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Tag: administration

  • Digital land administration:  Al-Makura signs 1,800 Cs-of-O in six years

    Digital land administration:  Al-Makura signs 1,800 Cs-of-O in six years

    The Governor of Nasarawa State, Alhaji Umaru Tanko Almakura, has signed over 1,800 Certificates of Occupancy  (Cs-of-O) since assumption of office in 2011.

    The issuance of the Cs of O was in line with the  digital land administration policy put in place by the governor.

    The Commissioner for  Lands and Town Planning, Mr. Sonny Agassi, made this known yesterday in an interview with newsmen in Lafia, the state capital.

    Agassi said the Nasarawa Geographic Information Services (NAGIS), a component of the Nasarawa Development Platform, has revolutionized land administration in the state, making it possible for land owners to process their land titles within 24 hours.

    He said between1996 and 1999 when the military held sway, a total of 310 certificates were issued.

    He said  while  214 Certificates of Occupancy were issued between 1999 and 2007, 24 certificates were signed and delivered  from 2007 to 2011.

    He said NAGIS has supported Almakura administration’s policy thrust  through the “strengthening of decision making by providing spatial information, data and services to all government ministries and agencies.”

    He  said the computerization of the cadastral and land registry has also “provided a platform for transparent land transactions and the optimization of workflows  which has improved efficiency in land administration and improved revenue generation, thereby making it possible to project the signing of over 5000 Cs-of-O before 2019.”

    While advising members of the public to take advantage of the robust land policy in the state, Agassi said land management in the state has “stimulated economic development by enabling citizens and private enterprises to register land and property and secure their investments in a transparent and safe system”

    He added: “This has resulted in significant increases in revenues generated. It is important to note that these revenues are sustainable as conveying more Cs-of-O will result in increased ground rent collections”.

    “As more people obtain Cs-of-O,  there is increased investment in the development of new property resulting in development control charges, property taxes and tenement rates”.

    The commissioner emphasized that other remarkable benefits of his administration’s land policy include the complete mapping of the entire state with 10cm ortho-photos of six urban areas and 25cm for all rural areas covering a total of 27,000 square-kilometres of digital aerial photography, the only state in the entire country to complete such mapping.

  • Karimi to Bello: your administration is inhuman

    Karimi to Bello: your administration is inhuman

    A lawmaker, Sunday Karimi (Yagba Federal Constituency), Kogi State,  has described the administration of Governor Yahaya Bello as “inhuman and wicked”.

    He advised Bello to start packing his belongings from Lugard House because the suffering masses, those he has inflicted with poverty, are set to vote him out of office in 2019.

    Karimi spoke at the home of Musa Ahmadu, former secretary to the state government, during a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) stakeholders’ meeting. He lamented the level of poverty, hunger and deaths, due to hardship, recorded under Bello’s leadership, and boasted that PDP will take the state in 2019.

    According

    The lawmaker noted that suffering, as is currently witnessed in the state, calls for worries, with people dying daily owing to pain inflicted on them by the government. He said the PDP is tired of complaints about the government’s lack of focus and direction.

    The meeting, Karimi said, was to educate members of happenings so as to be ready to chase the APC out of Lugard House.

    According to him, members should begin to spread the message that the present administration is out to inflict hardship on the people, and that only a change with the PDP will remedy the situation.

    His words: “I want you to assess your lives; are you progressing or retrogressing under Bello? He is busy acquiring properties, yet, he can’t pay salaries, leading to the death of our people. Bello, get prepared and pack out of Lugard House.”

    In his welcome remarks, Vice Chairman of the PDP West Senatorial District Kola Ojo, said the meeting was geared towards intimating members on development and the need to reunite for victory in 2019.

    He said the ruling APC has failed, describing the leadership of Bello as lacking the needed bite and purpose.

    The governor and his spokesman could not be reached for comments as at last night.

     

  • X-ray of two years of Buhari administration

    I deliberately chose to use the imagery of an X-ray, a medical device used to ascertain the state of ones lungs and heart to discuss two years of the Buhari administration. An X-ray can show how healthy a person is and what has to be done to regain one’s health or perhaps show that one’s health is so bad that a surgical operation would need to be done to save the patient. In this case the patient is both Nigeria and to a lesser extent the APC as a party in government.

