Atiku Abubakar, a former Vice President has faulted the decision of the Central Bank of Nigeria to shutdown cryptocurrency operations.

The former Vice President noted that with Nigeria’s economic crisis, the country needs all the help it can get to get out of its present economic quagmire.

He said this in a statement titled, ‘We Need To Open Up Our Economy, Not Close It’, which he signed and made available to newsmen in Abuja, on Saturday.

Atiku said, “The number one challenge facing Nigeria is youth unemployment. In fact, it is not a challenge, it is an emergency. It affects our economy, and is exacerbating insecurity in the nation.

“What Nigeria needs now, perhaps more than ever, are jobs and an opening up of our economy, especially after today’s report by the National Bureau of Statistics indicated that foreign capital inflow into Nigeria is at a four year low, having plummeted from $23.9 billion in 2019, to just $9.68 billion in 2020.

“Already, the nation suffered severe economic losses from the border closure, and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“This is definitely the wrong time to introduce policies that will restrict the inflow of capital into Nigeria, and I urge that the policy to prohibit the dealing and transaction of cryptocurrencies be revisited.”

The former Vice President further said, “It is possible to regulate the sub sector and prevent any abuse that may be inimical to national security. That may be a better option, than an outright shutdown.

“There is already immense economic pressure on our youths. It must be the job of the government, therefore, to reduce that pressure, rather than adding to it.

“We must create jobs in Nigeria. We must expand the economy. We must remove every impediment towards investments. We owe the Nigerian people that much.”