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  • 2019: Nigerians’ expectations from Buhari

    2019: Nigerians’ expectations from Buhari

    The first term of President Muhammadu Buhari will end in 2019. In this report, Assistant Editor LEKE SALAUDEEN highlights the people’s expectations from the government in the next two years.

    President Muhammadu Buhari is two years old in office. A mid-term review will provide the government the opportunity to appraise its performance so far and set a new agenda for the remaining two years.

    The Buhari administration should be judged by the standard it had set for itself; that is, by comparing its performance with the electoral promises. In 2015, the All Progressives Congress (APC) made some promises, all of which could be classified into three: improving security; tackling corruption and carrying out economic reform.

    Of the three, analysts are unanimous that the Buhari administration has acquitted itself creditably in securing the country and sanitising the system through the fight against corruption.

    The Buhari administration was rated high for restoring normalcy in the northeast, following the decimation of the Boko Haram insurgents. The people of Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states now live their normal life. No part of the region or the country is under the control of the terrorists.The  fight against corruption is also on the front burner.

    To a large extent, the consequence of corruption has crept in. One analyst puts it this way: “To a large extent, one would say that there is a consciousness now, even when you interface with government officials that one should not be given to corrupt tendencies. This is something that was not there. What we had before are situations, where people were lawless, unscrupulous and doing things with impunity.”

    However, Nigerians have listed areas that the government should focus and make appreciable impact before 2019, when it is expected to give full account of its stewardship.

    Nigerians are complaining about the country’s declining macro-economic fundamentals that have translated into hardships on their lives, mainly in the form of inflation, which has seen price increases across the board and a depreciated currency, which has affected people’s purchasing power. The  recession has continued to bite harder. Companies lay off workers, others are reducing salaries; businesses are collapsing and the fate of the naira remains uncertain. Nigerians are unanimous on the economy.

    Though Buhari has reassured the nation that the recession will end this year, Nigerians want it to come to end faster because life is becoming tougher daily.

    Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) Secretary-General, Mr Anthony Sani, agreed that the economy is in a crisis, not caused by the Buhari administration. He said the challenges of the economy were obvious. To him, the Buhari administration has been pro-active in tackling the problems.

    Sani explains: “You would recall when the last regime took over in May 2010, the GDP hovered around seven per cent (7%) ; oil price was about $100; foreign reserve was over $45 billion ; excess crude was $22 billion; N150 exchanged for one dollar.

    “But by the time the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) handed over in May 2015, the GDP had dropped to three per cent; foreign reserves dipped to about $30 billion; excess crude account to $2 billion; N197 exchanged for a dollar while the government borrowed to pay salaries as many states owed their workers many months. All these signpost recession that has engulfed the economy.”

    The ACF scribe observed that what the government had done was to remove fuel subsidy in the hope of freeing money for other productive areas to attract new refineries. He said the government had also restricted import of essential raw materials, machinery and essential services. The aim was to encourage Nigerians to depend on what they produced, instead of depending on imports from oil wealth that is not result of hard work, Sani said.

    He said so far, there had been some improvements in agricultural production of rice that reduced import and saved foreign exchange. The high prices of foods, according to him, are caused by paucity of foreign exchange for import. “This comes with low value of the naira. It is hoped high prices of locally produced foods would attract able bodied Nigerians to the farms and reduce unemployment as well as force the prices down.

    “There has been hue and cry against multiple values of the dollar in the market which encourages round tripping rather than production, and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has been called upon to take necessary actions towards merging the values for performance. We hope such effort by the CBN will yield positive results for larger interest. But such positive developments are not a day’s job. Nigerians needed to be patient and note that any process which requires surgical intervention cannot be without pain,” he said.

    A lawyer, Chief Emeka Ngige (SAN), has advised the government to re-jig its economic team. He said nobody knew the economic adviser to the Federal Government. He noted that Acting President Yemi Osinbajo, who is the Chairman of National Economic Council (NEC), is not an economist.

    Ngige insisted that the government needed economists that would assist the Acting President, the CBN and the Minister of Finance to produce economic plans that would see us through the recession, otherwise the country would remain stagnant; there would be no growth. In tackling the economic problem, the Federal Government should put square pegs in square holes, he said.

    A political scientist, Professor Ayo Olukotun, said the people expect from Buhari a quick end to the economic woes and sufferings accentuated by the galloping inflation. His comment was corroborated by a student activist, Tolu Ajayi, who could not understand why the minimum wage still remained N18,000, despite that the government had increased the price of fuel by 80 per cent, with its attendant effect on transportation and the prices of foodstuff. He said: “We, the children of the down trodden, expect this government to increase minimum wage  because N18,000 is no longer realistic in the face of the economy in the country.”

    Civil rights activist, Comrade Mashood Erubami, said the Buhari administration should not be blamed for the economic hardship in the country because it inherited a comatose economy from the immediate past administration. Notwithstanding, he said the Buhari’s team have come out with recovery action plans matched with implementation strategies through coordinating efforts to lift the country up and meet the expectation of the people.

    Erubami noted that Buhari came into office when the production of oil, which is the key supportive resources that the economy relies on, was at its lowest ebb with attendant dwindling revenue.

    According to him, what is working in favour of the Buhari administration is that the production of oil is steadily on the increase due to the excellent conflict management strategies adopted with the masterminds of pipeline vandalism which calmed the restiveness in the Niger Delta, adding that with this development, the  economy would bounce back very soon.

    He said for Buhari government to build the foundation of a new Nigeria, it must within the next one year bring about measures, which will challenge past wrong business ethics and unethical political culture among the business class and the politicians.

    Sani recalled that though the experts advised the government to exit the recession, through re-flating the economy by massive spending on infrastructure and increase supply of foreign exchange, the government opted to borrow $30 billion but the National Assembly balked. He said this had created the impression that both the executive and the legislature do not take the challenges posed by the recession serious. I, therefore, expect the government to take the issues of the economy more serious lest its achievements in the fight against the twin evil of insecurity and corruption will come to nought.

    On the fight against corruption, Ngige advised the government to be total. He said the effort of the government in purging the judiciary of corrupt elements is half measure. “It is like cutting a snake. When you cut the snake into two, it does not mean it is dead; it will come out more venomous and dangerous. There should be serious consideration in wiping out corrupt elements in judiciary; there are many of them, otherwise we shall have problems in 2019 because the judiciary will play a crucial role in 2019 general elections.”

    Ngige believes if the government succeeds in fighting corruption, there will be consistent power supply all over the country; there will be infrastructure development. He said the report from the House of Representatives probe of Public Procurement departments that some people are subverting the law in contract awards was disturbing. ‘’I am praying and hopeful that President Buhari will come back in good health and resume work to take Nigeria to greater heights,’’ he said.

    Ajayi advised the Buhari administration to fight corruption without bias. He noted that some prominent people who looted the  treasury have been arrested and charged to court; some have returned the money stolen while others are in detention. However, he said Nigerians expect the government to ensure the fight cut across all political parties.

    Erubami suggested that former politicians, who have pending corruption cases with anti-corruption agencies and courts, should be tried expeditiously with their cases concluded without any undue pressure from government to allow justice to take its course.

    “Cases of petroleum subsidy scam, PHCN scam, $9.7 million failed arms contract and police pension scam should be relisted and concluded to send strong signal to every citizen that corruption has become a crime in Nigeria and whoever is caught will be prosecuted and if found guilty will be sentenced to appropriate self financing imprisonment.

    “Those that have been exposed to have amassed government money should equally be sanctioned to discourage others that government money will no more be available to be used for private ends while every kobo stolen should be caused to be refunded into government covers for public use.

    “Enforcement of the provisions of the laws in the EFCC, ICPC and Code of Conduct Acts must become a very serious undertaking, strengthened and used to foreclose the ease with which stealing of government fund and bribe taking are being committed.

    “New courts must be specially set aside to  try corruption cases with time bound from the National Judicial Council (NJC). New laws that will sentence culprits to community services on environmental cleaning services in the communities where the culprits come from should be added to the list of operative laws to punish the offences of corruption.”