    Some two years ago many Nigerians, including my humble self, felt that our country was so badly governed that it had gone to the dogs so to say and we wanted a change. We were so desperate for a change that any alternative would have been preferred. Then came the bringing together of some disparate political groupings of the CPC, the ACN and a breakaway faction of the PDP. After serious negotiations it was agreed that General Muhammadu Buhari who had failed three times to be elected president should carry the flag of the APC against the incumbent President Goodluck Jonathan of the PDP.

    Buhari brought to the ticket a messianic figure especially among the poor particularly in the north the so-called talakawa and the intellectual elite in the south which felt Nigeria was too big and important to be led by a bumbling leader like Jonathan whose only qualification for the post was that he represented an ethnic minority as well as the oil-producing region of the country. The argument was that even if he represented those two important elements, he had demonstrated no capacity to benefit the region. All that he was doing was to open up the treasury to a minuscule of people from the oil producing region as well as other Nigerians grovelling before him to share the patrimony and treasure of the country. His regime not only shared the proceeds of the oil of the country, he also in the words of President Olusegun Obasanjo turned the tragedy of Boko Haram overrunning the north-east of the country into an ATM for those around him. Military procurement was turned into a free for all while the children of poor people who constitute the bulk of the army rank and file were sent poorly kitted sometimes without shoes and with weapons that would not fire to confront better armed Boko Haram insurgents. While this was going on he and his minister of Abuja shared between them hundreds of hectares of land for “agricultural purposes” in Abuja. One hopes that whatever can be forfeited to the people and government of Nigeria will be swiftly recovered from all those who have appropriated public property for personal benefit .Two years is long enough for us to begin to see the result of “change”. HopE deferred can lead to frustrations.

    Buhari promised to drive away Boko Haram from the north-eastern part of the country. I believe he has succeeded in this endeavour but more needs to be done. Boko Haram is still striking at it wishes in the North-east and the Chibok girls and other captured Nigerians are still in Boko Haram prison in the forest. Some people including government officials are allegedly feeding and feasting on the tragedy of the displaced and apparently abused victims of this terrible problem. About half a million children are said to be out of school and roaming around in the North-east. Unfortunately this will be the army of a future insurgency unless something is done. There is a need for coordination of federal, state and NGO’s effort in tackling the problem of the IDPS. It is haram for any individual or group to feed fat on the tragedies of others. There is a need for the army to make the final push aided by the police and all other security agencies to stamp out insecurity. Including cattle rustling and herdsmen menace all over the country. This is an area where this government has failed.

    The economy in the last two years has been in recession caused by external shocks and militancy in the Niger Delta as well as our country’s hopeless dependency on hydrocarbon exports.  It is hoped that the effort at diversification of the economy will work and that we will never again be held hostage by the international oil cartels and the militants in the Niger Delta. Our hope will be further boosted when the Dangote petrochemical industry in Lagos comes on stream late 2018 which will lead to national self-sufficiency in gasoline and other petroleum products currently being imported with foreign exchange which could have enhanced the value of our currency as well as used for highly needed imports that could boost our local productivity. This government must block forever all avenues for looting. This may require separate revenue courts to try by jury of ordinary people economic crimes. By doing so, the hordes of lawyers benefiting from the economic sabotage and misfortune of the country will be put in their places. This government must publish names and amount of money recovered from looters and money so recovered must not be lumped with general revenue but appropriated for special projects such as strategic roads and railways.

    The infrastructure of this country still needs much to be desired. Roads are bad.  Telecommunications are poor and inefficient and electricity is virtually non-existent in major urban area as well as in the rural areas of the country. We need 100,000 megawatts not the 3000 megawatts that have been available for the past decade without noticeable increase in spite of billions of dollars spent on the sector. There can be no industrialization without electricity. There is need to declare emergency in this sector and open it to the rest of the world with whatever incentive that is needed.

