Bismarck Rewane Questions the Credibility of NBS’s Newly Released Inflation Data
Bismarck Rewane, managing director of Financial Derivatives Company, has cast serious doubts on the credibility of the National Bureau of Statistics’ (NBS) recently released Consumer Price Index (CPI). The NBS reported that Nigeria’s headline inflation fell slightly to 23.71 per cent in April 2025 from 24.23 per cent in March. However, Rewane contends that the data masks deep regional disparities.
According to Rewane, food-producing states such as Benue, Ekiti, and Kebbi are suffering from soaring inflation, recording rates of 51, 34, and 33 per cent respectively, while the rates in major consuming states like Ebonyi, Adamawa, and Ogun remain comparatively low at 7.19, 9.52, and 9.91 per cent. “How come the states that are producing the food, and the food is stranded there at higher prices, while the states that are consuming the food are having low rates? What has happened?” Rewane asked.
Drawing parallels with the 2025 Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) exam scandal, which was marred by technical errors and compromised results, he suggested the CPI figures might similarly suffer from methodological distortions. He argued that the stark 43 per cent inflation gap between Benue and Ogun challenges the integrity of the underlying data.
Rewane further critiqued the volatility in staple food prices, noting that while rice prices have fluctuated due to import issues and fears over “poison rice,” other items like tomatoes have skyrocketed by 107 per cent amid supply challenges. He stressed that government interventions, in his view, fail to stabilise food prices effectively. Instead, he called for market-driven solutions supported by power supply, logistics, and farm production improvements to restore economic balance.
