Despite Recession, Nigerians Ate Rice For Christmas, Perish Depression Thought – Oyegun

Oyegun, who spoke to newsmen in Benin, the Edo State capital, said that Nigerians could be seen having fun everywhere because they had adjusted to the current situation of things.

The APC National Chairman further told Nigerians to “Perish the thought of depression”, adding that the President Muhammadu Buhari administration was doing everything within its powers to retract the economy from the downturn.

“I hope it was low key, but what is important is that you could see signs of fun everywhere. Which means that in spite of everything, people are happy. That is not say that there is not some degree of belt tightening. I can feel it but what is also good is that people are still able to eat rice.

“We have become a bit of wasteful society; now we are being forced to adjust, measure the way we spend money. People hardly fly business class these days.

“These are signs of growing realism, growing change, an acceptance that it can no longer be business-as-usual. But, personally, what made me glad this Christmas is the existence of local rice; we now have Ebonyi Rice and the Lake Rice. Nigerians are beginning to domesticate their taste in the local rice they prefer, which is very good.

“The fact that there was so much in terms of quantity of local rice all over the place is something that makes me glad. It means that there was good harvest, and that, next year, for the fact that the market has now been established, it means we can even export rice. So, thank God, out of every seeming adversity, the good Lord opens windows of prosperity.

“I think we are at the start of a prosperous period, when this country will be depending not just on oil but on a broader base of production. Are you not scared that the recession may degenerate to depression? We are working hard. We are not even thinking of depression, we are thinking of getting out of the recession that we are in. And all government policies and projects are geared towards getting this nation out of the recession as soon as possible.

“Perish the thought of depression, we will never get there. What is happening with rice now, the same thing is going to be replicated in the agricultural sector and, as soon as the power sector stabilizes, we will get industries like the textile kicking back into production. We can only look upward and not backward.”

Reacting to the alleged plans by some political bigwigs to form a mega party that will oust the APC in 2019, Oyegun said, “Mega party, I don’t know where the name mega party suddenly came from in the lexicon of politics in this country. When two people gather to have a meeting, it is a mega meeting.

“We don’t feel threatened; we will in fact encourage a mega party, because with the gradual collapse of the PDP, we want a party that can make us sit upright and be on our toes in terms of delivery of service to our people; a party that will make us feel challenged, that will make democracy real, offer the people a real choice.”