    Nigerians also want the Buhari administration to submit itself to the rule of law. They are critical of the administration’s constant disobedience of court orders, saying the government find it very difficult to obey court orders except the ones that are favourable to it. Examples of cases where the government have disobeyed court orders include former National Security Adviser (NSA) Col. Sambo Dasuki and Sheikh Ibrahim El-Zakzaky are still in detention, despite court orders for their release.

    A lawyer, Mr Babatunde Ekundayo, said the government disobedience of court order was dangerous. He emphasised that the rule of law must be complied with by the government and the governed. Once the court has granted bails to suspects, they must be released. The only option left is to appeal the court order but you can’t hold them.

    Ekundayo said keeping Dasuki, El-Zazaky and other suspects after the court had granted them bails make mockery of our judiciary. All of us, the government and citizens must submit to the rule of law and due process, he said.

    Other areas that Olukotun expects the Buhari administration to address before 2019 are the herdsmen rampage, improvement in the quality of education, health and infrastructure and restructuring of the federation, job creation for the unemployed graduates, improved power supply.

  • Of economy, pulpits and Nollywood expectations

    Sometime in 2016, #Bringbackourcorruption began to trend on the social media. Nigerians disenchanted with the dire state of the economy in the midst of a war on corruption launched by the APC-led federal government, began to wax nostalgic about yester-years, the glory days of corruption. In their warped view, if the return of corruption is what it will take to put food on their tables, they are all for it. Considering that the government of President Muhammadu Buhari had been in government for barely a year then, the campaign surely did not signify a policy failure on the part of government. Nobody would reasonably expect the government to have resuscitated the then comatose economy within so short a period.

    Nor can it be argued that corruption has no direct bearing to the country’s economy slipping into recession. As the Acting chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ibrahim Magu declared recently, “About 90% of the cause of recession is corruption, because there was fund and people stole the funds and kept them where they cannot be reached. If we can lay hands on this hidden wealth, it will be sufficient for us to get out of recession”.

    In other words, the campaign did not arise because corruption is not an issue or that the President has demonstrably failed to tackle our declining productivity as a nation. Rather, the #Bringbackourcorruption crusaders are, like us all, victims of the cumulative effect of new fad religion and nollywood on our collective psyche. Nigerians no longer believe in hard work and sacrifice as a path to success. To many Nigerians, the no pain, no gain mantra is outdated and not fit for the times. The new mantra is instant gratification and miracles. Patience and diligence is no longer a virtue.

    New religion has destroyed our work ethics and the Nollywood industry has firmly cemented the connection between the church and instant solution to problems. Religious leaders in the churches and mosques have joined the witch doctors in preaching a gospel of instant prosperity over and above hard work and perseverance. At the expense of logic and wisdom, their adherents follow whatever instructions they are given in order to achieve instant success. The Rev. Fr. Boniface Ezeoke of St. Agnes Catholic Church, Ichida, Anambra state recently encapsulated this in his homily. According to the reverend father, “Our messages of instant gratification have created a generation of people, who only want to see instant results, immediate relief, and a painless profit. This is not the natural course of nature or a normal way of doing things”. Even then, the Nollywood industry has made this belief in instant results and immediate reliefs more popular among Nigerians. In all the home movies, the theme is the same. A visit by a character to the pastor or witch doctor produces instant result with no further contribution from the character.

    The damage to our psyche as a nation is in fact what has held us back as a country. Our desire to reap without sowing, eat without working and run without walking is the bane of our economic development. Past administrations deferred the restructuring of our economy because Nigerians were not willing to bear the necessary pain that will accompany such restructuring. Against economic sense, the Nigerian state for decades, subsidized fuel consumption by the populace because the citizens have developed a sense of entitlement. Mounting evidences of sleaze and looting of the treasury by those in the corridors of power were ignored and the looters held up as manifestations of God’s blessings and prosperity. Any government that tried in the past to correct this trend and restore sanity had been harangued out. A new government comes in with instant appeasement and is hailed as a messianic one. And the rot continued.

    Today, we are presented with yet another chance to get it right. Yet again, some Nigerians will have none of it and will go to any length to truncate any efforts towards laying a solid foundation for the future. Such people are more interested in sharing the so-called national cake than in creating wealth. For them, consumption comes before production and profits before investment.

    Yes, the economy is in dire straits. The citizens are suffering. The government is working very hard to reverse the rot and put the economy back on the path of growth. The citizens must understand however that miracles and instant solutions have no place in nation building. We are where we are today because we had before now not taken the hard decisions to restructure the economy. The government must be supported to do so now if we are going to enjoy the prospect of a long term improvement in quality of life for every Nigerian. According to the minister of finance, Kemi Adeosun, Nigerians’ tax contribution to GDP is only 6%. That is one of the lowest anywhere in the world and reflects decades of the population’s unwillingness to contribute to government revenue. What economic miracles do we expect from government if, as citizens, we do not pay our fair share of taxes? We are quick at comparing the living standards of Nigerians to those of other nations but forget (conveniently) to point out the disparities in tax compliance.

    Years of deterioration in infrastructure and the economy cannot be remedied overnight. Such only happen in Nollywood movies where one’s personal circumstances are reversed instantly on the intervention of a pastor, and that diabolic uncle or step-mother who had been responsible for that person’s woes immediately confesses and dies and all that the person lost over the years is restored to him. Such do not happen in real life. It took a good two years for former president Barack Obama’s policies to impact on the economy of the United States of America on his assumption of office in 2008. Americans kept faith with him, stayed the course and are better for it today.

    Rebuilding infrastructure, dealing with corruption, securing lives and properties across the federation, restructuring the economy and fixing Nigeria generally is doable. Patience and sacrifice is required however on the part of Nigerians. The government of the day must be encouraged and supported to see through its various programmes aimed at achieving the listed objectives.

     

    • Dr. Ezejiofor is Executive Director, Green Women for Change and Empowerment Foundation (GWC), Abuja.
  • Akeredolu: New era of great expectations

    Akeredolu: New era of great expectations

    There will be a change of baton in Ondo State next month. Governor Olusegun Mimiko will bow out of office after the expiration of his two terms of eight years. Correspondent DAMISI OJO highlights the challenges that will confront the Akeredolu administration and people’s expectations about the new dawn.

    Rotimi Akeredolu, lawyer and former President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), is warming up for the task of governance in Ondo State. On February 24, he will receive the mantle of leadership from Governor Olusegun Mimiko, who is bowing out after spending eight years in office. Can the All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain make a difference in the Alagabaka Government House?

    The governor-elect is a lucky man. He will not be diverted by protracted litigations, unlike his predecessor, who was in court for 22 months fighting to reclaim his stolen mandate. It is evident that he will savour a smooth transition. He has made peace, in the interim, with Mimiko by trying to commend his achievements. Various committees saddled with the transition assignment have swung into action.

    However, the new governor will inherit some challenges. Akeredolu is assuming the reins in an atmosphere of a malevolent economy. He will have to contend with dwindling federal allocation and internally generated revenue. Labour dispute may be imminent, unless efforts are made to quickly paid the seven months salaries owed to public workers. The intra-party struggle for slots in the State Executive Council may generate tension. Beneficiaries of on-going projects will agitate for their completion.

    Next month, the APC will become a ruling party. Following the controversial primary, it became a polarised platform. Some chieftains are still aggrieved. Automatically, the governor becomes the party leader and arrowhead. The question is: can Akeredolu unite the party?

    Many stakeholders have described his victory as an act of God. The legal luminary has had his baptism of fire twice. As the governorship candidate of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria(ACN), he failed at the poll four years ago. There was no primary in 2012. Party leaders, including Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and Chief Bisi Akande, ensured that he emerged as the flag bearer on merit. But, Akeredolu came a distant third, trailing Chief Olusola Oke of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Mimiko, who won a second term.

    However, his victory in last year’s election has implications for the progressive bloc in Ondo State. It could be said that progressives are now back in power after the exit of Governor Adebayo Adefarati, who rule the state between 1999 and 2003. This may also be the crux of the matter. The APC has progressive policies and programmes, unlike the conservative platforms that have bestrode the state for 15 years.

    Following the emergence of Akeredolu as the governor-elect, his Owo country home has become a ‘Mecca’ of sorts, particularly for those looking for political patronage and appointments, although he has maintained that he has not promised anybody any position.

