President Bola Tinubu proudly shared on Monday that for the past three months, he has successfully met Nigeria’s financial obligations without dipping into the coffers of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) or resorting to the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) “Ways and Means” funding.
In a confident statement during an informal chat at his Bourdillon residence in Lagos, Tinubu revealed that he had not relied on any of the usual financial support mechanisms. “Push me to my brag mode, in the last three months, I’ve not taken a penny from NNPC before I meet my other obligations. To me, that is excellent,” he told reporters.
The President expressed satisfaction in achieving this milestone, noting that he had fulfilled Nigeria’s financial commitments without falling back on the traditional methods of financing, which had often been criticized for exacerbating the country’s economic challenges. “I’ve met all obligations without going into the old order, without resorting to Ways and Means,” he added.
When asked if he was scoring himself, Tinubu responded with enthusiasm, “Why not? Will you score me? I should grade myself if I do my homework right.”
This announcement comes in the wake of a recent statement from the CBN’s new Governor, Olayemi Cardoso, who criticized former CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele’s practices of excessive money printing and using the “Ways and Means” facility, which resulted in a massive increase in money supply. Cardoso highlighted that Nigeria’s money supply grew from about N19 trillion in 2015 to N54 trillion in 2023, with a significant portion of that increase linked to borrowing from the CBN.
The “Ways and Means” facility is a short-term financing arrangement where the CBN provided the Nigerian Government with funds to cover budget deficits, but it was widely criticized for contributing to inflation and devaluation of the naira.
