FDI Won't Increase In Absence Of Security, Rule Of Law, CNPP Tells Tinubu

 

Conference Of Nigeria Political Parties (CNPP) has encouraged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration to begin to do more of working than talking as “the current decline in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into the country will worsen unless the government tackles insecurity and improve in the area of institutionalising the rule of law.”

The CNPP spoke while reacting to the president's New Year Message, saying that “it is obvious that investment tops the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration's agenda but will be very difficult to achieve in the obvious absence of security and rule of law.”

This was contained in a statement signed by the CNPP's deputy national publicity secretary, Comrade James Ezema.

According to the statement, the CNPP maintained that “though President Tinubu affirmed that on every foreign trip he has embarked on, his message to investors and other business people has been that `Nigeria is ready and open for business,’ it is not enough.

“The Tinubu administration has continued to make promises over the past seven months as if the government is campaigning in an election rather than walking the talk.”

The group said for the Tinubu administration to succeed, the government and its officials should stop praise-singing and celebration of its achievements as Nigerians can differentiate between a government that is working for them and the one that is not.

It said that it is time to deal with insecurity and end the killing of the innocent in the country, adding that that is the primary purpose of government; to protect lives and property of the citizens.

“Secondly, upholding the rule of law is an important factor if Nigeria must attract key Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) as no investor will invest in a society where the government does not obey court judgments or where court orders can be procured at the black markets.

“This explains why the recent  capital importation data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed that the total FDI that came into Nigeria in the first quarter (Q1) of 2023 was only $48 million, and compared to the previous quarter, the FDI inflow to the country experienced a decline, dropping from $84 million in Q4 2022 to $48 million in Q1 2023, which is about 43%. But on a year-on-year comparison, there was a substantial 69% decrease, as FDI fell from $155 million in Q1 2022 to $48 million in Q1 2023.

“The CNPP therefore encourages the President Tinubu administration to do more in practice than talks as the country's FDI won't increase in the absence of security and rule of law”, the statement concluded.