Why the Naira is appreciating rapidly
By Reno Omokri
I see supporters of a certain candidate spreading the propaganda that our foreign reserves dropped because the Tinubu administration has abandoned the flotation of the Naira and is now defending it, like previous administrations, and that is why the Naira is rising.
You do not need to be a supporter of President Bola Tinubu to know that not only is this false, but it is an economically and intellectually lazy statement. I will now present the facts. I urge my readers to fact-check me.
The reason why our foreign reserves dipped by slightly over a billion dollars is simply because, as the Central Bank Governor, Mr. Yemi Cardoso, himself publicly stated in a well attended press conference, Nigeria recently cleared the backlog of foreign exchange allocations owed to foreign companies seeking to reinstate their profits from Nigeria, with the highest amounts going to foreign airlines, which gulped over a billion dollars.
The Naira is still being floated. The reasons for the recent appreciation of the Naira are multifaceted and include the following:
The transfer of oil receipts from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation PLC to the Central Bank of Nigeria, which means the CBN does not have to wait months and even years to have large inflows.
The payment of forex backlogs to foreign merchants, which means they do not have to source forex via banks through the I&E window, or the parallel market.
The recent actions against Binance, the chief conduit for shorting the Naira, by the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu.
The revocation of the licensees of 4173 allegedly shady Bureau De Changes, which has reduced speculation against the Naira.
And the recent increase in our oil production from about a million barrels per day to almost 1.5 million barrels per day, amongst others.
Listen, do not allow your hatred for Bola Tinubu to turn you against Nigeria. Your value is tied to Nigeria, not your political party or candidate. Please be patriotic enough to support.
