At a time some commentators are of the view that Nigeria is in depression, former governor of Ogun State, Otunba Gbenga Daniel has expressed doubt about the country being in recession.
Daniel’s view was contained in a recent interview he granted where he said the country could not be in recession and government would be awarding over-bloated contracts saying the cost of governance was too high.
Read also: Court threatens to order arrest of Daniel, Bankole Over Contempt
His word, “I’ve come up with a theory in recent times that there is no recession in Nigeria. There is no recession in Nigeria. It’s now coming back to the question of the cost of governance, cost of projects. I think I’m not wrong if I declare that project cost in Nigeria is the most expensive in the world and, until we begin to be realistic on the cost of what we do, projects and how they are done, we are not going to go far.
“From my perspective as an engineer, I can cost materials and I can cost labour, and I do not think we should be paying what we are paying for those projects. Look at the billions allocated to roads and bridges but, as a governor, I’ve done roads and I’ve done bridges and the current costs I’m hearing are probably seven to eight times of what I’ll approve.”
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