The President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Mr. Joe Ajaero, has criticised the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for its denial of responsibility regarding the removal of subsidy on petrol by the Nigerian government last year.
In a statement on Sunday, Ajaero said that the IMF presented its harmful recommendations as growth strategies, which have led to increased socioeconomic hardship and stagnation in Nigeria and other nations that have followed their misguided advice.
According to the NLC, the denial is cynical and emblematic of the IMF and World Bank’s longstanding pattern of imposing harsh economic policies on developing countries.
The NLC noted that the IMF and the World Bank had during the Annual Meetings in Washington, DC, Abebe Selassie, the IMF’s African Region Director, characterized the Nigerian government’s decision to remove the fuel subsidy as a domestic issue.
“The IMF’s recent statement shows evasion, claiming Nigeria’s subsidy removal was a ‘domestic decision,’ while ignoring its significant influence on policy-making in developing countries. Despite this denial, the IMF often advocates for subsidy cuts as necessary for fiscal sustainability, making its disavowal seem hollow in a country that has frequently complied with such recommendations,” the statement said.
According to NLC, it is increasingly alarmed by the IMF’s denial, which reflects the troubling policies imposed on Nigeria by the IMF and World Bank.
“The IMF seems to be distancing itself from the future backlash of these policies, but Nigerians are not naive; we recognize the destructive effects of its harmful strategies on Nigeria and Africa,” the NLC said.
“It is disingenuous for the IMF to deny complicity, especially since we have warned the government about the consequences of adopting these policies,” it added.
The statement stressed that this undermines its credibility and raises doubts about the sincerity of its economic prescriptions, especially as the claim of Nigeria’s control over its policies contradicts its historical influence, often leading to turmoil and hardship.
The NLC emphasised the need for Nigeria and other developing countries to reclaim their economic sovereignty, resisting externally imposed policies that fail to consider local contexts and the needs of the masses.
GIK/APA