Reno Omokri, a US based Nigerian author and social media influencer has declared Nigeria an “oil poor country” as against popular beliefs that the country is rich in oil.
Omokri, who was a Special Adviser to Nigeria’s former President Goodluck Jonathan, made the declaration while making comparisons between Nigeria’s oil producing capacity and other countries of the world.
The former special adviser via a tweet on Thursday, compared Nigeria with African countries such as Ghana, Angola, Libya and Saudi Arabia.
His comparison also involved countries from other continents of the world including Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, UAE.
According to him, Nigeria’s producing capacity is only a drop in the ocean compared to our population which he wrote about saying, “by a ratio of resources to population, Nigeria is one of the lesser resourced nations in the world.”
The Table shaker as he calls himself, added that the only major thing Nigeria has more than the above listed nations is a “humongous population of ENTITLED people.” He called on both government and ordinary citizens to produce and learn how to manage waste.
His statement read in full:
“You keep saying Nigeria owes you fuel subsidy, free education, and cheap food because Nigeria is an oil rich country. Let us examine the facts about how oil rich Nigeria is:
“Nigeria produces less than 2 million barrels of oil daily for a population of 200 million people.
“Ghana produces 200,000 barrels of oil daily for a population of 35 million people.
“Angola produces 1.1 million barrels of oil daily for a population of 34.5 million people.
“Libya produces 1.2 million barrels of oil daily for a population of 6.7 million people.
“Saudi Arabia produces 12.5 million barrels of oil daily for a population of 35 million people.
“Qatar produces 2 million barrels of oil daily for a population of 2.6 million people.
“The UAE produces 3.7 million barrels of oil daily for a population of 9.6 million people.
“Nigeria is not oil RICH. Nigeria is oil POOR. Our oil is a drop in the ocean compared to our population. By a ratio of resources to population, Nigeria is one of the lesser resourced nations in the world. Don’t use Ghana, Angola, Libya, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, or The UAE to compare with us. They have more resources than us per capita. The only major thing Nigeria has more than those nations is a humongous population of ENTITLED people. If you and I do not produce, and if our government does not cut waste, Nigeria will sink into deeper and deeper poverty, even if you bring angels from heaven to govern Nigeria.”
Reacting, a netizen, Sam Madox wrote the table shaker, “All your comparisons just so that the people can lower their expectations but not once have you compared Nigerian cost of governance. How much does all these rich oil countries pay their House Members or Senators? Or what they pay for projects compared side by side to Nigerian?”
Mohammed Aliyu also says, “Nigeria is a country abundantly blessed with natural resources, but unfortunately, these resources remain untapped. The main hindrance to Nigeria’s progress lies in the current system of governance. The states are constrained and rendered ineffective, as they heavily rely on federal allocations, which often come without any productive efforts on their part. Consequently, the country struggles to move forward when everything is controlled by the federal government.
“Real change can only occur if power is decentralized and given to the states, allowing each state to utilize its God-given resources for its own development. However, the situation is further exacerbated by some states misusing their power and diverting funds meant for local development for personal gain.
“The country is facing a serious crisis, and unless the government undertakes a restructuring of the system, there is a risk that the masses may eventually rise against the government in an uncontrollable manner. future.
“It is crucial for Nigeria to address these issues promptly to pave the way for a more equitable and prosperous nation.”
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