    Finally we have to X-ray the politics of this regime. I am sorry to say that it took the regime two years before waking up to the demands of those who brought it into power for board and other appointments. When it was done, the appointments went to the wrong people especially to remnants of the old discredited regime. This regime seems averse to benefiting from the intellectual elite particularly in the south. The regime can learn one or two things from Bola Ahmed Tinubu whose regime and subsequent ones in Lagos State have been rewarded by their co-option of this critical group into governance. Most of the beneficiaries of this regime were in the previous regime or stood askance when the campaign was on to dislodge the previous corrupt regime. It is also clear that President Buhari’s political horizon is not as wide as it should be. He has not made use of the best people in the country who supported the movement to remove the last regime. He should have used political appointments to build a unified and united APC whose supporters will be committed foot-soldiers of the party in 2019 irrespective of whoever is at the head of its presidential ticket. The president should also have used political appointments to lure into the party people who did not support him so that he can build a mass movement around the party. Disaffection with his government is palpable in the South-west where party people feel they have been dealt a bad hand. This government must hearken to the voice and desire of the people to restructure the country. If the question of restructuring of the country is an emotive issue, the issue of devolution of power and resources should not be. A situation in which civil servants ,teachers, doctors and public servants generally all over the country are being owed a year or even two years salaries has become untenable and an urgent necessity. From revelations in recent times, looting of the treasury is mostly concentrated in the federal domain where there is too much power and resources and little managerial capacity to handle so much funds. I am not saying stealing is not going on at states level but the incidence of roguery at the centre compels us to demand devolution of resources and responsibilities. All parts of the country will benefit from it and it should not be seen as a zero sum game by any part of the country. It is better to manage this kind of devolution from above than wait for it from below.

  • Buhari administration’s mid-term score-card

    As the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari clocks two years in office days from now, it is pertinent to take an X-ray of the regime in terms of its performance in the critical areas of its campaign promises and in those areas that Nigerians wanted action taken.

    The three critical areas where the nation had problems which needed fixing, were in the areas of national security, fight against corruption and revitalizing a non-performing economy whose future was hanging in the balance because of the twin problems of dependence on one revenue-earning product, crude oil and the more important fact that the price of that commodity, crude oil, had fallen very low in the world market.

    The task before President Buhari was daunting and he even confessed to the media that when he realized the enormity of the problems confronting the nation, notably the paucity of revenue to pursue much-needed development programmes, he considered at times to throw in the towel! The soldier in him of course made giving up, a non-option and he moved on doggedly, confronting the national problems head-on assisted by a cabinet in which he had confidence and a supportive Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo.

    Though Nigeria is still battling economic difficulties, the time for applause is coming slowly but surely as the nation commences the laborious march out of recession.

    The administration of PMB has performed fairly well in dealing with the insecurity problem that once loomed large on the national horizon. PMB got the nation’s armed forces to rout the Boko Haram, degrading the latter from a confident and rampaging band of insurgents to a rag-tag nuisance that now seek to ambush and throw bombs at the gallant soldiers of the Nigeria Army. Boko Haram can no longer stand and fight as in the days when they held sway. Today, they have lost the nerve and initiative to stand in battle and life in general is coming back to the troubled North-east zone of the country.

    The icing on the cake, which is a good anniversary package for millions of Nigerians and the people of the troubled North east, is the release into freedom of 82 additional girls hitherto kidnapped from the Government Secondary School, Chibok in Borno State on May 6. Freedom for this large number of girls is a source of great joy to anyone who comes from a family or community bearing in mind the long period of their captivity.

    Given the fact that there cannot be a 100 percent situation of security in any human environment, the security situation in the country today, is quite tolerable and is one in which meaningful life can take place. No more is the nation going around cap in hand asking for help from our foreign partners for security assistance and arms. The situation has fairly stabilized and the nation’s military have entered a phase of consolidation of the security situation.

    In the area of anti-corruption, it is a boom! Never before has the anti-corruption agencies in the country exposed so much graft, so much greed, so much wickedness and so much lack of compassion among the nation’s elite. It is a sort of bonanza. Everyone, including the ordinary citizen, now knows those who betrayed them, stole their patrimony, leaving the nation prostrate and incapable of providing them the basic means of existence, jobs, salaries and their meagre pension benefits. The whistleblower policy activated by the Buhari administration to enable citizen participation in the anti-corruption war, is the single most important catalyst now driving the war against corruption and given it a life of its own.

    The issue of concern to many Nigerians are, what kind of sanctions to mete out to the growing list of national robbers and looters so as to discourage others from towing similar path and prevent the poor and desperate citizens including the young, from holding up thieves as role models.

