Recently Mr. Peter Obi in an interview on a national television station was reported to have said that investment on infrastructure don’t drive economic growth but rather investment in education and human development.
Very unfortunate that Peter Obi has resorted to playing bitter, mischievous & conscienceless politics with undisguised economic issues because they can not come to terms with the truth and indisputable fact that President Buhari administration is investing heavily on infrastructure despite the low revenue and global economic meltdown occasioned by Covid-19 & are now shamelessly trying to distract from the reality on ground simply for political capital.
If we may ask, if building of schools, investment in public power, health, transportation, public water system, etc cannot drive economic growth, how would investment in education and other human development indices alone be able to do so, needs to be explained in view of the fact that for there to be functional education, there must be a conducive environment which can only be provided by investment in infrastructure as itemized above?
Schools have to be built for students to learn, roads have to be constructed for students to move from home to school, hospitals have to be constructed & upgraded to ensure that education is not disrupted by health challenges, good transportation system aids education as students and staff move easily from home or wherever to school. Without investment in electricity to power the hostels, library, cafeteria, classrooms, laboratory, etc how can students learn in a conducive environment?
Mr. Peter Obi warped economic treatise must be seen purely as a mere political gambit and not an economic analysis, because it defies rationality and logic. The man is simply politicking and not sincere in his failed attempt to run down the Buhari administration which has broken all records with regards to infrastructural development at a level never witnessed in Nigeria despite the dwindling revenue, natural and man made challenges.
Nelson Ekujumi
