Editor’s Note: This post continues from this one:

It’s noteworthy that such an economic approach as borrowing becomes consequential only in certain circumstances, and not in all as being presumed in various quarters.

Even as an individual, if you dare take borrowing as a tradition or norm, you will surely live to regret it. We, either as individuals or groups, need to borrow sometimes but not always.

Of course, many are of the view that provided you are borrowing for a tangible project, it’s a welcome development. No doubt, borrowing becomes paramount and necessary only when the prospective borrower intends to use it for feasible projects such as capital expenditure.

Ab initio, Nigeria was borrowing for tangible reasons. But as a result of corruption, rather than doing the needful or investing the borrowed funds meaningfully, she invariably ends up doing otherwise.

So, if Nigeria as a people failed to address such a lapse, the nauseous phenomenon would continue to repeat itself, thereby making the country indulge in borrowing perpetually.

On a yearly basis, Nigeria’s international debt increases colossally, thus negatively affecting her current account balance which is expected to rise steadily.

Survey indicates that external debt in Nigeria averaged USD6.38 billion from 2008 till 2015 when it reached an all-time high of USD56.74 billion in the fourth or last quarter of the said fiscal year which was about 10.9% of her GDP for that very year, though it recorded a low of about USD3.63 billion in the first quarter of 2009.

Nigeria’s total public debt stock stood at N33.107 trillion or USD87.239 billion, as at first quarter or March 31, 2021. Worse still, a large portion of these debts are owed to private lenders at variable interest rates.

Rather than being preoccupied with how to repay the backlog of debts, the government keeps borrowing at the expense of the country’s economy. This implies that Nigeria has apparently absorbed incessant borrowing as a tradition.

Having acknowledged that it isn’t a wholesome belief or practice, there’s a compelling need to put up stiff measures towards addressing the monumental anomaly.

Against this backdrop, let’s briefly take a tour to the history book. The IMF then imposed its Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) conditionality on the deficit countries, which Nigeria was inclusive, to force them to take necessary steps toward reducing their payments deficits and consequently earn sufficient foreign exchange to enable them to pay back their loans.

Hence, they had to devalue their official exchange rates, abolish or liberalize foreign exchange controls, introduce anti-inflationary programmes as well as adopt a free trade policy.

Notwithstanding, the ‘almighty’ SAP didn’t produce any successful result; rather, it ended up constituting more problems, perhaps still due to corruption. Now, the question is: how can Nigeria escape from this lingering debt trap as well as desist from her unending borrowing tradition?

The answer is simple. We need to embark on an economic lobotomy. The Mohammadu Buhari-led administration has to shift course from an internationally-dependent growth to domestically-based economic development plan.

To this end, it has to strengthen most of the country’s fiscal policies, participate in frugal expenditure, initiate deflationary economic measures, detest construction of white-elephant projects, and most importantly tackle the unbridled corruption as well as security challenges with the last drop of its blood.

We must understand that growth can be self-generated by focusing on products commonly consumed by low-income citizens. Even a little improvement in the productivity and income in such a quarter will capture a sizable market and assist in sustaining development of other products and markets.

Therefore, instead of embarking on massive infrastructural projects, the government ought to start with improving such capital-oriented projects that make production cost-effective as road cum railway network, power cum water supply, and refineries.

So, acknowledging that borrowing is only regarded as a healthy practice when the borrowed funds are utilized judiciously and selflessly, it’s needless to reiterate that governments at all levels must invest meaningfully and wisely to reap heavily and successfully. 

The long battle between Amazon and its workers, over the latter’s move to unionize, seems to be drawing close to an end. For the first time, the e-commerce giant is making concessions to workers’ union.

Amazon reached a settlement on Wednesday with the National Labor Relations Board, which will allow workers to engage in union organizing at its warehouses, Times first reported.

The agreement nullifies the company’s policy that made it nearly impossible for its workers to organize a union. The policy has been upheld by Amazon for a long even though it stood against labor regulations.

Under the settlement, Amazon must allow employees who are done with their shifts but working on union activities to access nonwork areas of the facilities, such as break rooms, if other off-duty workers are also allowed there.

“This settlement agreement provides a crucial commitment from Amazon to millions of its workers across the United States that it will not interfere with their right to act collectively to improve their workplace by forming a union or taking other collective action,” NLRB General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo said in a statement. “Working people should know that the National Labor Relations Board will vigorously seek to ensure Amazon’s compliance with the settlement and continue to defend the labor rights of all workers.”

Amazon workers’ repeated attempts to form unions at warehouses in Alabama and New York, had been met by stiff opposition by the company. The agreement followed a complaint filed by six workers, which said that Amazon did not allow them to be on-site outside 15 minutes on either side of their shifts, making it difficult to organize.

The agreement also protects workers who are participating in union activities outside the facilities, such as in the parking lots, from getting kicked off the premises.

Amazon has had growing complaints from its workers since the pandemic began. NLRB’s database shows that more than 75 complaints of unfair practices had been lodged against the company.

As part of this week’s agreement with the NLRB, Amazon must send notices informing workers of their rights to current and past hundreds of thousands of warehouse workers who were employed at the company since March 22.

“WE WILL NOT tell you that you cannot be on our property, or that you need to leave our property 15-minutes after the end of your shift, or threaten you with discipline or that we will call the police, when you are exercising your right to engage in union or protected concerted activities by talking to your co-workers in exterior nonwork areas during nonwork time,” Amazon’s required notice to workers says.

Amazon also agreed to a bypass of the NLRB administrative hearing process that’s usually involved with these sorts of agreements. The move will make it easier to investigate claims of Amazon failing to uphold the settlement agreement.

The agreement, which comes on the heels of a fresh union petition filed by a group of Amazon warehouse workers in Staten Island, means that Amazon workers will likely have another shot at unionization as soon as possible. Defying Amazon’s opposition, a group of workers named The Amazon Labor Union, moved to collect signatures for a union vote three months ago. However, at roughly 2000, the signatures fell short of the number needed for a proper unit to be formed by the workers, according to NLRB.

But NLRB called for a revote last month after it was discovered that Amazon had made improper interference in the first election. This means the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union will get a second shot.

Another group of Amazon workers based in Staten Island is also taking another shot at unionization, and has this week, filed an application with the federal government to hold a vote.

The finalization of the agreement on Wednesday means more groups, scattered across Amazon facilities around the U.S., will likely spring up and the company should anticipate disobedience to its policies.