    The prevailing position is that forfeiture of stolen assets to the state is not sufficient punishment for the looters. It is recommended that the government working with the nation’s judiciary, should ensure compulsory jail terms of not less than 20 years for those who contributed to the nation’s adversity, as well as banning such dubious persons from seeking for office.

    To his credit, the administration of PMB, is battling recession and the good news is that the country will come out victorious by the time most policies being put in place today, start to germinate.

    First, under the Social Investment Programme (SIP) of the PMB government, thousands of indigent Nigerians across the country have been receiving the N5,000 stipend promised by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) during the campaign for the 2015 elections. While this does not amount to much in view of the high inflation in the economy, at least it gives confidence and promise of better days for this class of Nigerians. Second, thousands of unemployed graduates who would have remained a pain in the neck of their families have been massively employed under the emergency teacher’s programme of the present administration. This class of educated Nigerians would have the self-esteem of earning a salary with the expectation that as the economy improves in the nearest future and the nation exits recession, according to the skills and knowledge of these young and educated, they would be absorbed into other critical areas of the economy. This is the popular N-Power job scheme which as we are told, would be expanded in 2017 to accommodate a total of 350,000 young and educated persons of different grades.

    Perhaps, most revolutionary in the effort to revamp the economy and create employment is the steady and successful diversification of the economy. Agriculture and food production has taken the lead here. The administration has put in place the Anchor Borrowers Scheme under which farmers across the country are able to borrow money and improve their activities. So far, millionaires in large numbers have been created in a number of states across the country in the area of rice production. Rice farmers are not only becoming wealthy, they are able to provide employment to willing hands on the farms as they increase the acreage under cultivation. The magic that is happening here is that with the ban on rice imports, national revenue being used in the past to import the commodity are being conserved while steadily Nigerians have started to export the same commodity and earn foreign exchange.

    The determination of the government to ensure that Nigerians can feed themselves, gives hopes that the success recorded in rice production would be replicated with other food and cash crops. Most states in the country are now going seriously into agricultural production taking cognizance of their comparative advantage in certain areas.

    Recently, the acting President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, announced that the administration of PMB would give support to the poultry industry. When this happens, it is expected that production would increase and the present high prices of chicken and eggs would come down. This would increase employment in the sector, contribute to the fight against inflation and improve the quality of nutrition of Nigerians.

    In view of the mess which PMB found in place in May 2015, the government is doing well so far on the economy. As more sectors are brought within the radar of government support, as envisaged under the recently-released economic blueprint, the Economic Reform and Growth Plan (EGRP), the new development agenda for Niger Delta and the new guidelines on ease of doing business among others, at both the national and state levels, it is certain that by the end of 2017, the present harsh economic climate would to a large degree have run its course, paving way for visible recovery of the economy.

     

    • Okoroma is a political analyst and lives in Abuja.

  • Ogun harps on effective LG administration

    In a bid to ensure improved  performance of local government functionaries for effective administration at all levels, the Ogun State Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs in partnership with the Local Government Service Commission has organised a one-day interactive session for the chairmen of local governments and local council development areas, secretaries, and heads of local government administration across the 20 local government councils and 37 LCDAs in the state.

    In his opening speech at the Obas’ Complex Conference Hall, Speaker, Ogun State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Suraj Adekunbi called on Local Government functionaries to put all hands on deck to ensure that dividends of democracy were equally distributed to pave way for even and meaningful development in the state.

    Adekunbi said the interactive session was not only timely but an avenue to address various administrative challenges that could likely arise in the course of proper take-off of the Local Government Management.

    The Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Chief Jide Ojuko  also pointed out that the retreat was designed to prepare both appointed and elected officers to the task ahead as well as equip them with the wherewithal required to enrich their knowledge for effective service delivery. “This programme is interactive in nature to enable all local government leaders compared notes with one another and cross fertilize ideas with a view to positively affecting the lives of the people at various grassroots levels,

    In his remarks, the Chairman Local Government Service Commission, Comrade Rotimi Rahmon added that the interactive session was an avenue for key players in the Local Government Administration to gather and exchange ideas as well as synergize to ensure a successful tenure collectively.

    Rahman also urged participants to foster harmonious relationship with their immediate communities as this would help achieve optimal realisation of greater achievements across the various communities.

