By Victor Ahiumayoung

ORGANISED Nigeria, CBN, lowers the interest rate and stop the free fall of the Naira in the 2015 budget before passing it, to avoid undermining the purchasing power of ordinary Nigerians.

Speaking through the National Union of Textile, Garment and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria, NUTGTWN, labour equally called the National Assembly to ensure that the budget captures practical measures on reducing the cost of governance, which must start with drastic reduction of pay and allowances of the executive and legislature.

In a statement by NUTGTWN General Secretary, who is also a Vice President of Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, Mr. Issa Aremu, the union said that the “N4.74 trillion budget 2015 budget presented to the National Assembly was based on the benchmark of $65 per barrel, 2.27 million barrels per day and exchange rate of N165 to a dollar.

“At $65 per barrel, the budget still confirms that Nigeria is an oil dependent economy contrary to the claim of the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister for the Economy.

“Sustainable budgets are the ones based on revenue arising from real sector of the economy namely domestic manufacturing and exportation of finished goods.

“The National Assembly in debating this budget proposal should put policies that will grow the real sectors of the economy and in particular ensure that CBN lowers the interest rate and stop the free fall of the Naira which will undermine purchasing power of the working people. They should also make sure that the budget captures practical measures on reducing cost of governance which must start with drastic reduction of pay and allowances of the executive and legislature.”

On 2015 general elections, the union said “As the race for 2015 begins, we urge all the political parties candidates to operate based on the spirit and content of the constitution. The language of political contest should also be constitutional. Nigeria’s constitution defines all Nigerians as citizens, not Muslims, Christian, Northerners and Southerners. The 2015 elections should be based on issues namely diversification of economy through re-industrialisation, job creation, improved power supply, poverty alleviation, health, education and end to physical and economic social insecurity.”