An aide to former President Muhammadu Buhari has pushed back against recent claims made by Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Yemi Cardoso, who blamed the country’s current economic woes on mismanagement during Buhari’s administration from 2015 to 2023.
Cardoso had stated that an excessive printing of ₦35 trillion through ‘Ways and Means’ led to an uncontrolled surge in money supply, driving inflation and devaluing the naira.
However, the former president’s aide, speaking on condition of anonymity, dismissed the figures as grossly exaggerated, asserting that the actual sum supplied by the CBN was ₦7.5 trillion during the eight-year period.
“I have seen the figures, and Nigerians must be laughing at these claims. The real position, as verified by the central bank and the National Assembly, shows that the money supplied through Ways and Means during Buhari’s tenure was not more than ₦7.5 trillion,” the aide explained.
He backed his rebuttal with a letter from the CBN, dated January 16, 2023, addressed to the Senate Majority Leader, which confirmed the sum of ₦7.5 trillion was provided in advances to the government during Buhari’s presidency.
Cardoso, during a media briefing, had said, “In 2015, the money supply was about ₦19 trillion. By 2023, it had ballooned to ₦54 trillion. That’s a huge, substantial increase, mostly due to Ways and Means.”
He argued that this massive monetary expansion—without corresponding economic growth—led to too much money chasing too few goods, fuelling inflation.
The former aide acknowledged the challenges faced during Buhari’s tenure, including plummeting oil revenues, but reiterated that the money supply numbers cited by Cardoso were inaccurate.
“The figures being thrown around are misleading. According to the CBN’s official records, the numbers for Buhari’s government were not close to the ₦35 trillion being cited,” he added.
Efforts to reach CBN officials for a response were unsuccessful as of the time this report was filed.
Meanwhile, the CBN’s latest data showed that the total money supply in Nigeria increased by 14.22% to ₦107.1 trillion between January and August 2024.
The figure stood at ₦93.77 trillion in January 2024, with a year-on-year rise of 65% from ₦64.8 trillion in August 2023.
This surge in money supply continues to pose challenges for the CBN’s Monetary Policy Committee, which is trying to balance economic growth with inflation control.
