The Greater Accra Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Otunba Lukman Taiwo Bakare has opined that Nigeria’s lack of diversity and over-dependence on oil is the primary reason the country is still yet to secure the financial future of its citizens.

Nigeria, since the discovery of oil in 1956 relegated every other viable source of income to the back burner, investing a chunk of state resources in horning the black gold.

More than 70 years down the line, several successive militaries and democratically elected governments have been unsuccessful with the diversification of the economy, the others turned deaf ear to the calls of many who have warned on the over-reliance on the commodity.

Speaking in a virtual panel session with other political minds on MyNigeria TV, Otumba Lukman said Nigeria can only be successful when policymakers focus more on agriculture.

He argues that agriculture before the emergence of oil made Nigeria the envy of many. He said cocoa, palm oil, and groundnut made Nigeria one of the most prosperous country in the region.

“The only way Nigeria can be progressive, can be successful is agriculture but are focusing on oil. Nigeria cannot be prosperous with oil no matter what.

“We can be making maybe 10 million barrels a day but we can't get there but if we could be able to invest in Agriculture....Look at during the 60s and 70s, we have cocoa in the South, we have palm oil in the East and groundnut from Kano. These three products made Nigeria a great country then.”

“Ghanaians often refer to the Naira as Naira power. Naira was greater than the dollar and what gave us those opportunities, it was agriculture. There was nothing like oil then.”

Watch excerpts from the interview from 11:56 to 12:47