Until Nigeria begins to recognize, put excellence and meritocracy above mediocrity and change the culture of corruption and impunity, the nation’s progress will remain stagnant. This is the message for all Nigerians, and the Buhari administration in its quest for expanded power to prosecute his change agenda. Buhari must know that no meaningful change can take place until the problem and the cause are identified and sincerely tackled. First, the lopsided war against corruption by the administration must stop! Rather, the war must be broadened in consonance with the plural nature of the society. It must not discriminate between APC, PDP and other political parties’ members. And it must not discriminate between Buhari’s friends and adversaries.
More than one year in office, the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in Nigeria is thinking of a way to curtail the harsh economic situation tormenting the masses.
This development is manifesting the fact that the Muhammadu Buhari civilian administration had no coherent economic blue print in place during the 2015 Presidential electioneering campaigns.
The Treasury Single Account (TSA) that has been officially adopted to curtail obvious leakages and reckless wastages within the system in Nigeria is said to be slowing down economic recovery.
The so called reforms carried out so far within the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has not impacted positively and practically on the people of Nigeria as kerosene remains beyond the reach of the people.
The Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), though now heavily factionalized into two groups is not helping matters; the masses seem to have been abandoned to their fate due to the fact that the last general strike called by the organized labor ended in gigantic fiasco.
Yes! It was a huge failure because the federal government, using the likes of Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, Governor of Edo State (and former president of the NLC) capitalized on the selfish parochial division within organized labor to make the general strike a worthless venture.
Who says the strike was not a worthless affair, when its main reason – increment in the pump price of petroleum products is still pegged at N145 per liter? With organized labor in comatose; the voice of the opposition political party (Peoples Democratic Party) seriously prevented from making strident noise, because its leading squealers like Olisa Metuh (Publicity Secretary) and Femi Fani-Kayode (ex-president Goodluck Jonathan 2015 Presidential campaign publicity guru) are being handled, with corruption charges hanging over their heads.
With the anti-corruption vehicle being used by the Muhammadu Buhari administration in gear five, yet the cost of living sky rocketing daily; the PDP as a party is in tatters, and the government having its way somehow unchecked, then the talk of Emergency Economic Stabilization Bill is a welcome idea.
However, this is not the first time that a sitting government is talking about emergency economic measures. Ex-president Shehu Shagari introduced what he called Emergency Economic Stabilization Act in 1982, which gradually translated into what we know as austerity measures.
Because Shehu Shagari was not in control of his own government, as corruption became a dreaded monster the initiative collapsed like a park of cards, while the masses bore the brunt of such economic failure.
Muhammadu Buhari came on board in 1984 via a bloodless coup detat, and introduced his own type of emergency economic policies. When the masses were groaning and trying to adjust to Buhari’s economic approach which he combined with stringent foreign policy measures that were counterproductive, the likes of General Ibrahim Babangida, Sani Abacha and Domkat Bali, etc. pushed him out in a palace coup in 1985.
The ‘unelected military president,’ Ibrahim Babangida came up with his own emergency economic measures that he tagged ‘Structural Adjustment Program’ (SAP). As the acronym really goes, SAP actually sapped energy out of the masses.
Babangida introduced unprecedented deception into governance by refusing International Monetary Fund (IMF), the much debated loan that was rejected by the public, only for him to stab Nigerians in the back by implementing the letters if the loan.
It is therefore incumbent on the Buhari administration to ensure that whatever economic policy it is envisaging, the interest of the masses must not be overlooked as they always bear the brunt of failed government policy, going by the nation’s history as enumerated above.
Also, the Nigerian public servants must imbibe the spirits of patriotism by putting the nation first above their own personal selfish interest. If the truth must be told, the lack of patriotism by most public officers in Nigeria has continuously militated against the nation’s progress.
In the absence of this, Nigeria will never make any inroad in its quest for political and economic greatness. Rather than go forward, the nation has continued to retrogress in several fronts due to the nefarious activities of several political monsters who found themselves in the corridors of power.
If you love your country you will not run it aground like we have seen displayed by several public officers in Nigeria, rather you always want to make it better for those coming after you; if you love your country you will not steal the money meant for arm to defend the nation as displayed by some members of the gang of a failed Jonathan administration; and if you love your country, you will not embezzle the money earmarked for the development of your community.
If you look at the nation, as a child that was raised in Nigeria 20-40 years ago, you will agreed that the country has declined in several fronts, especially in education, healthcare, infrastructural facilities, such as pipe-borne water and electricity.
For those who love their country, Nigeria they can only shed tears, seeing the nation degenerate just because of the reckless action of a few unpatriotic individuals, entrusted with power, and by implication, the destiny of the nation.
For Nigeria to move forward and occupy a well-deserved prime place in the comity of nations, we must change our culture of corruption and impunity. The Buhari administration should come up with a national reorientation program that would begin to teach citizens from birth the true love of country.
Teach it in class rooms throughout the country, backed by mass mobilization techniques, using the media to enlighten people in every nook or cranny of the country.
For those who are entrenched in the valley of corruption, let the law take its course. The laws should be reviewed to prescribe greater penalties for those found guilty of stealing or embezzling public funds, something commensurate with the nature of crime committed and which would serve as a great deterrence to others who might want to try it.
Every day in the Western world, especially America people display the love of country; they are always busy on how to make the country better than they met it.
The results are numerous, including: new innovations, inventions and lofty development. There is no doubt that we have people like that in Nigeria, but they are not given the chance to display their knowledge for the benefit of the country because when mediocres are charge geniuses are denied their rightful places.
Until Nigeria begins to recognize, put excellence and meritocracy above mediocrity and change the culture of corruption and impunity, the nation’s progress will remain stagnant.
This is the message for all Nigerians, and the Buhari administration in its quest for expanded power to prosecute his change agenda. Buhari must know that no meaningful change can take place until the problem and the cause are identified and sincerely tackled.
First, the lopsided war against corruption by the administration must stop! Rather, the war must be broadened in consonance with the plural nature of the society. It must not discriminate between APC, PDP and other political parties’ members. And it must not discriminate between Buhari’s friends and adversaries.
– Alltimepost.com Editorial
