THE POLLING FRONT-RUNNER IN THE NIGERIAN PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION PROMISES FOREX REFORMS

· Peter Obi promises to remove the multiple exchange system in the nation.

· Promises to uphold the central bank's independence

According to three different polls, including one by Bloomberg, the front-runner for the position of president of Africa's most populous nation is promising to abolish the nation's many currency rate regimes if elected.

One of the 18 contenders vying to succeed President Muhammadu Buhari, whose two-term term ends in May of next year, is businessman and former governor of Anambra State in southeast Nigeria. The middle class in Nigeria, particularly in the south, and the country's primarily youthful population strongly support his candidacy.

Obi said in a series of tweets late Thursday that the Central Bank of Nigeria's independence will be restored while efforts to stabilize the currency rate and reduce inflation to single digits would be made.

The biggest economy in Africa has several different currency rates, with the official rate being strictly regulated and a parallel market where the naira is freely traded. Numerous people use the unregulated market, where the value of the naira is roughly 70% lower than that of the dollar.

The local currency's depreciation has fueled annual inflation to a 17-year high of 20.5%.

The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund have urged the government to combine the rates by permitting a more lenient foreign exchange policy, but the administration has refused their requests.

This multiple exchange rate system, according to Obi, “encourages capital flight and discourages investment, thus worsening Nigeria's forex position.”

We have always had an Afrocentric foreign policy. Therefore, Africa will continue to be the focal point of our foreign policy. To fulfill promoting and defending our national interests, we will strike a strategic balance. In order to increase Nigeria's diplomatic influence in sub-regional, regional, and international affairs, we will rebuild Nigeria's military force, encourage economic growth, and improve its technological prowess. In order to regain control, Nigeria must proactively express its leadership position in African affairs by positive engagement, peacekeeping responsibilities, and the use of regional and sub-regional venues for discussion of ongoing and new issues.

Nigeria needs reliable hands if it is to be productive. We will make sure that no region or community in Nigeria is left behind as we advance the country. Our government will support equity in the distribution of power and resources in accordance with its legal obligation to do so. A revitalized spirit of patriotism is required; this will happen through leadership by example.

Obi would face tough competition like Bola Tinubu of the ruling party and Atiku Abubakar of the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party if he wants to win the presidency. Since 1999, when Nigeria's political landscape was restored to democracy following decades of military control, both parties have dominated.

According to Obi, the existing FX policies harm exporters by making them sell their dollars at prices they can't match when they require the dollars from the central bank. We insist on an unified forex market and will lift import.