Senior Pastor of Paul Adefarasin has triggered widespread reactions online after making a blunt statement about Nigeria’s struggling economy, declaring that “Nigeria is dead” and suggesting that anyone still measuring wealth strictly in naira is “poor.”
“Nigeria Is Dead, Once You Are Counting Your Income in Naira, You Are Poor” – Pastor Paul Adefarasin Sparks Debate on Economic Hardship
Pastor Paul Adefarasin is going viral for his comment on the economic hardship currently affecting Nigeria. The comment was made during a recent sermon at House on the Rock, where Adefarasin addressed Nigeria’s worsening economic realities, particularly the sharp decline in the value of the naira. He compared today’s economy to earlier decades, saying the naira once held far greater value and purchasing power than it does today.
In the now-viral clip, he said: “Nigeria is dead… let’s not deceive ourselves. Once you are counting in naira, you are poor.”I was not born poor cause my father was earning up to like 18 thousand naira in the early 80s and 90s.”
The statement was his way of highlighting how inflation and currency devaluation have eroded the wealth and living standards of ordinary Nigerians. He believes the value of the naira has dropped significantly over the years compared to what it was decades ago.
“Do you know what a billion naira was then when I was 15–16? It was 2.8 billion dollars, and we are taking it cause we live in the now, we don’t study history and don’t even research data,” he added.
His comments have quickly gained traction and sparked mixed reactions online. Some Nigerians agreed, saying his remarks reflected the harsh economic reality many citizens face daily, with rising prices, a weakened naira, and increasing hardship. Others criticised the statement as too harsh and insensitive, arguing that describing the country as “dead” was unnecessarily provocative.
Nigeria has indeed faced persistent economic pressure in recent years, including high inflation, rising unemployment, and currency instability, issues that continue to dominate public discourse.
And Pastor Adefarasin’s comments have brought up the need for another important question ‘just how much strain can ordinary Nigerians endure before economic frustration boils over?
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