10 things Nigerians need to levy themselves tithes on in 2021 as the government simply lacks the cash to fund them

Ayo Akinfe

(1) Regional security operations like Amotekun and the Eastern Security Network

(2) Mini power distribution plants in each local government area

(3) Local health centres to offer basic primary care

(4) Funding of local producer cooperatives to enable them process farm goods into semi finished products

(5) Urban tram networks in our state capitals and large metropolitan cities

(6) Adult literacy classes to elevate the non-literate in our midst

(7) Street lights to help provide security

(8) Providing furniture for our woefully under-funded primary schools where children sit on the bare floor

(9) Local low cost housing units

(10) Road maintenance. During the rainy season our roads are like rivers as there is no drainage network in any of Nigeria’s 36 states

It is delusional to think that the federal government will be able to any of these in this post-Covid era. As thing stand the government has borrowed about $11bn to finance the 2020 budget and allocations to states will be so small in 2021, they will not meet recurrent costs, so any thought of capital investment is an illusion.

Nigeria will be lucky to sell 1.5m barrels of oil in 2021. Will prices ever rise above $50 a barrel? Where do we expect the government to get any money from?