One of the finest Igbo novels ever written remains “Isi Akwu Dara N’ala” by Tony Ubesie. Think of a trilogy of James Hadley Chase (There’s Always a Price Tag), Thomas Hardy (The Mayor of Casterbridge) and peerless Bertha M Clay (Beyond Pardon, A Woman’s Temptation) all lumped into one novel. In Isi Akwu Dara N’ala, Ubesie chronicled romance, pains, wars, etc using Chike and Ada. Then, the war ended, and heavens opened opportunities for Chike through his “Osisi Na Ami Ego” [literally, a tree (indeed a factory) which produces money as leaves]. Yes, he built factories and wealth returned through huge profits.
But how can you build factories when governments will not allow you to use your money as you wish? If you check 2,000 years of global GDPs, you would notice that no nation has developed faster and better than its property rights regime. I have written extensively on that in Harvard.
In other words, if the ownership of properties and the capacity to use those properties as desired by owners are not freely allowed by the ordinances in nations, no serious growth will happen. All nations which have developed have always seen first an improvement in property rights.
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When you have money in your domiciliary account in Nigeria and the central bank regulates what you can do with that money, that is not a free market system because the velocity of money, and freedom to use at will, under a strong property right is a key tenet of entrepreneurial capitalism.
But there is good news: “The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has announced the removal of cash deposit limitations on domiciliary accounts, days after the deregulation of the Nigerian forex market.” I commend the CBN for killing this mindless policy. Now, we can go and grow “Osisi Na Ami Ego”. Yes, build those factories, warehouses – the old and the modern versions.
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Comment 1: “If the ownership of properties and the capacity to use those properties as desired by owners are not freely allowed by the ordinance in nations, no serious growth will happen”.
Substituting nations with states in the above quote, I think this statement also explains the reason why Lagos real estate markets developed faster than states in the Niger Delta regions, not discounting the advantages of being a former capital city. Foreigners, or do I say non-indigenes of Lagos were freely allowed to own and develop the real estate markets extensively, turning forests, swarms and wastelands into beautiful cities.
It’s a shame that today, pronouncements are being made by politicians without understanding impacts and repercussions of trying to restrict free market systems.
The former Governor of the CBN caused so much damage to the economy with his policies, never really understood why he thought restrictions on domiciliary accounts would encourage flow of FDI or FPI into our economy. He drove legal funds flow into invisible flows.
I think we need to all learn from the damaging effects market restrictions have on national economies.
Comment 2: I am really happy about this news Prof. I remember going to bank sometime last month and I was informed that I can’t withdraw more than#50,000 from my personal account, it was really a terrible experience. The next they should do for us is to lift the ban on using our local ATM cards for international transactions, this is killing a lot of business on daily basis and some end up in the hands of scammers in their search for alternative routes.
Comment 3: Some of the policies implemented by the immediate past CBN governor were clearly antithetical, or so they seem to me.
Can’t imagine wanting to boost forex inflow/remittances and at the same taking actions that’ll impede the same. Some of his actions have a colortion of economic sabotage, albeit, maybe not intentional.
In order not to crucify or persecute ‘Big Meffy’, I’ll end by saying “incompetence is not a crime”
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For years, people here supported and defended wholesale mediocrity and wanton ineptitude, rationalizing the most absurd and irrational of things. Never argue with morons, they are as useless as it can get.
Everything was destroyed, just to show you that they were in charge, so that any day they remove their knees from your neck briefly, you would be eternally grateful, thanking them for showing the light and saving your life.
What informed the decisions taken here few years ago? There were many of them, and no one is apologizing and accepting wrongdoing, after destroying careers and lives.
World of wonders.
That was a nice piece Mr Nudubiisi.
I hope we can.now use our ATM for international transactions, right?
Seemed the former governor of CBN lacks technicalities of monetary policy.
Again good job
When I first attacked Emefiele in 2015 as incompetent, all hell were let loose on me on social media. But 8 yesrs on, everything negative that I predicted has happened to the Nigerian economy and it is such a shame how ineptitude makes common sense seem so far fetched and complicated