    But, his pre-inauguration ad hoc appointments are a pointer to bi-partisanship. Akeredolu has appointed Former Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Funsho Kupolokun as the Chairman of the transition committee. He has charged the technocrat to ensure a smooth transition, meet relevant stakeholders before the inauguration and submit a report on February 20. Other committees include the Inauguration Committee headed by Chief Jamiu Ekungba, the Strategic

    Policy and Implementation Committee, the Information and Media Committee, Agriculture and Natural Natural Resources Committee and the Education, Science and Technology Committee.

    Akeredolu reiterated his commitment to the development of the state and welfare of the people. He promised to uphold the cardinal principles of the APC and serve the state with all his strength and vigour so that it can become the envy of other states.

    Kupolokun urged the governor-elect to look beyond the monthly federal allocation, saying that it could not cater for the needs of the state. He said: “The era of total reliance on monthly federal allocation has gone. Hence, the need for the state to develop means of generating funds to cater for the needs of the people. It is therefore, important for the incoming administration to look inward for ways of generating money to run the affairs of the state.”

    Stakeholders, including traditional rulers, community leaders, traders, politicians, and artisans, have spoken on their expectations about the new government.

    A monarch in Akoko Northwest, Oba Olusegun Atibioke, urged Akeredolu to see Mimiko as a partner in progress, stressing that government is a continuum. According to the royal father, Akeredolu should be more closer to God than the people for God to direct him positively. He urged the governor-elect to offer improved welfare package for the people, particularly traditional rulers and public servants. He also urged him to sustain religious harmony in the state.

    A community leader,Chief Owolabi Abanikannda from Oke-Agbe Akoko, advised the incoming APC government to give priority to water supply in Akokoland and other parts of the state. He lamented that the Awara Water Project in Ikare-Akoko has failed to yield the desired result. Besides, Abanikanda called for the recruitment of more health and para-medical workers and the completion of the Oke-Alabojuto-Ikare-Oyin-Okeagbe Road flagged off by Mimiko.

    The community leader pleaded for the regular payment of salaries to workers and stipends to pensioners. He said the governor-elect should not to allow the notion that an Owo man would humiliate Akokos to become a reality. “All moribund industries across the state should be revamped to facilitate employment opportunities,” he added.

    A commentator, Olujimi Adekanle, said the in-coming administration should  carry out a holistic staff audit of the civil service to ascertain the true number of staff. He noted that the figure was over bloated by the past administration. Also, Adekanle urged Akeredolu to probe the Wealth Creation Agency (WECA), alleging that it was characterised by fraud.

    His words:” It was on paper that N2b was spent on palm seedlings in 2011. The governor-elect should ask them where the palm trees are? Also, what the agency did with the N2b naira agriculture funding from CBN in 2015.

    “The destruction of Owena Motels for Shoprite while the last government refused to use the idle trade fair complex, which is just 200metres away from Owena Motels. Who are the owners of the shops in Shoprite?

    “Akeredolu should, as a matter of urgency, approach the Benin Electricity Development Corporation (BEDC) for the restoration of light to the Southern Senatorial District, which has been in darkness for close to four years”.

    Adekanle also charged the new governor to make sure that salaries are paid to workers and pensions to retirees, in fulfilment of his campaign promises.  He also enjoined him to renovate the abandoned primary schools  and convert the mega schools built by Mimiko to hospitals to boost medical delivery services in the state.

    He added: “The Ondo State Radiovision Corporation (OSRC) should be restructured as it is a ghost of itself. A panel of enquiry should be set up to ascertain the true position of the Outside Broadcasting Van (OB Van)that was bought for the cooperation at a whooping cost of N400m that never worked for a day.

    “The Dome should be privatised immediately to boost the IGR of the state and finally, Akeredolu should not be sectional in his appointments. He should look for good hands to help him in the management of the state. Not like the immediate governor that has five of his siblings in sensitive and lucrative agencies as heads despite that they are not capable of being in such office.

    A Special Assistant(SA) to Governor Mimiko on Social Media, Sunday Menukuro, said Akeredolu should expect agitations for employment from the people because of the high rate of unemployed graduates roaming the streets.

    He should also settle outstanding salaries of public servants and build on various laudable projects of Mimiko’s administration, rather than scrapping it, he added.

    The deputy governorship candidate of the Social Democratic Party(SDP), Erelu Modupe Akindele Martins, urged the incoming administration to pay workers outstanding salaries and give priority to industrialization. She also called for the implementation of 35 per cent mandatory right for women in the sharing of political positions.

    A former Commissioner for Transport, Otunba Omoniyi Omodara, charged Akeredolu to complete viable on-going projects, improve the health sector and allow local governments to operate independently to ensure better service delivery to the grassroots.

    A retiree, Alhaji Ibrahim Kilani, urged Akeredolu to assemble trusted politicians and seasoned technocrats into his cabinet. He also called for autonomy for local government councils. He said the free shuttle bus system for school children initiated by Mimiko should be sustained.

    All Progressives Congress(APC) chieftain Adebowale Akinlosotu advised the governor-elect to provide enabling environment for agriculture, enterpreneurship, technology and infrastructural development.

    He also urged him to empower the youths through skill acquisition and micro-credit loan.

    A petty trader, Funmilayo Salami, urged Akeredolu to govern with human face.

    According to her, the manner the outgoing government has been generating revenue is too harsh on low income earners, especially petty traders, shop owners and road transporters.

    Besides, she called for the constitution of Commodity Price Control Board to regulate the rising cost of goods in the market.

  • Expectations of Nigerians in 2017

    Expectations of Nigerians in 2017

    The hopes of Nigerians for a positive change in their lives were largely dashed in 2016, with the advent of the economic recession and the perceived inability of the Buhari administration to address the challenges facing the economy. In this report, Deputy Political Editor RAYMOND MORDI looks at the expectations of Nigerians in 2017.   

    NIGERIANS had mountains of expectations from the President Muhammadu Buhari administration at the beginning of 2016. The administration inadvertently heightened the expectations of Nigerians, when it kept blaming its poor performance in 2015 on the fact that it implemented a budget prepared by the previous administration of President Goodluck Jonathan. But in 2016 when it ran its first full year budget, with a cabinet in place, Nigerians expected to see some urgency on the part of the government in tackling the issues that had reared their ugly heads. Sadly, this was not the case. Beginning from the delay in passing the budget, the foreign exchange restrictions that had an adverse effect on the economy, deterioration in the security situation and policy flip flops, the year was a lost opportunity to reset Nigeria and set it on the path to turnaround its fortunes.
    The year 2017 presents another golden opportunity for the Buhari-led administration to make good its promise of delivering good governance and demonstrating that the improvement of the welfare of Nigerians is high on its agenda. So far, it is yet to make a bold statement in this regard. Experts say if it desires to correct the above anomaly and improve the quality of life of Nigerians, it must do the following:

    Better cohesion in governance
    Nigerians want to see a better cohesion between the Executive and the Legislature. The failure of President Buhari to show interest in the election of the principal officers of the National Assembly at the outset of the administration is believed to be the genesis of the problems currently facing the government.
    Many Nigerians are desirous of seeing an end to the Executive and Legislature face-offs, to help bring the economy out of the doldrums. If they can settle their differences in the interest of the common good of all citizens, then harmony will occur and progress will be made in the governance process. This would, for instance, bring about a speedy passage of the budget. Nigerians are suffering and the leadership needs to provide quick short-term interventions to keep the citizenry afloat before the long-term ideas they envision begin to manifest.

    Revamping the economy
    From all indications, the defining struggle of Buhari’s second year in office is the country’s failing economy. According to experts, for the first time since 1995, Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) looks set to shrink on an annual basis, as Nigerians struggle with the near-doubling of fuel prices and surging costs for almost everything else, including food. There is no doubt that falling crude prices, the return of militancy in the Niger Delta and, according to some, the current administration’s policies have damaged the country’s oil-dependent economy — which is now officially in a recession. Throughout 2016, Nigerians have particularly felt the effects of surging prices caused by inflation and the controversial cut of popular fuel subsidies in 2015.
    Despite Buhari’s successes in the war against terror and efforts to recover looted funds, Nigerians’ unusually poor views of economic conditions suggest his presidency may ultimately be judged by his ability to diversify the economy, control inflation and promote job growth. In this regard, the expectation is that a seamless relationship between the Executive and the National Assembly will help the government in passing its policy initiatives into law.