  • Buhari administration and minimum wage

    SIR: If there was any guess in the public sphere as to the commitment of the Buhari administration to lessening the sufferings of Nigerians, an unprecedented act of compassion on July 6, 2015, barely a month in office, cleared it all. That day, the President approved a whopping sum of N1.2 trillion to bail out bankrupt states and enable them pay a long list of embarrassing arrears of workers’ salaries.  The President again went on further rescue when on December 2, 2016, he approved another round of N522 billion to states. The Paris Club refund of March 16, was also to enable the states discharge their primary obligations and fight poverty by putting money in the hands of the people.

    Equally worthy of mention is the sum of N16 billion earmarked in the 2016 budget for partial offset of an accumulated promotion arrears, retirement benefits, death benefits and re-location allowances totaling about N63 billion owed since 2008.  Though the virement expired with the budget, it has been recaptured in 2017 budget and is expected to be disbursed to deserving workers once the budget is passed.

    The issue of the minimum wage which has received a lot of prominence, and is in fact the crux of the May Day agitation needs elaboration here. Unknowing to the generality of workers but very well known to their leaders, the Federal Government has committed enormous effort towards the review of the law which the constitution made mandatory every five years. Nigerians will easily recall that when in May last year the Federal Government effected the appropriate pricing of petroleum products, it subsequently set up a Technical Committee on Minimum Wage and Palliatives.  It comprised government officials and labour leaders; and chaired by the suspended Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Engr. B.D Lawal. The committee rounded off its assignment, recommending a broad based, knowledgeable 29-member minimum wage committee, soon to be inaugurated by the President.

    However, it should be borne in mind that the Minimum Wage is a national law, properly scheduled in the Constitution and binding not just on the Federal Government and the states but also on the private sector, hence the reason for  tripartite negotiation. Therefore when the committee on Minimum Wage is inaugurated by the President, it will table a broad based negotiation involving the federal and state governments as one leg of the tripartite; the employers represented by the National Employers Consultative Assembly (NECA) the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria( MAN) National Association of Chambers of Commerce as well as associations in the Small and  Medium Enterprises. On the other hand, the recognized federation of labour unions represented by the Nigeria Labour congress (NLC) the Trade Union Congress (TUC) will represent the organized labour. However, other unions not affiliated  to either NLC or TUC are not necessarily shut out from the negotiation. Therefore, it is going to be a large body of negotiators in compliance with the International Labour Organisation  (ILO) convention  before an acceptable minimum wage is arrived at.

    Verily, the passage of time in between deliberations from this committee, the Federal Executive Council and the National Assembly may be a little long but it is sure a new minimum wage is real and in the offing.

     

    • Simeon O’diwe,  

    Abuja.

  • Recipe for successful grassroots administration

    The Chairman, Local Government Service Commission, Alhaji Babatunde Tajudeen Rotinwa has launched a book on local government administration in Nigeria.

    The book entitled Best Practices in Local Government Administration in Nigeria: A Practitioner’s Perspective was presented to the public at the Ikorodu Musical Village.

    The event featured the formal inauguration of the author’s Annual Award for Excellence in Local Government Administration in Lagos State.

    Rotinwa said his experience in service spurred him to write the book.

    He said: “I feel honoured. I must say the experiences I gathered while serving were beautiful ones even though the allocation both from the state and federal levels was very little then. On coming on ground, what I met was very disappointing.

    “I have always wanted to write a book but that discovery motivated me to do it for those who have served to put extra effort. Both the elected and appointed officials are meant to allow people feel the impact of governance. When you look around, it is only the state government that is performing.’’

    Mr Rotinwa further explained that the book is all-encompassing as it contains all that is needed to know about local government administration.

    He said: “We have documented the history of local government administration in the book as well as the interpersonal relationship that should exist between local government officers and the people.

    “Also, budget management is crucial to the success of grassroots governance. Once the budget is approved, you set the target; the daily, monthly and annual targets have to be set aside. As they collect revenues, there is need for continuous assessment. Officers in local governments should remember that they should plan with the people and not for the people. Whether the people are rich, poor, able or disabled, they are meant to be carried along.’’

    Reviewing the book, Prof. Adele Jinadu said the author has showcased in the book that grassroots-based institution mechanism is good for nurturing and facilitating a sustainable and democratic development in the country, adding that the primary objective of the author which he has been able to pinpoint in the book is to proffer solutions to problems of local governments in order to ensure an effective and transparent local government system in Nigeria.

