoverish the masses?

What is the usefulness of an economic principle if those who propose it, develop it and implement it do not follow it?

You speak about looking inwards to strengthen the economy, yet the president goes on medical junkets abroad every 6 months and goes to to 'reflect' on failed policies.

You are filled with polluted hot air... and your lame attempts at subtle insults will not be ignored.

Ah, finally—the “I speak facts, you speak hot air” declaration. A classic. But let’s engage it—properly.

First, let’s separate **emotion from economics.** You say I’ve offered no substance. But perhaps the real issue is **you don’t agree with the substance offered**, and that’s fine. Disagreement is not a crime, but refusing to acknowledge a different lens isn’t intellectual—it’s inflexibility wrapped in volume.

Now, to your questions:

**“Are Nigerians better off today than they were 10 years ago?”**

No, many are not.
But let’s not pretend the rot began yesterday.
The current hardship is the **interest we are paying on years of economic denial**, postponed reform, and reckless consumption masked as prosperity.

**Is it painful? Yes.
Is it necessary? Also yes.**

When a doctor tells a patient that the sugar habit must stop and prescribes insulin, the patient may not feel better the next morning—but the problem wasn’t the insulin. It was **years of unaddressed illness.**

**“What economic principles have you raised?”**

You ask this while listing them in your own rebuttal:
- I said subsidy must go: You disagreed.
- I said foreign exchange unification was long overdue: You ignored that.
- I said value must be built internally, not just compared externally: You mocked that.

But here’s the principle you missed: **Short-term pain is the down payment for long-term sustainability.**
You can’t borrow your way to growth forever. You can’t fix production by printing money. And you can’t build real value while clinging to artificial exchange rates and bloated subsidies.

**“What’s the use of an economic principle if it impoverishes the people?”**

Simple: **Economic principles are not miracles—they’re tools.**
If applied poorly or unevenly, yes, they can hurt. But if you judge the tool by the early discomfort and not the final outcome, then we might as well cancel surgery because anesthesia wears off too soon.

The real question is: **Would the masses be better off if these same reforms were never done?** Would we prefer another decade of "fake comfort" with ₦450/$1 at the surface, while billions were spent propping it up with no growth to show?

**“You speak of looking inward, but the president goes abroad…”**

Now here, we agree **partially**. The symbolism of public officials seeking care or “reflection” abroad is damaging. Optics matter.

But let’s not conflate a political misstep with **economic direction**.
Reforms must be judged by their **structure and necessity**, not the travel logs of their promoters.
That the president still seeks treatment abroad doesn’t make subsidy removal wrong—it makes **leadership example a separate issue.**
Let’s argue apples, not pineapples.

**Final Word:**

You say I float with no foundation, yet everything I’ve said is grounded in **macro-economic logic and policy evolution**. You say you speak “real-world,” but your real world seems stuck in a place where **only outrage counts as intelligence**.

You say I offer "subtle insults"—but if reading a clean counterpoint feels like an insult, **then maybe the issue isn’t tone, but sensitivity**.

*As we say, “A house that shakes at every breeze should check the quality of its walls, not blame the wind.”*

Charlatans masquerading as intellectuals...

SmartEnergyng:



It’s one thing to critique policy. That’s fair game in any democracy.
But to discredit someone’s competence based on a surface read of their CV? That’s not analysis—it’s academic snobbery dressed in lazy thinking.

First, let’s get the facts straight.

**Tope Fasua is not just a “commercial banker.”/b] He holds degrees in [b]Economics from institutions like the London School of Economics, earned a **PhD in Public Policy & istration**, and is a fellow of several professional bodies. He has written extensively on economic reform, public finance, development economics, and policy architecture. That alone already puts him miles ahead of many “theoretical economists” whose only engagement with Nigeria’s economy is through Twitter threads and textbook quotes.

Second, your argument reveals a misunderstanding of what[b] **an economic adviser to the president**[/b] is supposed to do.
It’s not about drawing equations on a board or quoting Amartya Sen on TV—it’s about **understanding fiscal policy, interpreting data in real time, communicating strategy clearly, and advising on implementation in a complex, imperfect system**. And on those fronts, Fasua has demonstrated more depth and clarity than many of his peers.

Third, dismissing him as someone “putting out fires” for his boss is rich—coming from people whose own fire is often just Twitter rage and echo-chamber retweets, without the burden of actually solving anything.