    Cushioning effects of inflation
    There is a widespread belief that the Buhari administration might be making a drastic mistake if it thinks that fighting corruption is a substitute for putting food on the table of Nigerians. The refrain everywhere is that two are not mutually exclusive and that prolonged starvation might even undermine the fight against corruption. Nigerians are hungry and are now more interested in seeing the President doing something to cushion the effects of inflation on them.
    President Buhari, they insist, has often reiterated that he is wary of introducing policies that would increase the suffering of the common man. But, ironically, that is what Nigerians have witnessed in the last one and half years. From fuel pump price increment, to the increase in electricity tariff, to the implementation of the Stamp Duty and the planned tariff on phone calls and the looming hike in the cost of data, the common man have always borne the brunt of the policies.
    In the short run, the Federal Government has been enjoined to put in more money into the pockets of Nigerians, by paying outstanding salaries and wages of workers, outstanding pension to retirees, and outstanding payment for completed and verified contracts.

    Corruption
    Buhari’s historic election gave rise to a rare moment of hope in Nigerian politics, stemming from the expectation that he could crush Boko Haram and rein in the country’s debilitating corruption. While Nigerians are satisfied with the government’s performance against terrorism under the Buhari administration, the perception that corruption is widespread in the government remains prevalent. There is a growing call for the President to extend his anti-corruption campaign to his kitchen cabinet.
    Nigerians are also hoping to see a speedy conclusion of the numerous pending cases of corruption; to ensure that people perceived to have looted the treasury are jailed to serve as a deterrent to others.

    Good governance
    Beyond the fight against insurgents and corruption, Nigeria’s governance problems persist, and the economic situation is worsening. In the view of observers, the Buhari administration needs to demonstrate that it has the capacity to improve governance as promised. Buhari has only two clear years left in his term to achieve improvements in governance, as governance in the fourth year of a president’s term is overshadowed by politics and elections. What Nigerians have witnessed so far falls below expectations.

    Increased power output
    The Buhari administration is expected to do something to improve the country’s generating capacity in 2017. The current scale of the country’s electricity deficit is daunting. Nigerians are groaning as power generation drops to about 3,000 megawatts (MW), as at early December. This was a sharp drop from the 4,285 MW recorded on September 16. The drop has been attributed to scarcity of gas and repair work being carried on at hydro power stations.
    Against the national power target of 6,000 MW, 10,000 MW, and 50,000 MW, for short-, medium-, and long-term, respectively, the situation appears to have worsened in the last one and half years. The previous administration trudged towards meeting the target, reaching about 5,000 megawatts before it left office. Minister for Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, has consistently blamed low output on the vandalization of gas pipelines that supply power-generating plants. But pipeline vandalization is not a new phenomenon, and while previous administrations have always raised concerns about the issue, it did not bring power production to the present low level.
    Despite the recent privatisation of the sector, the industry remains a virtual monopoly. Though the old state distribution behemoth has been carved into 11 ‘private’ distribution companies, the industry by and large has not been deregulated.
    In spite of the fact that they get only a few hours of electricity daily at best, consumers are groaning under the weight of estimated billings. As a result, they have enjoined the authorities to provide pre-paid metres; so that they would pay for only what they consume.

    Electoral reforms
    One of the greatest legacies bequeathed to Nigeria by the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan were the credible elections of 2011 and 2015. Nevertheless, the right to vote and be voted for in Nigeria remains beset with a number of problems. The setting up of the Electoral Reform Committee headed by former Senate President, Ken Nnamani is President Muhammadu Buhari’s response to the challenges.
    Nigerians are still waiting anxiously to see what would come out of that effort. Past experiences suggest that the obstacles to genuine electoral reforms are deeply ingrained in Nigeria’s political culture. These, according to experts, are embedded in the winner-takes-it-all attitude of Nigerian politicians, which is informed by the prevalent culture of using public office as an avenue to amass wealth.
    Observers say the Justice Mohammed Uwais panel report remains the benchmark for further reforms in the electoral act and that a full implementation of the report is the best step that can be taken.

  • Obaseki and burden of expectations

    The Edo State governorship election has come and gone. Gone along with it is the pervasive fear of the untoward, among which is the alleged invasion of the state capital by straggling militants from neighbouring states. Putting it mildly, the threat almost sent the blood pressure of everyone, including citizens, residents, politicians, electoral personnel, security agents, et al, into the stratosphere.

    Thank God it is over now as everybody can go about normal everyday responsibilities, hoping that the governor-elect, Godwin Nogheghase Obaseki, will deliver on his promises in order to take the state and its people to the next development level.

    More than anyone else, he knows too well that with the election over, he is condemned to hitting the ground running in order to justify the faith reposed on him. Unemployment is unarguably the biggest challenge facing the Nigerian nation today. As one of the federating states, Edo is certainly not shielded from its hydra-headed implications. Urgently, the people will welcome any practical policy decision geared towards substantially creating jobs for the teeming army of the unemployed, who constitute a ready-made and waiting army for crimes. Obaseki seems to understand the challenge here hence he made job creation one of his cardinal campaign issues.

    Of course, now that campaigns are over, he must go beyond rhetoric and walk his talk without delay.

    A lot has been said about the need to move governance beyond mere meeting political expediencies. The point being canvassed is that governments at all levels must begin to act without delay in two key areas. It must place more urgent emphasis on the creation of enabling environment for development while also ensuring that they implement policy decisions that encourage real time investments from the private sector. The issue here is that direct government involvement in businesses must be de-emphasised by transferring the onus on private investment.

    Apart from reining in all excesses, including avoidable losses inherent in direct government involvement in business, transferring the onus to private investments will further advance employment creation in no small measure. Obaseki cannot afford to delay setting in motion the process of privatizing non-sensitive sectors. Beyond the creation of jobs, a private sector-driven economy has other innumerable advantages.

    At the moment, Nigerians are familiar with incidences where public officers in charge of public concerns hold the view that such concerns are mere personal enrichment conduits. Particularly in Edo State, cases abound where public companies have been run down mainly on account of its minders allocating accruing resources to themselves at the expense of the public. The case with Bendel Brewery, Edo Line, to mention but a few, is instructive.

    However, even as the argument for continuous government funding and control of businesses for, among others, job creation purpose may appear appealing, experience has shown that the end result is never in tandem with expectations. That alone, gives traction to the other more convincing argument that indeed, the time has come for governments to hands off commercial business engagements, concentrate on creating the enabling environment for real business sector to play its rightful role.

    In addition, governments must find additional role fulfilment in among others; policy initiation, decision, direction, control and or monitoring. It is expected that with a background steeped in investment drive and boosted by eight years of practical involvement in direct governance, a reason for which the governor-elect received the people’s mandate, he should understand how vital it is for the state to literally move to the next level without any undue delay.

    There is another urgent reason the governor-elect must act quick in order that the state may not falter on its present enviable economic status that has enabled it to meet all its monthly statutory obligations in spite of the biting recession.

    In the past, the trend is that all states must literally go, cap in hand, to collect their monthly federation allocations from Abuja. It is hardly debatable that funds from Abuja has dwindled drastically that it is now mere stipends that are too evidently inadequate for their monthly obligations. Whereas almost 30 of the nation’s 36 states are currently unable to pay salaries without one form of bailout or another, few of them, including Edo, successfully navigated local labyrinths to shore up their internally generated revenue profile that kept them relatively afloat.

    However, particularly as it is with the state, the manner with which it has been leveraged on is a little less than complimentary. Indeed, it has not been controversy-proof at all having created challenges that led into accusations of double taxation, underhand dealings, etc, from several quarters.

    While it may not be completely right to dismiss the accusations or even assume that they are true, the people will however, appreciate it greatly if the governor-elect fulfil, without any undue delay, his promise to sanitize collection processes. It will go a long way in addressing the perennial disconnect between government and the people on the one hand. On the other, addressing it squarely will address the ensuing crisis of confidence which almost dented the enviable development records of the outgoing administration.