    The Chairman of the event, Senator Oluremi Tinubu was represented by the former Executive Secretary of Lagos Mainland Local Government Area, Mrs Omolola Essien.

    In her remarks, she commended the effort of Alhaji Rotinwa in writing the book from which others would draw inspiration in terms of local government administration. She added that the book will serve as an essential reference in future.

    She said: “The author has been able to provide this so that we can tap from his knowledge. If you read this, you will have insight about local government administration. Also, today there will be an award which will be a motivation for all local government workers in Lagos State. I want to thank and congratulate the author on his efforts. I encourage you all to buy this book and also keep it in the library for reference purpose.’’

    Wife of Lagos State Governor, Mrs Abimbola Ambode was represented by Mrs Abiola Agunbiade.

    In her address, she noted that the book will sufficiently enlighten people on all issues that bother on local government administration.

    “This seasoned administrator has seen it all. If he had not captured his wealth of experience in this written form, who else would have talked about it? I must also commend the inauguration of the award of excellence for deserving senior service officials. This will motivate others too,’’ she said.

    Representative of Lagos State Deputy Governor, Mrs. Titilayo Sholarin equally praised the author for his efforts in writing the book, having served meritoriously before retirement.

    She said:  ”I have always believed that the development of local government administration is a catalyst in realising a better country. Therefore, this book will  provide vital information on local government administration.

    The Permanent Secretary Lagos State Civil Service Commission, Mrs, Omobolanle Ogunmola and other dignitaries attended the event.

  • Time ticks for Buhari administration

    SIR: Before the last presidential election, which brought Muhammadu Buhari to power, millions of Nigerians from diverse ethnic groups were totally dispirited, disillusioned, and disenchanted with Dr. Goodluck Jonathan’s uninspiring, lacklustre, and directionless political leadership. He couldn’t embark on infrastructural development of the country. More so, tardiness marked his administration, and he condoned acts of corruption of high magnitude, which was bleeding our economy dry, then. But,   more worrisome was his inability to contain the Boko Haram’s terrorist onslaught in the North-east.

    So, Muhammadu Buhari, who is reputed to be whistle-clean as well as incorruptible, rode on the people’s discontentment and disenchantment with Jonathan’s political leadership to win the last presidential election. And the APC’s electioneering slogan of change, which resonated with us, contributed immensely and significantly to his electoral success. A Muslim teetotaler with Spartan lifestyle, Buhari is believed to be the political messiah, who can right the wrongs in our political polity, transform our economy, heal our ethnic and religious fissures, and set Nigeria on the path of irreversible and sustainable technological growth.

    Now, it has dawned on us that it takes more than a leader’s probity and great dislike for corruption for him to fix the many ills of a country. Is he aware that political leadership is not only about giving us endless promises, and vowing to eradicate corruption from our body politic? The dip in global oil prices has affected our economy adversely. We read in the newspaper about a man who pawned off his child for a bag of rice. And countless government workers in some cash-strapped states, who are owed arrears of salaries, are scavenging in refuse dump for food. So what are the palliative economic measures, which he has put in place to cushion the effects of the economic hardship on the people?

    Instead of staying at home to tackle our economic problems, he would jet out to foreign countries for summits and conferences like a man bitten by the bug of wanderlust when he could have sent his ministers to stand in for him at those global meetings and summits. Thankfully, he has scaled down his foreign travels.

    It is imperative for him to stay at home and tackle the issue of our economic woes. When anger wells up in the bosoms of hungry people, they’re not incapable of igniting revolution in a country, or throwing it into political instability.

    And the issues of the economic deprivation of the masses, Fulani herdsmen’s unremitting murderous activities, the Boko haram’s insurgency, militancy in the Niger-delta,  and the IPOB’s  agitation for statehood or political sovereignty are divisive deeds that can throw Nigeria into a civil war. Instead of comforting himself with the convenient delusion that Nigeria’s unity as well as indivisibility is inviolable and sacrosanct, he should enunciate and implement economic policies that will improve our living standard, and entrench lasting and sustainable unity in the country by ensuring that social justice, egalitarianism, equity and fairness, and the rule of law exist here.

     

    • Chiedu Uche Okoye,

    Uruowulu-Obosi, Anambra State.

