The Insight by Lateef Adewole
Today, if there is anything that is topmost desire of Nigerians, all Nigerians, may be except some, it is finding solutions to the myriad problems facing us as a country. I said “except some” because, there are people who benefit and live on our collective misery. It is in all these troubles bedevilling us that they strive, not positively because they provide solutions but negatively by profiting illicitly from them. They have always done and continue to do all in their powers to ensure the problems do not end, and even make them to escalate. They are in public and private sectors. There are those who occupy political offices and those who do not.
But the people at the receiving end will give anything for normalcy to return to their country, including me. I am overwhelmed. I am tired. But I have not and will not give up. When someone takes time to do an overview of Nigeria over the decades and sees how things continued to degenerate, with what also seems like no solution, one could be tempted to think our intractable problems are unsolvable. Is there any problem in this world that is unsolvable? I really do not think so.
If so, why then do things often get worse in many spheres of our own national life rather than get better over the years? What I found out is our insincerity to solve them. Not only by the leadership but also the led- the citizens. However, I am always of opinion that the leadership can set the pace, set the agenda and the people would be compelled to follow, “voluntarily or by compulsion”. Leadership is better to be by example rather than precept. Sadly, this is not the case here. Most often, our leaders demand that the citizens do one thing while they do another.
Most Nigerians also lack patriotism and are not prepared to make sacrifices for their country. We are a people who loves to eat our cake and keep it at the same time. We want to go to paradise but we do not want to die. No country can become great without patriotic citizens, from among whom patriotic leaders emerge. Many Nigerians have lost faith in their country. Leaving Nigeria for just about any country has become like liberation from hell fire for the citizens. Whenever someone successfully travels out of the country, they and their families go for thanks giving in worship houses, for escaping from their country. What could be more heartbreaking than that?
Can Nigeria’s problem be solved? Yes, ofcourse. At least, substantially to the extent that the citizens can be proud as Nigerians, have hope and want to stay and live in their country. How? We all have to be prepared to make the needed sacrifices; leaders and the led. But, are we ready for such sacrifices? This is where the problems begin.
We are moving towards another election year with hope to elect some other set of people who we will be saddled with the responsibility of running our country, from “top to bottom”. All these people who are the candidates of various political parties, what exactly are their interests? To solve our problems or for self-aggrandisement? Except those who delude themselves, it is open secret that majority (with emphasis), are on that journey for self-interest. How then do we expect the problems to be solved?
What if….? Many would wonder “what if what?” In my thinking, I believe we need basic foundation first, on which every other thing should be built. But, can we ever do it? Public offices needs to have more stringent conditions attached to them for whoever wants to occupy them. They should not be positions of luxury. Anyone who prefers their luxurious live is free to stay away from the offices and enjoy such as private citizens, with no compulsory personal obligations to the public/people. This should even be part of our constitution. But, who will insert it there? The same people who are guilty of it? That is almost impossible.
Let us look at some of our problems in Nigeria and their solutions just if somethings can be made prerequisites for public servants: civil servants and political office holders. What if anyone interested in serving the public must have their school-age children in public schools? I wrote an article about the unending ASUU strikes and the future of university education in Nigeria last week. Does anyone think that ASUU will endlessly go on strikes if all the children of our public servants attend our universities? What conditions do we think our schools, from primary to the university would be if this is the case? Would they have allowed the education system to rot, with imminent collapse? I don’t think so.
We all read about the transformation that Kaduna Capital School, Malali, Kaduna state, witnessed when the state governor, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai decided to enrol his son, Abubakar Al-Siddique, there in 2019. A whooping N195 million was reportedly spent to upgrade the primary school to compete with any other anywhere. Another daughter of his also enrolled there few years after. If all other public servants also have their kids in different schools, they will work hard to ensure the infrastructures are standard. What if this can be law in Nigeria?