    Therefore, the governor-elect must prioritize this reconnection task by dealing with tax and other revenue issues in order to bridge the seeming disconnect between the government and those affected.

    Now that Obaseki has secured the people’s mandate, he must live by his promise to transform communities with investment potentials with his investment wizardry. Unquestionably, most of the communities are agrarian with a few having solid minerals and tourism prospects. Thankfully, they can be made more investment friendly by a manager who can pull all the strings that can effectively attract investors the same way honey combs does the bee. Of course, we can take it for granted that he understands what must be on ground before investors can feel a compelling need to come in.

    However, beyond understanding these needs, there is the overriding necessity to implement investment-friendly policies in such a way that they are not stifled by political manipulations. In other words, the governor-elect must ensure that development imperatives sit atop political expediencies. That is the only way to create effective development.

    Thankfully again, the outgoing administration of Comrade Adams Aliyu Oshiomhole has done so much in road and other infrastructure. What remains is to leverage on his successes by taking advantage of what is on ground in order to direct investors to the different viable locations across the state. By so doing, there will be enough investment in all the easily accessible resource areas for even development.

    The country is in recession. For the same reason, investable funds may not be readily available. Where available, they may not be enough for the needful.

    For instance a lot of small businesses may be stifled by tax and other contingencies during incubation. To avoid the inevitability, the position of government, in terms of provision of incentives, is very important.

    Given the promise of the governor-elect to create a minimum of 200,000 jobs even in the face of choking economic realities, he must, with dispatch, consider the idea of creating an investment fund with low interest rates for Small and Medium Scale Enterprises, SMEs.

    The point to note here is that they need to be encouraged given the very vital role they play in terms of employment or job creation.

    Now that Obaseki is set to assume office as governor, how well he is able to create the promised jobs will depend, in the main, on his ability to galvanize his administration’s investment drive, particularly in the area of creating the right investment climate. Now that he has the people’s mandate, he must hit the ground running.

     

    • Omoarelojie writes from Benin City.
  • Great expectations

    Great expectations

    •With more money and better organisation, the Nigerian Professional Football League (NPFL) is coming of age

    For the Nigerian football old guard, the triumph of Rangers International of Enugu FC, as champions of the 2015/2016 Nigerian Professional Football League (NPFL), is something to cheer.

    The Rangers win, first time in 32 years, is not exactly a jinx, as many have erroneously projected. But it shows, from the old order, in which the likes of Rangers, Shooting Stars Football Club of Ibadan (formerly IICC Shooting Stars), Mighty Jets of Jos and Bendel Insurance of Benin (both defunct) were masters, Nigerian football has grown or shrunk.

    The growth is clear from the fact that Rangers just won the title again, after 32 years. Shooting Stars, their great rivals in the football ancien regime, are lucky to escape relegation, having only got re-promoted two seasons ago.

    But in the new order, other giants have emerged: dethroned champions, Enyimba FC of Aba, former champions, Kano Pillars FC, who won it back-to-back two seasons ago, and other gutsy competitors like FC Ifeanyiubah of Nnewi, Sunshine Stars of Akure, and others. Indeed, as the Greek Heraclitus said, you can’t step in the same river twice!

    Still, this new development could also be a sign of shrinking. With the TV-induced cultural imperialism, served with the economic gusto of sports globalisation, Nigerian stadia had become progressively deserted.

    Yet, these same spectators, glued to their TV sets, are unfazed fanatics of the likes of Arsenal FC, Chelsea FC, Manchester United, etc, all of England; and the Spanish pair of Barcelona and Real Madrid, not leaving out the German Bavarian giants, Bayern Munich FC.

    As these proud victims of football globalisation reel out foreign stars, discuss razor-sharp tactics and strategy and belch out bragging rights, depending on how their adopted clubs are faring, they regard most of the local clubs with condescending contempt.

    However, that is changing latterly. For the last three seasons, the Nigerian League Management Committee (LMC) has upped its game in terms of general organisation and officiating. Whereas it was near-taboo in the past to post away wins, that trend is changing. What has accounted for this positive development is the introduction of live TV coverage.

    What is more? Fans, in some parts of the country like Kano, Enugu, Uyo, Ibadan, and even Agege Stadium in Lagos, where newly promoted MFM FC play their home matches, are flocking back to the stadia.

    With that revival has come a sense of community ownership and participation, the driver of football business all over the world. Though earliest Nigerian clubs started that way (witness the likes of Ibadan United, Jos FC — which later became Mighty Jets of Jos — and even Enugu Rangers, a post-Civil War rallying sporting vehicle for Igbo pride and prowess, clubs soon became the public relations arms of state governments.

    In terms of local enterprise, Ikorodu United (which regrettably dropped off) and MFM FC — both debutantes from Lagos — as well as  FC Ifeanyiubah  are showing the future of the game.

    Ikorodu United FC is owned by a concert of investors, anchoring its venture on a community pitch. MFM FC is banking on its religious commune to make money, by packing stadia and buying club souvenirs and buntings; while FC Ifeanyiuba, in record time, has built its own stadium.

    These are crucial foundation pillars, on which the future Nigerian football club would be built, rather than as the public relations arm of state governments, with the attendant corruption.

    Then, the all-crucial issue of money. This year, champions Enugu Rangers would gross no less than N90 million from varied pay-outs, courtesy of a LMC formula, while the poorest performing clubs may get up to N55 million.

    That is the way to go. Perhaps in no distant future, ball fans would be as passionate, in discussing the local league and stars, as they now dot on the foreign leagues.

    But that would be if LMC continues to work towards better players’ welfare, prompt payment of salaries, sign on fees and match bonuses, even better officiating, better playing surfaces and generally sundry infrastructure, including sports medicine.

  • The global economy – voters expectations and frustrations

    As  reported  widely  this week  no  less  a person  than the nation’s Vice  President Professor Yemi Osinbajo  promised  that  the  Nigerian  economy  would  soon  be out of recession. This  was  in a week  that  the  rumour  was  rife that petrol  price  would  rise  further from  the 145  naira  it  now stands  after  being  raised  most  unexpectedly and astronomically from  86 naira. An  increase  that  Nigerians are  still  reeling from  its cruel  multiplier effect which  has led  to   massive  subsistence  living,   that  can  be  described  as  living  from  hand  to  mouth  for    those  who  can  see  any food at all. No  wonder  in  some communities thieves break into  houses  to  steal  pot  of soups and food while they leave clothes and  other  traditional  targets of  thievery  intact.  A  sure   sign  of  the prevailing  and pervasive impact  of  a very  unproductive  economy  which  fuels hunger, poverty  and now, most    unfortunately,   food  and kitchen  looting.

    However,   it   is difficult  to wage a war  against food and kitchen  looting with  the same   fury  and  vigour  with  which  government is pursuing  the war  against  corruption. Yet,  both  are  potent  signs  of  corruption in a sick  economy.  The  difference  perhaps is  that   treasury  looting cripples  the economy  generally,  while kitchen  looting   creates  hunger in  households  which  anyway  make  contributions  to  the GDP   But    such  contribution  may  not  add  up  to  the  overall    natural output   as  it   results   in  less  food or  no  food at all  for  the   affected  victims  of  kitchen  looting.

    It  did  not  therefore  come as surprise  that  there  was a  hostile   reaction  to  the proposed petrol  price  increase  from  some quarters   that  governors  and  government  officials in the presidency  should cut  their  kitchen  expenses  and approved  budget  in lieu   of  the    dangerous  proposal   to  increase petrol  price.  Luckily,  the  government  has denied  any  such  plan  to  increase  the  price  of  petrol further.  Which  really  is a step  in  the right  direction  to  salvage the good name  and image  of  a government  that  got  elected on a promise  of  change  and  a better  life for  Nigerians whose  expectations were  shattered  in one fell  swoop  by the fuel  increase  that  came in  by  the back  door  and wiped  out  the  goodwill that  Nigerians  gave the government  by  electing the APC’s  candidate  as  president  in the 2015  presidential  election.  So  while  the  Nigerian  electorate respects  the  Vice  President’s promise  that  the recession  will  soon  be  over  and also  respect  their  president’s  fight  to stop  or   lessen  corruption  and treasury   looting, they  also  expect  government  to  do  something so  that  the new  phenomenon  of  kitchen  looting does  not  become a way  of  life  like  treasury looting which  has  brought  our  economy  to its knees . The  only  way  to  do  this urgently,  is to  bring  more  food  to the table  for  the average  Nigerian  family by  putting  in place  poverty  alleviating   measures,   social  infrastructure    and    institutions that  help  families  get  out  of  poverty  and live   a life   of    dignified  existence  without  the   grim  prospect  and humiliation  of   descending into petty  kitchen   thieves   in  a nation   with  riches  and plenty,  cornered   by  a fraudulent  few for  their  private  consumption  at  the expense  of  the  larger  majority.

