Tope Fasua

The Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Economic Affairs, Dr. Tope Fasua, has attributed the inflations, being witnessed in the nation’s economy, as mostly due to some businesses taking advantage  of Nigerians’ needs to hike prices.

 

He, however, insisted that despite the turbulence on the nation’s economic space,  the worst times are  over for Nigerians.

 

Fasua, who described the traders’ action as ‘price gouging’, therefore, called on Nigerians to be vigilant, and be ready to defend themselves against the exploitative tendencies of such businesses.

 

The presidential media aide, while fielding questions on Channels TV political program, Sunday Politics, insisted that the nation’s economy had no reason to be going through such inflationary cycle, but for the greed of some traders and businesses.

 

He stated that while the federal government, through the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC),  would do everything possible to protect the Nigerian consumers, such  consumers should also ensure they were not taken advantage of.

 

“Many times, price increased in Nigeria when there should be absolutely no reason. We, the government, will shout, FCCPC will do their jobs, but Nigerians must also be ready to defend themselves,” he added.

 

He said the present regime came with the mindset of reforming the nation’s economy for the long-term, adding that the macro-economic gains being witnessed, of late, were evidence that the reforms had started yielding results.

 

“If you are going to do reform, it’s like when a ram moves back, he comes charging. That is why we believe Nigeria is going to do a lot better going forward.

 

“Of course, the worst is over for people who have been hit by the down side, especially the inflation that spiked in 2023-2024.

 

Year 2023-2024 was the real pain for the country, when inflation went up by 34.8percent and prices of some goods went up by 100 to 200 percent.

 

“Year 2025 was the year we started seeing the gains when the food prices started going down. The fact is that inflation can not go on for ever. That is why we believe the worst times are over,” Fasua stated.