Being “into developmental economics” isn’t a badge you wear—it’s a mindset applied to real policy issues. And if you bothered to read his work instead of skimming a resume like a lazy recruiter, you’d know he’s done plenty of that.

As we say, “A man who judges a book by the cover often misses the wisdom in the pages.”

So next time, come with a real critique. Not this shallow take that couldn’t an entry-level debate class.

First of all, you lied. He does not have a degree from LSE. Yet you claimed it as a fact.

The fact that you lied about his academic credentials shows that you're worse than I am in of your knowledge of his academic competence.

You claim he's ahead of many theoretical economists and what you have to back that claim up is that he's written extensively. Pray tell what is the difference between writing and theoretical articles?

Obviously you don't even understand what it means to be a developmental economist. You don't become a developmental economist by just going to TV stations to gaslight the public on how much can fetch you a lunch. Developmental economics is about developing economies by maximising their outputs.

I've listened to him so many times since he took the position and I've yet to hear any cogent response from him about strategy to rejig our comatose macroeconomic indicators. Instead, he's always talking about individual economics like lunch and making hay.

You did not do justice with your watery defence. You actually ended up looking worse. You lied to start with. And then your kept contradicting yourself. Try to do better

ivandragon:
Charlatans masquerading as intellectuals...

Ah yes—*“charlatans masquerading as intellectuals”*—the preferred one-liner of those who bring nothing to the table but cutlery.

Please, can we graduate from[b] **Twitter proverbs**[/b] to actual conversation?

I’m not here auditioning for a PhD gown. I’m not an intellectual—I’m **just a bloody Nigerian engineer**, running a Petrol to CNG conversion workshop, paying salaries, fixing real problems, and thinking through this country’s wahala like any citizen with a functioning conscience.

If you disagree, say[b] *something*[/b]. Not soundbites. Not slander. **Substance.**

Otherwise, let’s not confuse *mic drops* with *brain drops*.

*As we say, “When your basket is empty, you shouldn’t complain that others are carrying water.”*

SmartEnergyng:



It’s one thing to critique policy. That’s fair game in any democracy.
But to discredit someone’s competence based on a surface read of their CV? That’s not analysis—it’s academic snobbery dressed in lazy thinking.

First, let’s get the facts straight.

**Tope Fasua is not just a “commercial banker.”/b] He holds degrees in [b]Economics from institutions like the London School of Economics, earned a **PhD in Public Policy & istration**, and is a fellow of several professional bodies. He has written extensively on economic reform, public finance, development economics, and policy architecture. That alone already puts him miles ahead of many “theoretical economists” whose only engagement with Nigeria’s economy is through Twitter threads and textbook quotes.

Second, your argument reveals a misunderstanding of what[b] **an economic adviser to the president**[/b] is supposed to do.
It’s not about drawing equations on a board or quoting Amartya Sen on TV—it’s about **understanding fiscal policy, interpreting data in real time, communicating strategy clearly, and advising on implementation in a complex, imperfect system**. And on those fronts, Fasua has demonstrated more depth and clarity than many of his peers.

Third, dismissing him as someone “putting out fires” for his boss is rich—coming from people whose own fire is often just Twitter rage and echo-chamber retweets, without the burden of actually solving anything.

Being “into developmental economics” isn’t a badge you wear—it’s a mindset applied to real policy issues. And if you bothered to read his work instead of skimming a resume like a lazy recruiter, you’d know he’s done plenty of that.

As we say, “A man who judges a book by the cover often misses the wisdom in the pages.”

So next time, come with a real critique. Not this shallow take that couldn’t an entry-level debate class.

I dont know you but i am more disappointed in you, @least we know why Fisua is feigning "Stupidity"

Anybody can have degree, phd and whatever But true intelligences lies in " Real impact" ... fasua might have written more on economic reforms But please highlight [b]One real impact [/b]traceable to his works

Forget academic resume, No sensible person will compare the lowest unit to highest unit, $1 is the lowest currency of Us

America lowest currency cant buy meal anywhere in Us, how about Nigeria lowest currency lets use #10, can it buy any meal .... thats the logical scale to juxtapose

Seems you know Tope well, highlight Tope's works relatable to "tangible impacts" so far

Agbegbaorogboye:

First of all, you lied. He does not have a degree from LSE. Yet you claimed it as a fact.

The fact that you lied about his academic credentials shows that you're worse than I am in of your knowledge of his academic competence.