    On  the  global  level  the  management  of  the  economy  has  been  a great  source  of  concern because global    economic  resources  are  limited  and  are  therefore being  rationed  by  governments  to  make ends  meet  and  improve  the welfare of  the  masses that  have  elected  them in the  world’s  democracies  since  democracy  is  the  ascendant  political  ideology  of  our  time.   Indeed, the  militant  violence threatening  world  peace  today  especially  in  the Middle  East  where people  are fleeing  wars  and starvation,  stem  from  the planting of democracy in  Afghanistan  and Iraq  and  the removal  of  the despotic  regimes that  the  West  and  the US removed  to  put democracy  in  place.  The  whole  world  has  now  come  to  see  that  democracy  alone does  not  guarantee  political  stability,  national  or  regional  peace.  As an  hungry    man  in  any  place  and  time,  is  an  angry  man,  prone  to bad temper,   rough   behavior  and   ultimately  violence.

    It  is,  therefore,  the  prevalence  of  this  sort  of  dangerous social  and  political  disposition  on  a global  scale  that  is  the  concern  of  our  analysis today. The    Nigerian  Vice  President’s  promise  on  recession  being  contained,  and   the war  against  corruption, are  indeed  two  sides  of  the same coin to  create economic  development,    human  progress   and  enhance  economic  management  for  the overall  public  good.  It    follows  logically therefore  that  good  economic  policies lessen  tensions when  electoral  promises  are met and  voters expectations  realized. The  opposite  or  inverse  of  that creates  and breeds  voters and peoples  frustrations  leading  to  anger  at  the  polls  and the emergence  or  election of strange  parties  or leaders made  for  the times  and  the prevailing public   mood. It  is  a situation  that  creates  strange  bedfellows in  terms of  political  alliances  and  marriages  such  that  it  seems the electorate  or  voting  public  is prepared  to  throw the  bath  tub  away  with  the  baby.  This  is    a rather    delicate  and   dangerous  proposition  or  development  that threatens  the political  status  quo  and even  rejects it  outright  at  the polls   in  order  to  show  that new  values  and  feeling  have  emerged  to  warrant  a change  of  leadership or  government  and  reflect  the  new  and  emerging  status  quo and  political  reality.

    Indeed  this  was what  gave  rise   to  Brexit   and   led   to  David   Cameron   losing   his  position  as  the UK  Prime  Minister  to  be replaced  by  Theresa  May  who   must  implement   the Brexit  Mandate  even  though  she   voted  for  Britain  to  remain  in  the  EU.  Such  change  in  voters  attitude  and  perceptions   this week    in    Germany  led  to  the  Christian  Democrats,    the  party  of  the  German  Chancellor   Angela  Merkel   losing a local  election in her  own  constituency  and  backyard,  to  a small  party in Germany  that  hates migrants  and is against Angela  Merkel’s  well  known    disposition   and  policy  of  accommodating  migrants  fleeing war  and  violence  in  the  Middle  East.

    Even  before  this  German  development in  Merkel’s  area, the   UK   government  of  Tony  Blair tried  to accommodate  a  new  trend in  political  development   during  his tenure by  proclaiming  Britain  a multicultural  society to  accommodate  the rising population of  Hindus  and  Muslims  from India, Pakistan  and  the Middle  East.  This  crystallised in the election of a Muslim  Mayor  for  the ancient  City  of  London and Britain’s  capital  recently  and  well  after Tony  Blair’s  tenure.  However,   Multiculturalism  and  the recent  wave of  immigrants   from    the Middle   East  seem  to  have  angered  the British  electorate  and  may  well    have  been  responsible   for  the  success  of  the  Brexit  campaign.  Indeed  as  the  Brexit  voters  results  showed on post  election  analysis,   voters   in   London voted  massively  for  remain  while  the rest  of  the  UK   except  Scotland  voted  for  Brexit.  Definitely  Multiculturalism  is  facing  a hard  time in  the  UK,  no  thanks  to  the  present  migrant’s  crisis.

    It  is in  Denmark  and  Norway,  however,  that multiculturalism  seems  to  taking  the  harder   knock.  According  to reports, Danes  and Norwegians  expect  migrants to  integrate into  their society, learn  their  language  and acquire  basic  peculiar habits  like  riding  bicycles and are  aghast  to  see   new  migrants in peculiar  Islamic  dresses  and attires.  This  has  led  to  voters  hostility  leading   to  the victory  of  anti-migrant  parties    at  recent  elections. Most  Danes  and Norwegians   have  been  reluctant  or  afraid  to  speak  out  so  that they are  not  accused  of  being  racist. Recently,  some  people  have come out  to condemn migrants  who  have refused  to  integrate  into  their  new  societies  in   Europe  and  the  argument  is that it is   wrong  not  to speak out  and  if  it is  racist  they  do  not  mind  being  so  branded. More  importantly   a Danish  politician  gave  a  new   explanation  or  definition   that  reflects  the  changing mind set  and  mood  that is affecting  elections, political  participation  and  the quest  for  power  in  the area. He  admitted  that Norway  is  developing  into  a multiethnic  society  but  it  is  never  going   to  be multicultural.  Which  is a major  way of saying  that  migrants  who  cannot  adapt  to  European  way  of  life  should  go  away.

    Which  in  another  way  was what  the  same Angela  Merkel  was  saying   albeit  in  a different way  on Turkey’s  ascension   as a member  of the EU.   Merkel  said  then  that  Europe  is Christian  and  Turkey  is Muslim  and  you  cannot  have a Muslim nation  in  the heart  of  Europe  like  Turkey.  That  was  said when  Merkel  had  just  become  Chancellor of  Germany.  Today  she  is at  the heart  of   Turkey    feel  wanted  and   Germany  has  made  a lot  of  funds  available  to  Turkey  which  is the first  port  of  call  for those fleeing  war  from  Syria  on their  way  to  Europe.  How  that will make  her  lead    her party   to  electoral  success  in  the next  elections  in  Germany  in  two  years  time  is a matter  for speculation and that  is quite  dicey.

    Lastly,   the emergence  of  Donald  Trump  in  the  US  is  based  on  similar attitudinal  change  against  the  society  or  government  of  the day.  But  that  is work  in  progress  in  terms  of  discussion  and  analysis, till  the  US presidential  election is  consummated this  year. Once  again  long live the Federal  Republic  of  Nigeria.

  • Public mood, expectations and anger

    The  revelations of blatant misuse of public funds by the EFCC at the trial of former  Chief of Defence Alex  Badeh was  the most provocative and nauseating one, in the orgy of looting  of  public funds  that has been let loose on the Nigerian public in recent times. The details are  suffocating and will  not be repeated here,   but suffice it say  it has dented the image of not only the Nigerian air force,  as I told a friend who happened to be  a retired AVM   a  few  days ago  but  that of the entire  Nigerian  military. My  military friend’s defence was   a feeble retort   after  which  he kept  thunderously    quiet    and  ponderous  in my company.  His   reply  was that politicians too are corrupt to which I told him that that was well known and that was why Nigerians welcomed the military in the several coups  that have truncated our fragile  democracy.  I  told   him  bluntly   that today the military’s  image or capability  for such welcome intervention has become an  abomination and a thing of the past given the way top Airforce  bosses  have used  money  meant   for ammunition and fighter jets,  to buy properties  and  had kept such  money with  their  wives  who  are now returning the loot to  in millions  of naira and  dollars  to  the   emptied  treasuries  of  a  raped nation. That  reply or  rebuke  of the military  is  the mood I am  in as I  tackle  the topic of  the day.

