Reno Omokri, a prominent sociopolitical critic, has recently made a statement that Nigerians should not hold President Bola Tinubu accountable if the naira further depreciates to N2414 against the dollar. Omokri attributes the potential depreciation of the naira to the high rate at which Nigerians import food items from countries like China and Thailand.
Expressing his concern over the fact that Nigeria spends $6 billion annually on food importation, Omokri emphasised the need to patronise locally-made goods. In a post on X, he wrote, “Nigeria imports almost $6 billion in food annually. And what are we importing? Rice from Thailand that we can grow in Nigeria. Toothpick from China that we can manufacture ourselves. Even annoyingly, we import pizza. What is in pizza that we cannot make ourselves?”
Omokri further argued that a fall in the value of the Naira could be beneficial as it would force Nigerians to consume homegrown food when imported food becomes unaffordable. He stated, “Let the Naira fall. It is good. When we can no longer afford imported food, we will be forced to eat homegrown food. We can’t import table water, milk, salt, and matches and then blame Tinubu when the Naira falls to ₦2414 to one Pound. As Fela sang, ‘Na your fault be that’!”
He then suggested several ways to strengthen the Naira, including patronising local brands and services such as Glo, Innoson, Air Peace, First Bank, UBA, GTBank, Zenith, AriseTV, Channels, NTA, Dangote and Ibeto cement, and local football clubs like Enyimba FC, Kano Pillars, and 3SC.
Omokri concluded by stating, “Nobody is coming to save Nigeria. It is only Nigerians that will save Nigeria. Local brands may or may not be as good as foreign ones, but with continued patronage, they will improve in quality. Buy them, and your Naira will rise along with your personal happiness and the international rating of the green Nigerian passport. Your value is tied to Nigeria’s value. Buy Nigerian and Nigeria’s foreign reserves, trade balances, and debt to GDP ratio will automatically improve.”
This statement from Omokri underscores the importance of supporting local industries and reducing reliance on imported goods as a means to strengthen the national currency and boost the economy.