Debt is worse than leprosy – Obasanjo tackles Tinubu over borrowing remark

Obasanjo spoke on Friday in Abeokuta, Ogun State, on the Ajibosin Platform, a public discussion board themed “Leveraging Artificial Intelligence to Solve Grassroots Problems and Accelerate National Development.”

Tinubu had in April mentioned his administration will proceed to borrow at any time when mandatory, insisting it shouldn’t be seen negatively.

“If we have to borrow, we borrow. Borrowing is not leprosy, we just have to work hard to be able to pay for it,” Tinubu had mentioned throughout a gathering with Plateau leaders led by Governor Caleb Mutfwang and APC National Chairman, Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda, on the State House.

The former president recalled that when he began his farm 47 years in the past, the naira exchanged at N1 to $1.85, questioning what the nation had accomplished to now have N1,500 to a greenback.

“When I started my farm, 47 years ago, naira to the dollar was one naira to $1.85. Forty-seven years ago. What has Nigeria done in 47 years that we now have 1,500 naira to the dollar? What have we done?” he requested.

He additionally questioned the capability of the political management to enhance the lives of Nigerians, asking, “What do our leaders know? And what do they not know? And from what they know, what can they do for us?”

Obasanjo additional criticised Nigeria’s dependence on the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, IMF, arguing that the establishments weren’t designed for Nigeria and weren’t constructed by Nigerians.

“World Bank and IMF were not designed for us. They were not built by us. They were built before we became independent. And that’s the people who would determine what we do,” he mentioned, warning in opposition to adopting international financial prescriptions with out contemplating Nigeria’s realities.

Also talking on the occasion, historian and public coverage scholar, Dr Umar Ardo, warned that synthetic intelligence can not confer sovereignty on a society that has not secured management over its personal establishments, priorities and assets.

Ardo, whereas delivering his lecture on the anniversary theme, insisted that AI could produce solutions however can not produce proper options for Africa if possession and management stay overseas.

He recounted utilizing AI as an mental assistant to interrogate concepts and manage materials for his ebook, The Nigerian Development Doctrine, however mentioned it uncovered its limits.

“The experience showed me that AI can extend human intellectual capacity, but it also exposed its limits. A system may produce a plausible answer without producing the right solution for the problem of a particular society,” he mentioned.

“It can identify patterns and organize knowledge, but it cannot replace human judgement, political responsibility or institutions capable of implementation. AI can strengthen our capacity to think and act, but it cannot confer sovereignty on a society that has not secured control over its priorities, institutions and resources,” he added.

He warned that know-how isn’t impartial in its distribution, stressing that Africa’s downside has by no means been rejection of know-how however acceptance on dangerous phrases.

He insisted that if Nigeria fails to construct the infrastructure of sovereignty: chip fabrication, knowledge centres, African-owned datasets and continental coordination via the AU Data Policy Framework, AI will turn out to be one other instrument via which Africa is managed, fairly than an instrument via which Africa manages its personal future.

Earlier in her tackle, the Chairperson of the event, Mrs Onikepo Akande, asserted that AI is already altering how individuals suppose and work, stressing that its significance can’t be ignored.

Mrs Akande whereas acknowledging that AI will help establish alternatives, navigate challenges, enhance logistics and assist companies compete, urged Nigerians to deploy know-how judiciously to enhance healthcare, agriculture, schooling and different sectors for sustainable improvement.