    Public  mood is a human  phenomenon that  moves with the times, with no apologies to those unleashing it or those  at its receiving end. It  is like a fashion  or  fad, here today, gone tomorrow. That is the context in which  I want to  look at the issues and personalities  I want to deal with on this page today.

    The  first  is  the meteoric rise  of the Donald  Trump presidential candidacy  for the Republican party in the US and  the concern of that party leadership  and hierarchy,   with   the  disturbing prospect  of the possibility  of not only a Trump Republican  presidential  candidacy  but the prospect  of a Trump victory and presidency in the November presidential  elections  in the US .

    The  second was  the news  that the Brazilian Police have raided the home  of former President Lula  da  Silva as  part of the Inquiry into  corruption  at  Petrobas the Brazilian oil giant  and equivalent of our own  NNPC. The  inquiry code  named – Operation  Car  Wash-is following trails that Lula  bought  houses  for his son like  our Badeh  who also renovated the house with 60m naira of looted funds.  In addition the Police  in Brazil are working on the intelligence that Lula’s  famous ranch had been built from bribes from  contractors handling Petrobas sprawling and lucrative oil  business.

    Let  me  now  go back  to the greedy  use  of public funds  by the  former Airforce Chief and Defence boss  Alex  Badeh. I  go  into the archives  to recall some utterances of this military  leader in order  to reconcile them with the exposures by the EFCC.  First  it was under this man that some Nigerian military officers  and other ranks were put on court  martial for cowardice  and refusing to fight because they  complained of lack of equipment or supply  of poor and inferior  ammunition. Badeh  insisted then on the trial and but for people like Femi  Falana  some of these people would  have been summarily executed.

    Yet at Badeh’s military retirement pull out ceremony he revealed that he fought the  Boko  Haram insurgency   during his tenure without adequate arms and ammunition. If  you look  back at the court  martial and the admission  of inadequate equipment by  this Air  Marshal  and compare that with the acquisitions  he made with money meant for arms to fight Boko  Haram, you see such inconsistencies, greed and unbridled acquisitive tendencies  that propels you  to want  to register his name in the Guinness Book  of Records for acute mendacity and  you can imagine the public  mood of rage  and fury over the   sordid  and  ongoing   revelations  at his trial.

    Next  is the Donald  Trump prospect  for US presidency which has  sent  jitters around the US  and indeed the  entire  world  including Nigeria.  My friend Eric Teniola an ace and veteran journalist himself sent me a text early one morning this week ,which said – It  looks as if America will  not accept a possible  Donald  Trump presidency. I  replied Eric who I fondly call Erico – Nobody  can stop an idea or a man whose  time  has come.  That  really is my view on Donald  Trump  and his present  robust  foray into presidential politics in the US . I have written  this way before and  I stand by it even now that Mitt  Romney the last  presidential candidate of the Republican party has   come  out to condemn Trump  as  a ‘fraud‘ and as phony.  I will explain.

    The  fact  that Mitt  Romney  has used such  words on Trump showed  that Trump is important in the presidential  race  for  people like Romney to want him abused and disgraced out of the way. Unfortunately Romney has used language that Trump had  been condemned for and that makes them birds  of the same feather.  So  if Romney could contest for the Republican Party why  cant Trump who  is richer than him in a party of the rich and wealthy and who also  has the gift of the garb which Romney obviously lacked against  Obama when they contested for  the presidency last  time around in 2012, when Trump endorsed  Romney?

    More  importantly,  the public mood in the US is for a  change  from the usual  politics of business as usual,  as well  as  the   dynastic politics of the Kennedys, the Bushes and the  Clintons. That  explains why Hillary  Clinton  is finding it tough suppressing Bart  Sanders in the Democratic Party Presidential  candidacy race  as  widely anticipated  before. This is because  Sanders is presenting himself as an outsider like Trump and both are campaigning on the rhetoric  of failure of leadership  by the present political establishment of the two major parties in the US. That  coincidence of strategy, the politics of the outsider in both parties , is the dominant and resonant theme in this 2016  US presidential  elections and the reason is not far  fetched.

    It  is  simply a reaction  to the performance of the Obama Administration in the last 8 years. The  record  is there for all to see. Poor performance of the US economy, the  global  rise of Islamic  State and  Boko  Haram, global  hatred and  mistrust of Americans and feeling of insecurity  by Americans in their home land. That  is the Obama legacy which Hillary is sworn  to continue if elected president. That to me alone is enough to make Donald  Trump the sweet  bride of the majority of the US  electorate especially as he was  bold to call  a sitting US president a security risk  and he got even more popular for saying that . Surely  Donald  Trump  may be a very  crude  maverick yet it seems that the time and tide are made for his brand of politics and rhetoric and that would be difficult for anyone to change or stop at the 2016 presidential campaigns  and elections in November.

    Lastly we  come to  Lula da  Silva my favorite  Brazilian President till  now.  Lula  was a trade unionist and working class person but he made it to become president of his nation. He  was much  loved  for his common and simple background. The  nearest  thing to Lula in terms of  oratory and defence of workers  rights in Nigeria is Adams  Oshiomole, the fiery  governor  of Edo  state and  I wish him  the same  trajectory   as  Lula, minus the present unfortunate Petrobas  debacle.

    Lula  was a president after my heart for  bringing the 2014  World  Cup  and the 2016  Olympics  to Brazil. He  canvassed  personally  for the two bids and defeated bids from the US and  Britain even when US President  Barak  Obama  and   Britain’s  Prince of Wales, Prince  Charles  were present at such  bids. He  also  had the leadership  foresight to pick his successor Dilmar  Rusself who is the present president of Brazil in her second term. Dilmar  was Lula’s  Chief of staff  when Lula  was president of  Brazil. Now  things have turned sour over corruption charges  against  Lula in a Dilmar presidency and that is politics. The  Brazilian public mood  has  changed as in Nigeria and there is anger against corruption in high places no matter  whose  ox is gored.

    For  Brazil the misfortune started with the 2014  World Cup  when Brazilians  who normally love  football  took to the streets to protest the inflated and exorbitant prices of construction of stadia for the World  Cup as well as the corrupt and expensive life styles of Brazilian soccer  officials. That disrupted the soccer fiesta and earned Brazil a bad name in terms  of organizing successful sporting events. The  worst  part was that  Brazil, the host nation confident of lifting the World Cup built a fragile  team around an even more fragile  and much inexperienced Neymar and  got knocked out in disgrace  by Germany who  beat them by 7 goals  to  one.  Now  the government of Dilmar is probing  her  former  boss in what they have called Operation  Car  Wash  which  is the equivqlent  of our Dasuki gate.  Except  of course  for  the fact  that  we  are yet  to  muster  the courage to question  the  man on whose  table  the buck  stopped while  the  NSA reportedly gave out funds  meant  for arms for  campaigns  during his tenure as Dilmar  has done on her predecessor.  Again  long live the Federal  Republic  of Nigeria.

  • Our expectations from Labour Minister, by NLC, TUC

    Our expectations from Labour Minister, by NLC, TUC

    Labour – the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) – has outlined workers’ expectations from the Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr. Chris Ngige.

    NLC President Comrade Ayuba Wabba said the appointment of  Ngige and the Minister of State, James Ocholi, came at a time Nigeria is weighed down by challenges. He said the ministers have the task of ensuring industrial peace and harmony.

    He said the ministry was unique in that it handles industrial relations matters, adding that the ministers must address casualisation.

    He said the ministers must tackle the “prevalent cases of casualisation and outsourcing of workers, which a number of employers have resorted to as a way of cutting costs and maximising profits that cut across both public and private sectors.”

    Wabba said there was the need for the ministers to sufficiently equip the ministry’s Factory Inspectorate Division to function optimally.

    “The Ministry is a specialised one because it deals with issues of industrial relations, labour treaties and convention and it’s a tripartite platform. Therefore, the ministers need to understand the workings of the ministry,” he said.

