President Bola Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Economic Affairs, Dr Tope Fasua, has said that that $1, equivalent to over N1,500, can still buy a meal in Nigeria unlike in the United States.

Fasua said this while addressing the controversy around the value of the naira and poverty in Nigeria, clarifying some of his earlier remarks.

In an interview on Arise TV on Tuesday, Fasua, however, stated that his stance is in no way in denial of the existence of poverty in Nigeria.

He said, “As against those that have been misquoting and sensationalizing, nobody is saying that there’s no poverty in Nigeria. In fact, luckily for me, I got people sending videos from Lagos to Maiduguri, saying that they actually ate for N1,500 yesterday.

“If you’re earning minimum wage and you’re struggling in life, you know, you have to make choices like that.”

Speaking further, Fasua revealed how he found that N2,500 could buy a meal in Lekki, Lagos.

“I was somewhere in Lekki yesterday, precisely Black Bell. I saw that someone could eat for N2,500. N2,500, even in Lekki Face 1. I mean, I didn’t know where to go. Someone just took me there because I had another interview,” he said.

The presidential aide acknowledged the different realities many face, just as he stated that his earlier comment was not mock anyone's situation.

He said, “So, yes, people can’t afford that, I agree. But I think that empirically speaking, my statement was correct. I said something, I said 1,500 is a lot of money to a lot of Nigerians.

“And that’s because I acknowledge the fact that a lot of people are down on their luck and poor. So, saying N1,500 is a lot of money is not a mockery of those who see that as a lot.

“If you are leaving this place now and you gave the security guy 1,000, he will appreciate you. He will have a meal on that. I’m saying that a lot of Nigerians are in that category.”

ASA