NIGERIA WAS ECONOMICALLY BETTER OFF IN 1999 THAN TODAY, SAYS DONALD DUKE

Donald Duke, the Peoples Redemption Party presidential candidate, has stated that Nigerians were economically better off in 1999 compared to the present day, despite over two decades of continuous constitutional democracy.

Duke, a former governor of Cross River State, shared these views during an interview on the Policy Without Politics podcast. Nigeria transitioned to democratic governance in 1999 after years of military rule, with former President Olusegun Obasanjo taking over from military Head of State Abdulsalami Abubakar.

He argued that the country has not made significant economic progress despite population growth and increased budget allocations over the years. “We’re really not in a democracy. It’s a facade. And with each cycle, we get poorer,” Duke remarked.

He emphasized that in 1999, Nigerians were in a better economic position than they are in 2026, describing the country as more affordable back then. Duke compared Nigeria’s current financial situation to that of the early 1980s under the late former President Shehu Shagari.

During that period, Nigeria’s annual budget averaged about $25 billion with a population of roughly 70 million. Today, despite a population estimated between 200 and 250 million, the budget remains around $25 billion, he noted.

Duke highlighted the impact of currency devaluation, explaining that the naira was once pegged at N1 to $1 but now trades at approximately N1,400 to a dollar, indicating a lack of real growth.

He also linked Nigeria’s security issues—such as insurgency, banditry, and kidnapping—to economic hardship, asserting that groups like Boko Haram are driven more by economic motives than religious fanaticism.

“The essence of having a government in place is to ensure the optimal productivity of citizens within a safe and orderly environment,” Duke said, stressing that government’s primary role is to create conditions for citizens to be productive.

He criticized the reliance on foreign reserves as a measure of economic success, advocating instead for employment and productivity as more meaningful indicators.

“Let’s stop measuring the progress of our economy by the amount of dollars or foreign currency we have in our reserves because that only means that you want to import more things all the time,” he said. “Let’s measure the value of our economy by the number of people who are working.”

Finally, Duke emphasized that government policies, including those on education, should focus on enhancing citizens’ productivity, which he described as the core purpose of governance.