You claim he's ahead of many theoretical economists and what you have to back that claim up is that he's written extensively. Pray tell what is the difference between writing and theoretical articles?

Obviously you don't even understand what it means to be a developmental economist. You don't become a developmental economist by just going to TV stations to gaslight the public on how much can fetch you a lunch. Developmental economics is about developing economies by maximising their outputs.

I've listened to him so many times since he took the position and I've yet to hear any cogent response from him about strategy to rejig our comatose macroeconomic indicators. Instead, he's always talking about individual economics like lunch and making hay.

You did not do justice with your watery defence. You actually ended up looking worse. You lied to start with. And then your kept contradicting yourself. Try to do better

-

Ah, welcome back. I see we’ve now moved from disagreement to the **hall monitor phase**, where the argument isn’t about substance anymore, but whether I got a line item on someone’s CV “technically correct.”

Let’s go through your points one by one—since you seem to enjoy precision, let’s serve it with **cutlery and clarity**.

---

📌 **Point 1: “You lied. He does not have a degree from LSE.”**

I accept the correction on that detail, and I’ll own the error like grownups do.
But if your entire intellectual crusade hangs on whether **one degree on a CV** was misattributed in casual reference, while ignoring **the larger point about competence, experience, and real-world economic commentary**, then you’re not here for substance—you’re just here to score points off typos.

And for the record:
Dr. Fasua **holds a PhD in Public Policy and istration**, is a **fellow of multiple finance and economics institutes**, and has led an economic policy think tank for years. **That’s not gaslight—that’s résumé.**

📌 **Point 2: “Writing doesn’t make you a developmental economist.”**

You’re right. But neither does[b] **commenting on Twitter threads**.[/b]

No one said writing = expertise. The point was that **he has been active in public discourse, publishing, policy advisory, and running a real business in Nigeria’s tough economy**. That is more than most armchair analysts who live on imported graphs and academic models that don’t survive Nigerian humidity.

Developmental economics isn’t just theory—it’s the **ability to translate economic thought into context-sensitive, actionable policy insights**. And guess what? That includes **helping everyday Nigerians understand inflation, purchasing power, and subsidy impact in simple **.

If that offends your textbook, maybe it’s time to leave the faculty lounge and touch grass.


📌 **Point 3: “He talks about boli and lunch, not macroeconomic strategy.”**

And here, I must ask: *Were you listening, or just waiting for a soundbite to attack?*

The boli reference was an illustration of **purchasing power parity**—a globally accepted economic principle. Not a lunch order.

He’s spoken on:
- Exchange rate realignment
- Fiscal consolidation
- The impact of subsidy reform
- Local value chains and SME financing
- Structural inefficiencies in Nigeria’s public finance space

Just because he didn’t say it with academic jargon doesn’t mean he didn’t say anything. Perhaps the problem is **you were expecting a whiteboard presentation when the room called for plain language.**

📌 **Point 4: “You did not do justice with your watery defence.”**

That’s your opinion, and you’re entitled to it. But if your idea of justice is nitpicking a name on a CV while ignoring everything else raised—well, let’s just say **your critique may be loud, but it’s not deep**.

I’d rather defend reason and perspective than ride the outrage wave that fuels the comment section but **never fuels a power plant or pays a civil servant.**

---

Final Word:

You accused me of lying. I corrected the record.
Now can we go back to debating **economic ideas**, not digging through LinkedIn profiles for grammar points?

As we say, *“The man who spends all day checking spelling at the village square rarely hears the wisdom in the proverb.”*

Let’s rise above the technicalities and discuss the truth that matters.

SmartEnergyng:




Ah, finally—the “I speak facts, you speak hot air” declaration. A classic. But let’s engage it—properly.

First, let’s separate **emotion from economics.** You say I’ve offered no substance. But perhaps the real issue is **you don’t agree with the substance offered**, and that’s fine. Disagreement is not a crime, but refusing to acknowledge a different lens isn’t intellectual—it’s inflexibility wrapped in volume.

Now, to your questions:

**“Are Nigerians better off today than they were 10 years ago?”**

No, many are not.
But let’s not pretend the rot began yesterday.
The current hardship is the **interest we are paying on years of economic denial**, postponed reform, and reckless consumption masked as prosperity.

