Conference of Nigerian Political Parties {CNPP} has condemned the 70 percent hike of Tokunbo Vehicle Import Tariff.A statement Sunday by Spokesman of CNPP,Mr Osita Okechukwu said the hike is “obnoxious, anti-people, induces smuggling, which will no doubt further impoverish hapless Nigerians and deplete drastically the fragile middle class.
CNPP wonders, “how a president who went to school without shoes has wittingly abandoned the poor by dishing out anti-peoples’ policy – yesterday it was increase in electricity tariff, water bills, security charges, hike in medicare and school fees, fuel hike and today hike in the only accessible mode of transportation open to most Nigerians.
The statement said “we did warn years back of the dangers of the Peoples Democratic Party {PDP} led Federal Government adoption of the nebulous economic policy of government has no business in business, share the money and the assumption that the private sector will drive our economy. A nebulous economic policy which fuelled monumental corruption, decayed infrastructure, collapsed social services, low productivity and gross unemployment.
“We said then and repeat that Nigeria’s economy is informal, primitive and that 98 percent of the so called captains of industry have no industry, even pure water factory; hence public
sector investment is imperative.
Okechukwu added that “the Automative Industrial Policy Development Plan is defective and utopian; as you cannot build nothing out of nothing. How can you reduce import dependency on automobiles when there is electricity supply deficit, iron manufacturing deficit, rail transport deficit, high cost of finance and absence of motor vehicle manufacturing plant?
“It is trite economic law that you can only protect existing factories, not futuristic factories, we must develop and address the supply side.
“CNPP agrees with Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry {LCCI} that, ‘Infrastructure is critical to the development of any sector. Therefore government should scale up investment
in infrastructure to enhance productivity and competitiveness in the domestic economy’.
The statement advised President Goodluck Jonathan to “cancel the obnoxious Tokunbo Vehicle Import Tarrif; for pay-back time is fast approaching, as the masses are earnestly watching as their own is being disconnected from them.”