  • Buhari administration’s disturbing deficits

    There appears to be an erroneous assumption that, when the Presidency and its complements of staff have been elected and appointed, then the structures of governance have been formed and other structures become dispensable or redundant. Even more worrisome is the scant regard paid to the statutory guidelines enabling the governance structures of some federal commissions, boards, agencies and other relevant institutions. An important example is the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), wherein paragraph 14 of the 1999 constitution (as amended) clearly stated that the board of INEC shall comprise of 13 members without floating any provisos requiring piecemeal, staggered or discretional constitution of the board. Since the inception of the current administration, Nigerians have witnessed serial constitutional violations, starting with an illegitimate appointment of an interim-chairperson of INEC by proclamation, which made no reference to the Council of State and Senate approval as required under section 154 of the constitution. This was followed later by a piecemeal appointment of the board of INEC, without an amendment of the constitution to enable piecemeal appointments, yet the National Assembly appeared cowed and intimidated to ask the executive to follow the path of constitutionality by exercising their oversight functions.

    The proper constitution of governance structures in a democratic society is not a discretional whim of the President; those who are appointed may be by his discretion, except where specific directional orders are made by statute, but the proper constitution of such institutions centres around the core notion of governance. Most development authorities agree with the description, that governance defines the practices, traditions and decision-making processes which characterize a society, how the people identify and solve problems, meet needs, and take advantage of opportunities. For instance, elections meet the need of democratic society to select leaders through the aggregate assent of constituents in the form of votes. To meet this need, a body is constituted that is fairly representative of the zones of Nigeria, these representatives guided by the constitution, the Electoral Act and other statutes, make guidelines for conducting elections. How the decisions they make to effect these needs are reached is important to how the public perceive the legality of their actions and therefore its credibility, legitimacy and acceptability. It is, therefore, a developmental defect in governance, and consequently a defect in the practices, traditions, decision-making process in election management as required for a democratic society, when the executive arm of government  discretionally decides without reference to enabling constitutional provisions to appoint the board of INEC, a governance structure, provided for by law in a piecemeal fashion by appointing seven instead of the 13 members required by law, to make decisions which are only considered legal and constitutional when a minimum of five of the statutory 13 members meet to take such decisions on election matters. It is only then that it is properly constituted.

    The same nonchalance in the requirements of proper democratic governance is evident in the constitution of federal boards dissolved by the Buhari administration. The statutes enabling these boards envisage that such boards constitute significant accounting layers in the decision making of such institutions. Persistent  failures to properly constitute such boards concentrates decision-making centrally, or worse still, it places in abeyance, core functions of such institutions where higher level decision-making are needed to generate implementable recommendations. In other instances such as the case of the AMCON, appointees where named and empowered without following due processes. These developments suggest a gap in the consistency of tradition and practices of the democratic functions which should define governance in Nigeria. Allowing such gaps to grow rather than being addressed may lead to regressions in institution building required to consolidate democracy in Nigeria.

    The case of INEC is particularly worrisome because when the President dissolved the boards of federal agencies in July 2015, he rightly exempted those executive boards mentioned specifically in section 153 of the 1999 Constitution such as INEC, NPC, the Code of Conduct Bureau etc. Whereas the Presidency conceded to the importance of such boards, yet it did not follow up with the proactive appointment of the full board of INEC, despite the fact that the board was primed to conduct gubernatorial elections in 2015 and 2016. It only conducted a reactive appointment of six members to join the only remaining one legal member making a total of seven out of the constitutionally prescribed 13 members, and this was after it was reminded by key players in the Civil Society that a subsisting court judgment had pronounced elections illegal, if conducted by a commission which had no quorum that meets the statutory requirements envisaged from a full member board.

    While other boards and statutory bodies are very important, INEC has been used to instantiate these governance deficits because of the fundamental role it plays as a foundation stone for a democratic society, and the touchstone of early developmental drive. Most recent authoritative work on the fundamental requirements for enduring development are in consensus that strengthening institutions which form multiple pathways of decision-making blends the gap between representative and participatory democracy. If the object of electing representatives is to ensure that the interest of the voters and constituents are well represented as delegated to elected officials, then involving more participants in the decision-making practices and traditions of society through such boards, commissions and councils broadens the goal of democracy. Whereas concentrating all decision-making in Abuja with limited representation in public institutions such as INEC, through piecemeal appointments runs counter to such goals.