    “People think the ministry of labour exists just to manage strikes, but it goes beyond that. It is about managing people. The greatest asset that we have is the human resources, therefore, it is the most viable asset outside capital. In fact, labour is more important than capital because you can’t have the capital if you don’t have the mix of expertise and human resources,” he said.

    Wabba also said the ministers must address unemployment,  arguing that casualisation and outsourcing of workers are burning issues, which must not be left unresolved by the administration. He said employers resorted to casualisation and outsourcing because they don’t want to pay terminal benefits and decent wages to their workers.

    On the challenges before the new ministers, TUC Secretary-General Comrade Mohammed Lawal said the appointment of the ministers was a welcome development. He said Ngige, who was once a governor and civil servant, would bring his experience to bear on the labour sector, especially now that the sector is engulfed in minimum wage crisis.

    He said the ministers would have to stabilise the relationship between labour and the Federal Government. Another challenge before Ngige, he said, is how to resolve the crisis arising from the planned reversal of the minimum wage by some state governments.

    According to him, the new minister will also need to use the labour sector to promote the change mantra being championed by President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.

    He said TUC was ready to partner with the new ministers to resolve labour issues and promote economic growth.

    However, the Deputy President, National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE), Comrade Ntukubes Mbang, said Ngige was a square peg in a round hole. He argued that as a medical doctor, he lacked the finesse and skills to resolve or manage industrial crisis.

    He, however, said the new minister would be challenged on how to tackle the hydra-headed problem of casualisation and outsourcing in the  sector.

  • Expectations, indignation and democracy

    A CNN interview of Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson fired my imagination for this write up. Obviously Carson is no run of the mill candidate just as Donald Trump the front runner of the GOP  to whom Carson  is a close  second is, and  both are not politician. Yet  that has not been a disadvantage as polls show that both are riding on a crest of indignation  by  the US  electorate  against the dismal  performance of politicians in running or ruining the American government or American dreams or both.

    Today  I  recall elements of the Carson interview and ponder his electability as a US presidential  candidate even as I have no iota of doubt on his capability to function effectively if  elected   as a US president judging from his performance from  that same interview. I  will  proceed to compare that  with the high expectations of Nigerians with the Buhari Presidency in the wake of the running battle of legitimacy with the leadership of our senate on the eve of the senatorial confirmation of ministers sent  to the senate. I  will  then look at Russia’s  President Vladmir Putin ‘s  successful foray of returning the world to the era of  Cold War diplomacy with his launching of rockets on ISIS  locations in Syria  from Russian warships  stationed in the Capsian  Sea while the US and EU watch in despair, amazement and sheer diplomatic and military  paralysis.

    I  start with a  brief analysis of the personalities of the world  leaders I have mentioned here as an anchor to my perceptions on the topic of the day. Ben  Carson is a world renown neuro  surgeon, a black man and the first doctor to successfully separate  twins joined at the head.  He  has America’s  highest honor – the Medal  of Freedom and has 15 honorary doctorate degrees to  his credit. He is a  scholar’s delight in terms of academic achievements which  have a great and direct bearing on his articulation of issues and events – which  also  have earned him  respect  generally  but  also envy and indignation from  those who cannot reconcile his color with his great talents and  admirable  sagacity.

    Donald Trump the American property  billionaire and Republican  front runner is an all American  success story but the Republican Party establishment do  not want him as their candidate. But  Trump is brave, brash, articulate and stunningly rich such that he is proving unstoppable for the GOP, which traditionally in the US is the party of the rich.

    Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari is of a different mode from  both US Republican presidential  candidates  He  has been elected and  he came to  office with great expectations  from Nigerians on how to sanitise their socio political and economic  environment. His reputation for fearlessness in doing the right thing has  made him the natural and expected  motor to clear away the sickening odor and refuse of corruption that has characterized Nigeria such that an American author wrote a book  titled‘A Culture of Corruption ‘which is about how 419  has become a way of life  in Nigeria.

    Russian President Vladmir Putin on his part has shown that lackadaisical diplomacy cannot be allowed to endanger world peace and security.   He  has stolen the thunder or is it miaowing of the US and EU by  taking up the vacuum of vacillation created  willingly by the US in the Middle East  by backing the Bashar Assad regime  in  Syria militarily to  the consternation of traditional US allies like Saudi Arabia and the wealthy Gulf States like Qatar, Kuwait and Oman.  Putin  has recreated a global  balance of terror 15  months  to the end of the Obama presidency and has made Obama  to look like one of the most impotent lame duck president of contemporary US  history simply  by siding Assad on the excuse of trying to make the world safe by  attacking a common enemy such as ISIS. Putin has used the perfect excuse to return Russia as a world power and his timing and execution has shown that he is a far better master of the pot pourri  of modern diplomacy than those who scoff at his tactics and invoke international  law as if inaction  and blatant dithering and handwringing will ever deter murderous terrorists and religious  militants.

    Let  me  now address the interview that Ben Carson had as  a presidential  candidate on CNN and the expectations of Nigerians  on the Buhari presidency and the spat with the Senate respectively. First  the Ben Carson interview by Wolf was more interested in nailing Carson to what he had said on the campaign trail which were considered controversial. These included his saying that a Muslim cannot  be US president, that Obama is not a black man  or  a Christian and that if  Americans had guns they  would not be killed randomly by gun toting crazy  Americans. His explanations were that he had been quoted out of context and I find his answers quite  illuminating even though the questions were like a mousetrap set to nail his presidential  bid.

    Carson said Islam is a way of life governed by Sharia and that would make it unconstitutional for any American practicing it to be US president unless and until he has renounced it.  He  said he believes Obama  is a black man and that the publisher Rupert Murdoch who said he is not was not a racist. On  Obama being a Christian he said since Obama has said  so he believes him. On  gun ownership Carson wrote in his new book that if Jews had guns in Hitler’s  Germany he would have been deterred from slaughtering 6m Jews in the Holocaust and he[ Carson]  stood by that. He  went  further to elaborate that recent killings in the US have been in gun free zones and advocated a mechanism to be put in place whereby those being attacked can make effort collectively to attack their real or potential killers instead of just mopping or running away.

    To  me Carson’s  explanations make great common sense and are indeed truisms which, expect one wants to be mischievous, can not be said to be controversial  but the US media  has made it so. The reason may be tied to the gay issue because Carson is  Seventh  Day Adventist Christian who  believes marriage should be between a man  and a woman although he respects the rights of gays and lesbians. On  Obama’s blackness Jesse Jackson once apologized for saying that Obama was not the type of Blackman expected to be US president ostensibly because he was raised by his grandmother,   a rich white banker  with Irish ancestry. That  really again was  what Rupert Murdoch was referring to when he said  Obama was not a real black  man and I do not see any racism in that. He was just alluding to Obama’s upbringing and orientation which  have played  a great part in  his presidency which Carson insisted has not benefitted the Blackman in the US in any way.  On  diplomacy  Carson said if elected he would call Russia’s Putin to order and given the US non policy on the Middle East which  he said had given rise  to ISIS I do  not see any controversy in that either.  Whether  Carson wins his party’s  nomination  or  not he has proven that his presidential  bid has clout and that it is quite possible for the US to have a credible and acceptable  blackman  as US president after Obama and that to me is commendable and desirable.

    Let  me round  up with the politics of approval  of the president’s men in our  senate. My  view is that the exercise  is a litmus test of  not only the integrity  of our separation of powers but also the fibre of our fight against  corruption. Certainly  the  Senate  will want to make a meal of the exercise but  Nigerians are  watching and they are not amused because the Senate is not  a soccer pitch to  cheer  goals or  a theatre  of Nollywood. The  ministerial  screening is a serious business and given the manner of the emergence of the Senate leadership, the asset  declaration trial of the Senate president and the police investigation of the senate leadership election rules,  Nigerians are watching to  see how the three issues will affect the screening of ministers. My advise is that the Senate  should do its duty without any  haggling or bargaining  over the three issues  and the Presidency  should stick by its list without any expectation other than a strict screening of its nominees by the Senate. This  is the expectation. of Nigerians otherwise the screening may   be – like Anthony Enahoro said when he proposed  self government for Nigeria –  the beginning of a chain of events the end of which no man knows. Again  long live the Federal Republic of Nigeria.