Olumide Emmanuel, CEO of Common Sense Group, is making the case that Nigeria cannot afford to sit on its oil revenues. His argument is straightforward: without serious investment in infrastructure, the money flowing in from oil will never reach ordinary Nigerians.
Emmanuel brings a broad economic lens to the conversation. His background spans multiple sectors, and that range of experience shapes how he reads the gap between what Nigeria earns and what its people actually feel in their daily lives.
The point he is pressing is one that economists and everyday Nigerians have long echoed. Oil wealth concentrated at the top, without roads, power, and systems to move it outward, stays at the top. Infrastructure is the channel, and right now, that channel needs work.
Whether policymakers are listening is the question worth watching.
Originally published by BusinessDay.