**Is it painful? Yes.
Is it necessary? Also yes.**

When a doctor tells a patient that the sugar habit must stop and prescribes insulin, the patient may not feel better the next morning—but the problem wasn’t the insulin. It was **years of unaddressed illness.**

**“What economic principles have you raised?”**

You ask this while listing them in your own rebuttal:
- I said subsidy must go: You disagreed.
- I said foreign exchange unification was long overdue: You ignored that.
- I said value must be built internally, not just compared externally: You mocked that.

But here’s the principle you missed: **Short-term pain is the down payment for long-term sustainability.**
You can’t borrow your way to growth forever. You can’t fix production by printing money. And you can’t build real value while clinging to artificial exchange rates and bloated subsidies.

**“What’s the use of an economic principle if it impoverishes the people?”**

Simple: **Economic principles are not miracles—they’re tools.**
If applied poorly or unevenly, yes, they can hurt. But if you judge the tool by the early discomfort and not the final outcome, then we might as well cancel surgery because anesthesia wears off too soon.

The real question is: **Would the masses be better off if these same reforms were never done?** Would we prefer another decade of "fake comfort" with ₦450/$1 at the surface, while billions were spent propping it up with no growth to show?

**“You speak of looking inward, but the president goes abroad…”**

Now here, we agree **partially**. The symbolism of public officials seeking care or “reflection” abroad is damaging. Optics matter.

But let’s not conflate a political misstep with **economic direction**.
Reforms must be judged by their **structure and necessity**, not the travel logs of their promoters.
That the president still seeks treatment abroad doesn’t make subsidy removal wrong—it makes **leadership example a separate issue.**
Let’s argue apples, not pineapples.

**Final Word:**

You say I float with no foundation, yet everything I’ve said is grounded in **macro-economic logic and policy evolution**. You say you speak “real-world,” but your real world seems stuck in a place where **only outrage counts as intelligence**.

You say I offer "subtle insults"—but if reading a clean counterpoint feels like an insult, **then maybe the issue isn’t tone, but sensitivity**.

*As we say, “A house that shakes at every breeze should check the quality of its walls, not blame the wind.”*

Again, you make premises without having any solid foundations which makes your responses... odd, to put it mildly.

You create excuses for lies and poor performance and that is where I differ from your submissions. Mind you, you engaged me first, so you are the one disagreeing with my 'substance'.

First off, reforms are not taken with the objective of the reform being a goal in itself, but a means to a goal. The question is, what is the ultimate goal of the reforms you today? Is it reform for reform sake, or reforms to make life better for the majority of the masses?

If the goals of your reforms are to make more money available for government officials to loot and splurge on reflections in , then you have a point. But if the goal is to make life better for the people, then the reforms should be more encoming, deliberate and purposeful.

For instance, what has made PMS subsidy unsustainable? Corruption, porous borders, poor financial management, poor infrastructure, insecurity etc... has the government addressed these issues? Obviously Not, which is why the expected benefits of subsidy removal are not being felt because the underlying causes still exists.

Secondly, what has the government done about harnessing the available abundant natural resources except oil? Every developed country in the world today, exhaustively utilised its natural resources to get to the level they are today where they could afford to talk about 'negative' impact of natural resources. Why hasn't the government invested more in these resources as a way out of the economic challenges we face? Again, ineptitude, corruption, lack of vision and piss poor planning.

Third, who were the beneficiaries of these so called fake comfort? Ever since the failure that is bat said it, it has become a national anthem for you people. Didn't you know it was fake comfort when bat criticised it under previous istrations? If you now say bat was lying and manipulative because he knew the truth, then, no qualms. But to try ignore such deliberate 'error of judgement' makes you come across as a tool for propaganda and deceit.

Fourth, how do you separate the actions of the leader from his policies? A leader tells you to the local industry and then the same leader patronises foreign goods and you think they are two different issues? Well, no wonder you continue to have positions built on thin air and with no substance.

A government tells its citizens to use CNG, but all its political officers use PMS... policy and actions go hand in hand.

There is something I like to say, when the fly perches on the scrotum of a violent man, it is that day the man knows that there are less violent ways of resolving conflicts.

'You', and the bat, espouse 'solutions' you do not follow. Make policies you do not adhere to. actions you would not accept for yourselves... that is a significant contradiction and raises questions about what you feel is right and needs to be done, and the reality that there are less painful alternatives to arriving at the same goal... which brings us back to the beginning of this comment... what is the ultimate goal of you and bat?