Sale of National Assets : Brilliant Move or Economic Sabotage?

By Kuranga Abdulazeez
For an asset, online dictionaries define it as something or someone of any value; any portion of one's property or effects so considered.
After the NBS released its figures for the 3rd quarter of the year, it was revealed that Nigeria is officially in recession because of recording negative growth in its GDP for two consecutive quarters( 2nd and 3rd quarters). Ever since then, the Nigerian government has been devising means of stimulating the economy and bringing the country out of the recession. One of these solutions which has been generating a lot of controversies in the country has been the sale of national assets of which the prominent people who started it were Africa's richest man Alhaji Aliko Dangote and the Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, before the Federal Executive Council now followed suit.
Since then, there has now been indications that the government will consider selling some of its national assets to raise money to get the country out of recession. The two major talking points here are for the government to sell its stake in the Nigerian Liquified and Natural Gas( NLNG) and the NNPC which are the primary non-tax revenue generating assets for the country. The begging question now is: sales of National assets: a brilliant move or economic sabotage?
A scenario can be likened to a wage or salary earner. Let's say his salary dropped by more than 50% or less. And he has to fees, clothe and protect his family. Prices are rising but his income is low. Now he has 3 feasible options:
1) To start collecting food on  credit and be paying in instaments.
2) To apply for loan or overdraft.
3) To sell his appliances, and other things he considered as asset.
The question now goes to you as the salary earner, what will you do in this case in order to preserve the future of your kids and also maintain your level of living Or in the words of Salaudeen Mustapha "Let’s take for instance, you are a man with income generating properties and 3 cars of which 2 of the cars are V6 engine cars which no doubt, consumes more fuel, suddenly, you suffer a gross reduction in your income which has made you unable to maintain your cars any longer, then it wouldn’t be wrong of you to sell off the v6 engine cars to stabilise your economy. Selling off these cars doesn’t mean you’re selling off your properties that bring income".
In my own opinion, the only situation you can sell your assets is when you are bankrupt( a situation of being legally declared or recognised as not being in a position to pay debts). At least, creditors are willing to give loans with low interests based on the credit worthiness of the country. Now consider a case where you do do not have such credit worthiness again as a result of the decision which is about to be made. For Gods sake, these are the Nations pride!
This even keeps me wondering:
1) What has happened to the $6 billion loan and currency swap deal with China?
2) What has happened to the plan to raise $1billion on the Eurobond market?
3) What about the amount of money that has been generated so far from the fight against corruption.
And even recently the AFDB pledged about $4.1 billion loan offer for the stimulation of the Nigerian economy.
Or are they just propaganda in which the sale of national assets is also one of them?. The government hopes to generate about $15billion from the sales. And personally, I think if we can hold on to the measures and agreements above( the loan agreement, AFDB pledge, Eurobond, etc), the country can be able to generate up to $14billion from them and will be enough to stimulate the economy than just to sell those assets.
Yet, all they could think of now is to sell the Nations pride? Even if they want to embark on the sale, they can start from the sales of those assets that are more of a liability than asset to the country and not the ones that are sure and capable of generating revenue for the country year in year out.
In my record here, Nigeria has about 10 presidential jets. We should not quickly forget the promise made by the present administration concerning those presidential jets. Their cost of maintenance is enough burden for us to bear. Why not start from there or from the enormous income received by the legislators every year, instead of deciding on selling those productive assets that generates revenue to the Nation.
So for me, the sale of the productive National assets is a 'no go area' as well as an economic sabotage!