Reno Omokri, a former aide to former President Goodluck Jonathan, has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to issue an Executive Order to ban sports betting apps. Omokri believes that this would help improve the economic conditions of Nigerians and strengthen the Naira. He claims that $1 billion is spent daily on gambling in Nigeria and that the majority of this money leaves the country. He argues that by taking action against gambling, the Naira can have a better chance of sustaining its value.
He said: “President Tinubu can immediately improve the economic conditions of most Nigerians and make the Naira grow by issuing an Executive Order authorising the Nigerian Communications Commission to ban sports betting apps from the App Store of any GSM Internet Service Provider in Nigeria and revoking the licences of any physical sports betting operators in Nigeria. It makes better sense than Buhari’s draconian #TwitterBan.
“There is such an epidemic of gambling in Nigeria and it is destroying Nigerian youths. $1 billion is spent on gambling daily in Nigeria, according to the National Lottery Trust Fund. Please fact-check me.
“The average Nigerian spends $15 daily on sports betting and other types of gambling, with the vast majority of that amount leaving our economy and going to places like Russia, South Africa, and Europe. The Naira can never sustain its rally under such circumstances.