    The constitutional requirement for a properly constituted INEC is clearly stated as 13 national commissioners, who in making decisions for elections and election matters according to section 159 of the constitution must have a quorum of not less than five, determined only from a full board of 13. At the moment INEC has an inconclusive and inchoate board of only seven members and if they sit as five members or seven, what quorum does this represent? Is it a five member quorum of seven or a five member quorum of a hypothetical but non-existent 13?

    The minimum quorum envisaged by the constitution is that calculated or determined from a 13 full member board and not a mere bringing of five people together to assume the role of a “provisional” board. The regression currently in INEC is a sad commentary given that constituting such a board properly in line with the provisions of the constitution is for national development.

    It is not only worrisome that president Buhari almost eight months in office has been unable to properly constitute the board of INEC that was previously made up of men of integrity that made it possible for him to win the 2015 election, it is disappointing that in making the limited appointments he has done, he has not given the commission the needed credibility it requires by appointing people with proven track records that will attract the confidence of all political stakeholders.

    • Dr. Adewale writes from Ibadan, Oyo State.

  • As new administration takes over in Kogi

    SIR: Yahaya Bello is set to take over the mantle of leadership as the sixth democratically elected governor of Kogi State at a time when the state’s share of revenue accruable from the federation account is nose diving.

    Considering the prevailing economic realities coupled with the urgent need to rescue our people from the shackles of poverty and hunger, the exigency of the moment demands that the incoming administration looks inward for funds to better the lots of our people. Ours is a civil service state with over 75% of the working population being under the employment of the state and local government. This means that a lion share of the state’s resources is being channeled into payment of workers’ salaries, pension and gratuity, and other allowances. The honest truth is that no state can thrive or performs optimally when majority of its resource is used in paying salaries and allowances.

    As it currently stands, the Internally Generated Revenue IGR of the state is nothing to write home about, I am an advocate of the fact that state has no business waiting for monthly allocations from the federation account before workers’ salaries are paid. As a matter of fact, I fully support the proposition that any state whose IGR can’t pay salaries of its workforce should cease to exist as a state or rather be merged with another to make it more viable.

    Available records and statistics shows that only Lagos and Kano states can conveniently pay its workers from their IGR with not having to wait on monthly federal allocations from Abuja. The need for Kogi State to put machinery in motion at speedily increasing the state’s IGR is a task which the incoming administration should embark on as a matter of priority. Moving Kogi State from its present status of a civil service state into an industrialized one that would ensure creation of ample jobs, for our teaming unemployed youth and curb the prevailing hunger, poverty and restiveness as promised by the APC during the gubernatorial campaigns can only come to fruitions through an improved IGR.

    The fact that Lagos state has been able to boost its IGR base through effective collection and prompt remission of taxes into the state’s account is no longer news. The new administration should borrow from the expertise of tax administrators and workers of its Lagos State counterpart. Training and retraining of staff of the Kogi State Revenue Service by either inviting experts from Lagos to come and train ours or sponsoring staff to Lagos to be trained is highly indicated and needed at this moment if Kogi is to benefit and learn from the “magic” of Lagos State as far of as taxes collection and remission of revenues are concerned.

    The greatest asset of any state is its people i.e. its human resources. Luckily, Kogi State is well blessed and endowed with brilliant, agile, enterprising and a hardworking people which if effectively put to use and harnessed can turn the revenue base of the state around. The time for us to de-emphasize reliance on oil money from Abuja is now. God has already blessed the confluence state with abundant mineral resources which if prudently tapped has the capacity to replace crude oil and make Kogi one of the richest states in the federation.

    Ghost-worker-syndrome which has been a conduit pipe through which the state’s meager resource is being milked by corrupt individuals should be carefully tackled through a well programmed and comprehensive staff audit or workers biometric registration. This will ensure that only people who are genuinely under the employment of government get paid and further blocked leakages. Previous administrations since creation of the state have treated the issue of pension and gratuity with levity, leaving our senior citizens who have served the state in their youth days to suffer unduly and languish in penury, the prevailing condition where some state pensioners still earns as meager as N5000 monthly should be looked into and reviewed upward as a matter of priority.

     

    • Hussain Obaro,

    Lokoja, Kogi State.