Some weeks ago, the vice president Professor Yemi Osinbajo had a surgery in Lagos. It was very commended, at least, for a person in his position to trust his health to Nigerian healthcare system and doctors, even if it is a topnotch private hospital; Duchess International Hospital. That was still something to applaud. Senator Godswill Akpabio, the “uncommon” politcian boasted of building a world-class hospital in Akwa Ibom with N30 billion while he was the state governor. But when he had a shock from an accident he had in Abuja in 2015, few months after he left office, he still had to fly to United Kingdom for trauma therapy after he was initially attended to in National Hospital, Abuja. So, his “world class” hospital could not attend to his trauma. What kind of “uncommon” shame was that?
Our president raised the bar on foreign medical tourism, contrary to his opinion before getting to office as president. This is also likely to continue as many of the 2023 parties’ candidates are already guilty before even getting to office. What if it is a prerequisite that all public servants and their family members must use our public hospitals for their medical needs? How do we think the hospitals will be? Will all these our teaching and general hospitals be in such state of disrepair? I don’t think so. Our public servants will be forced to upgrade them, ensure the doctors are well trained and remunerated. This will be to the benefits of the people generally. What if this is in our laws?
We were having a discussion few days ago and Lagos-Ibadan expressway came up. We wondered why it is taking eternity to finish that 127.6km stretch of road. One would have thought that the current administration would have finished it within their first term. Then, someone asked if President Buhari has ever travelled on that road since coming to office in 2015. Likewise many past presidents. Even a short journey from Lagos to Abeokuta (81km), President Buhari travelled in chopper everytime he visited. Just like when Chief Obasanjo was the president.
Within Lagos State, from Ikeja to Badagry (73.4km), the president travelled in chopper when he visited in 2018. From Katsina to Daura (88.3km), President Buhari travels in chopper. From Yenogua in Bayelsa state to Otueke (24.2km), President Jonathan used to travel in chopper. How would our leaders know the deplorable state of our roads when they hardly travel by them? Same as many public servants and political office holders.
In the same vein, the bandits and terrorists who have taken over the roads and make them unsafe for commuters would have thought twice if they are used always by our public servants. The roads would have been made safe by routing all these criminals who now rule them. Yes, we understand the greater risks to politically exposed persons, hence their greater security needs. But, why should one person be assigned a number of security details enough to go to war, at the expense of the rest of us, in a country where we already have shortfall in their numbers?
Nigeria has about 350,000 police officers for 200 million people. That’s an average of one police to 571 persons, as against expected standard of one police officer to about 400 people. Yet, one public servant could have as much as 20-30. Even private individuals who can pay. They have for their wife or wives, children and even their concubines! While the citizens are left unprotected and vulnerable to attacks by criminals. If public servants have made the country safe by properly doing the jobs for which they were elected, appointed or employed, why would they need such huge security attachees in the first place? “Gbebonrin, f’apo r’ori, iwa omo ni mu omo se okigbe”.
Nigerian currency, naira, has seen the worst of days in its history in recent times. The value kept going down, leading to unprecedented rise in prices of goods and services, with its consequential degradation of life of the citizens. People are getting poorer and poorer by the minute now. One of many identified factors is the high demand for dollars to import. Nigeria is a heavily import-dependent country. Why should it be so?
We are a people who consume what we do not produce a lot. We are not producing but a consuming nation. We import the least things which we are supposed to produce, which we can, in the country. We could not even add values to many things we get free as natural resources here or the few we produce, to become the finished products we need to consume. Rather, we extract them in raw forms and export them at cheap prices, to foreign countries where they are processed and values added to them. Then, we import them back to the country at exorbitant costs, needing huge dollars to do so. Hence, the pressure on naira.
The worse of such is our crude oil and importation of petrol, diesel, kerosene, aviation fuel and other by-products of the refining process. How more ignoble can a country be? At the height of global crude oil windfall since early this year when the war between Russia and Ukraine started, instead of us to laugh to the bank, we have been crying. The soared crude oil price has been a curse to us instead of blessing. Our financial situation got worse, contrary to what obtained in many other oil producing and exporting countries like us.
Why do we prefer anything “foreign”? Just like foreign education and medicals, many Nigerians cannot live without foreign goods. Foreign foods, clothes, shoes, cars, furniture, even “foreign women”! They are imported with the scarce dollars. When government make policies on agriculture, do political office holders consume the products from the farms? Is local rice eaten in any government house in Nigeria; Aso Rock and state government houses? Are they eating same in their houses? How then do we expect them to be valued?
