The main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Labour Party (LP) tackled the All Progressives Congress (APC) government under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu as costs of food items, others pushed inflation to an 18-year high rise of 26.72 percent in September.
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), yesterday stated that headline inflation rose to 26.7% in September as against 25.8% in August, while food inflation maintained its uptrend rising to 30.64% in September.
Released on a day the world marked World Food Day, the Labour Party described the soaring prices of food and other items as a verdict on President Bola Tinubu’s reign, just as its presidential candidate in the last election, Peter Obi, lamented that a vast majority of Nigerians now spend their entire income on food, which is hardly enough.
The PDP said the report showed that President Tinubu and the APC were not ready for governance.
According to the PDP the NBS report simply confirmed how unprepared the President Tinubu-led administration is for the task of governance.
National Publicity Secretary of the party, Mr Debo Ologunagba, in a telephone interview with Vanguard, said: “We are not in the least surprised about the report. It is not particularly news that the prices of food and other items have pushed inflation to 26.72 per cent, it also confirms what we have always told Nigerians about this government.
“When inflation climbed to double digits after the APC took power in 2015, we told Nigerians it can only get worse because the APC can’t give what it does not have.
“Like the Muhammadu Buhari administration before it, this administration has pushed more Nigerians further down into poverty. The number of Nigerians living in extreme poverty which stood at over 133 million, representing roughly 64 per cent of Nigerians during the Buhari regime, has risen under Tinubu.
“Nigerians are invited to note that when the PDP was in power, the economy was better managed, inflation was within single digits, the exchange rate of the Naira to the Dollar was around N180 to $1 USD but today, the Naira is the worst performing currency in the world exchanging at over N1,000 to $1USD.
“A 50 kg bag of rice under successive PDP governments sold for no more N8,000 per bag but now you’ll struggle to get the same bag for N50,000 at a time the national minimum wage is just N30,000 per month.
“This is the legacy the APC is leaving behind. We urge Nigerians not to despair, help is coming. We are confident that the Supreme Court which is the last hope of the common man will do justice and return our stolen mandate for our dear nation to return to the path of growth and prosperity.”
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In like manner, the LP said the NBS report is a reflection of how badly the President Tinubu-led administration is running the economy.
National Publicity Secretary of the Labour Party, Obiora Ifoh, in a telephone interview with Vanguard, said: “The NBS report pegging the national inflation rate of food prices and other items at 26.72 per cent, is simply a reflection of how badly the Tinubu administration has failed since taking over albeit temporarily on May 29, 2023. “The truth is, you can’t give what you don’t have. He has recruited more image-makers than people who can properly manage the economy. What we have is a trial and error administration.”
In a post on X, formerly known as twitter,Obi said the food crisis had remained a serious challenge for many households in the country, noting that “a vast majority of Nigerians spend the entirety of their disposable income on food, which is often hardly enough.”
Obi also urged the government to find urgent solutions to the food crisis, saying: “As the global community marks World Food Day today, we must remind ourselves of the present food crisis in the nation, and seek urgent steps to salvage the people from further hunger and starvation.
“Food crisis has remained a serious challenge facing many households in Nigeria, as the country is reported, by Global Hunger Index, to be facing a serious hunger level.
