Taft was American President from 1909 to 1913; meaning he served only one term during which the US economy was in a recession. He paid the price for coming to power at the wrong time. Taft was not the first, and he would not be the last president, to learn the age-long lesson that economics, like rain, sun or earthquakes etc, respects no president’s wishes. When Karl Marx, 1818-1883, pronounced that “Men make history, but not just as they please” (VBQ p 93), he must have had leaders like Buhari in mind. Nigerians were aware that Buhari, until he went to London for “God-knows-what”, was adamantly opposed to the devaluation of the naira for reasons that were badly explained because he is not an economist.

The first part of this series appeared last week after the Federal Minister of Finance reversed herself by announcing that the Federal Government was again considering a bail-out package for the states. Even, before writing last week’s column, it was clear that advising governments in Nigeria is just about as useful as talking to a wall. They ask for “all hands on deck”; but they take cognizance of only the hands closer to the corridors of power and whose vested interests must be protected at all costs – even if the people pay dearly for it.

The same Chinese have been known to derisively refer to a person or government saying two opposite things at the same time as someone “speaking with forked tongues”. The Federal Government of Nigeria has been speaking with forked tongues with regard to fresh bail-out for the states, who despite a previous botched bail-out, are still in financial turmoil. Irrespective of political party in power, all the states are in various degrees in trouble. Even Lagos State, the Centre of Excellence, is feeling the pinch badly.

The news report then went on to mention various individuals making the suggestion. It is the sort of report which makes one to wonder if it is intended to be taken seriously or as a joke. But then, one is reminded of the Hubert Humphrey, 1911-1978, late Vice President of the United States, who in Madison, Wisconsin, on August 23, 1965, left the world with the gem: “The right to be heard does not automatically include the right to be taken seriously.” The experts were wasting their time for several reasons. But before going into those reasons, it is vital to remind Nigerians of a new phenomenon in our economic landscape.

The 2016 budget should be thrown into the waste paper basket. It can no longer serve as a guide to what citizens can expect of the Federal, States and Local Governments this year. The Finance Minister’s admission, two days before the President addressed the world on his first year in office could not have come as a surprise to economists, finance experts, accountants and even those who have a good grasp of simple arithmetic and can think deeply. If ever there was a budget that was doomed even before it was written, the 2016 budget was it.