President Bola Tinubu could face a major economic policy reversal if former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar wins the 2027 presidential election, with his campaign declaring that the floating exchange rate regime will be scrapped.
Kenneth Okonkwo, spokesperson for the Atiku Abubakar presidential campaign council, made the declaration while criticising the Tinubu administration’s approach to determining the value of the naira through greater reliance on market forces.
Speaking on AIT’s Democracy Today, Okonkwo argued that leaving the currency excessively exposed to market forces could weaken the economy and undermine the value of the naira.
He declared that an Atiku administration would take a different approach, insisting that defending the national currency should remain a central responsibility of government.
“No country in the whole world leaves their currency undefended,” Okonkwo said.
The Atiku campaign spokesman questioned the decision to allow the naira to suffer substantial depreciation before government interventions were introduced, recalling the period when the exchange rate approached N2,000 to the dollar.
“Why wait for it to crumble?” he asked, arguing that stronger and more consistent intervention was necessary to protect the currency.
Okonkwo said the value of the naira was inseparable from the broader health of the Nigerian economy, warning that a severely weakened currency would reduce confidence in the economy and make domestic economic activity more difficult.
He also linked currency stability to Nigeria’s trade balance, arguing that increasing exports while reducing dependence on imports would provide a stronger foundation for the naira.
“What makes your naira strong? When your export is more than your import, your currency starts gaining power,” he said.
The comments, made during the AIT interview and reported by TheCable, place exchange-rate policy among the issues likely to feature prominently in the 2027 presidential contest, with Atiku’s camp signalling that it would depart significantly from the currency reforms pursued by the Tinubu administration.
