Former President Olusegun Obasanjo
Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo says ex-military Head of State Ibrahim Babangida and former presidents Olusegun Obasanjo and Goodluck Jonathan failed to effectively manage the total sum of $982.8bn.
The vice president said this, according to a statement from his media aide Laolu Akande, while answering questions from Nigerians at a town hall meeting on Sunday in Minnesota, US.
He insisted that Nigeria’s key problem was lack of proper management of the country’s resource and not geographical restructuring.
Former President Goodluck Jonathan
Analysing the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries’ statistics on oil revenues accruable to Nigeria under successive administrations between 1990 and 2014, Osinbajo said Nigeria should have been much more developed.
He said, “Under the IBB/Abacha administrations (1990 – 1998), Nigeria realised $199.8bn.
“Under the Obasanjo/Yar’Adua governments (1999-2009), the country got $401.1bn.
“During the Jonathan administration (2010-2014), Nigeria got $381.9bn from oil revenues.
Former Head of State, Ibrahim Babangida
“The question that we must all ask is that what exactly happened to resources? The question that I asked is that where is the infrastructure?
“When added together, the oil revenues that accrued to the country under IBB, Obasanjo, Yar’Adua and Jonathan amounted to $982.8bn
“One of the critical things that we must bear in mind and see is that this government, despite earning $94bn, up until 2017, we are spending more on infrastructure and capital than any previous government. So, we are spending N1.5trn on capital. That is the highest we have spent since 1990.”