On assumption of office, the new governor of Anambra State, Professor Charles Soludo, gladdened many people’s hearts when he announced, at his inauguration, his policy of local patronage. He said it will be centred on Anambra first, then South East (igboland), followed by Nigeria, Africa and the world. Meaning that anything that his government needs will first be sourced locally within Anambra State. Where it is not available, it will be sourced from anywhere in Igboland. If it is not available, then from other parts of Nigeria and then Africa, before consideration from any other part of the world.
On that occasion, he said his cars and those to be used by his government will be from Innoson Vehicle Manufacturing (IVM) Company, which is Anambra based. He also promised to wear their local fabric called “Akwete” and the likes, which are available in Anambra State and within the Igboland. Same as his shoes and other things. This is very impressive and commendable. What if this is a national policy? Imagine all the demands from the federal government alone for locally manufactured goods like their official vehicles. Added to that, those from 36 states and FCT? That is humongous.
Someone might ask if such huge demands could be met by Innoson and other Nigerian based car producers? Definitely, if it is a national policy, car makers around the world will be forced to come and set up factories and assembly plants in Nigeria. This will create millions of direct and indirect jobs. They will contribute to the GDP and also lessen pressure on naira. At a stage, Nigeria can even become net exporter of cars to other African countries. This will earn us foreign exchange and boosts our foreign reserve. Supposing this is replicated in other sectors. One can only imagine the multiplier effect. Stationeries, toiletries and many basic items used in all government offices, ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) alone can only be imagined. What if this is part of our laws? We can go on and on.
Now, who will make all these possible? The people in power in the executive and legislative arms at the federal and states. Professor Soludo was able to make such pronouncements because he is the chief executive of his state. If such policies are to be made laws, the state or federal legislatures will be responsible. Are all these people ready for such drastic steps, when they will be the first victims? Are they ready to make such sacrifices? This is the crux of the matter. Sincere and patriotic president and governors can do a lot in this regard. They can lead the charge and drive such policies. But, are they willing and ready? Are they patriotic enough to do so?
Personally, I am not against people enjoying these luxuries. I am only against such been done with the already inadequate public funds. They should not squander our hard-earned collective patrimony on such. With the desperate situation and dire economic state we are, why should leaders continue to live in obscene opulence which is financed by public resources as if nothing is wrong while the rest of the citizens wallow in abject poverty? Anyone who cannot endure to live within such boundaries should have no business as public servant. Period!
They can live so in their private lives. It is clear how we now borrow to pay salaries. We borrow to pay subsidy. We borrow to service debts. We borrow to build infrastructures. We borrow to finance wastages. We borrow for public servants to steal. When will this end? When are we going to stop? How can we survive if we continue with such recklessness? How? When?
The citizens have their roles to play too. Patriotism. This is missing in many Nigerians today. Can anyone really blame them? Leadership has not inspired that in the people with their irresponsibilities and insensitivity to the plight of the citizens most times. The people do not trust their leaders. How can they be patriotic when the leaders do not exhibit same virtue? Solving Nigeria’s myriad problems requires all hands to be on deck. It is a collective responsibility.
The people breaking pipelines and stealing crude oil and refined petroleum when available, those stealing rail track sleepers, those vandalising power equipment and cables, those removing irons from bridges, those stealing stones used for road constructions, and so on, are ordinary Nigerians. They are not in power. It is the people who give information to terrorists, thereby sabotaging security efforts of our security agencies. It is people who supply terrorists with their needs like foods, fuel, motorcycles, guns and other supplies, even medical services. All these are unpatriotic acts.
In all, Nigeria is not the only troubled country in the world. Solving our problems is not rocket science. All of us only need to be patriotic and unite to solve them by being ready to make the needed sacrifices. To be taken seriously, these actions might need to be made national policies and or even put in our constitution. We need to do things differently. You cannot do the same thing over and over but expect different results. That’s insanity, according to Albert Einstein. But, are we ready?
May God continue to protect us and guide us aright.
God Bless Nigeria.
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