Trade Union Congress of Nigeria has condemned the comparison between Nigeria and Saudi Arabia made by President Muhammadu Buhari in his Independence Day address.
TUC President, Quadri Olaleye, in a statement on Thursday, said the comparison was unnecessary as Nigeria was not at par in all ramifications with Saudi Arabia and other countries mentioned.
Olaleye lamented that Nigeria had in the past six decades of oil exploration had failed to achieve anything meaningful, accusing the government of merely paying lip service to infrastructural development.
He accused successive governments of looting, laundering and wasting Nigeria’s resources while officials patronised hospitals outside the country for their health needs.
The TUC president said, “It is like comparing black and white. It is that bad! It is ridiculous to compare Nigeria with Saudi, Dubai, or any other country, not even in Africa. With the natural resources that we have, we could rule the world, but government is not interested. There is no need for this comparison because it looks like the president is defending fraud and the impoverishment of Nigerians.
“Come to think of it, what has Nigeria achieved with all the money made from oil since over six decades of oil exploration in commercial quality? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. All successive leaderships have done is loot, launder and buy properties in foreign land.
“So, if the president is defending the hike (in pump price), what does he want to do with the surplus they will make from the hike? The same old story of providing infrastructure! Our roads are nothing but death traps. Our leaders are not patriotic at all.”
Olaleye argued that in Saudi Arabia, roads, water, and to some extent, jobs were not big issues.
“On the other hand, Nigerians contend with estimated bills because power firms had refused to provide meters,” he said.