These are not ordinary times in Nigeria. We are on the brink, to put it mildly. Yet some people who claim to be our leaders are carrying on like we have no emergency in our hands. I never really stuck my head out for anyone during the last elections but I had a soft spot for President Goodluck Jonathan and I don't know why. I didn't like him that much but I felt for the sake of continuity, we didn't need a fresh person in Aso Rock. Besides, he cut a picture of a person who somehow knew what he wanted to do and was ready to run Nigeria with a paradigm shift mentality. But I was wrong obviously. Nothing seems to suggest to me right now that Mr. President is different from our previous leaders.
I had expected by now that he would have sent an Executive Bill to the National Assembly to do a death blow on extravagant expenditure in government. He didn't... The cost of running government is much higher today than it was 5 years ago.
I had expected that the President would be very proactive with security matters by picking highly skilled security people and not follow the traditional pattern of appointing service chiefs on the basis of "next in line". We have chiefs in our security services who are all confessing that the Boko Haram phenomenon caught them "unawares". Security people using the word "unawares"? It can only happen in Nigeria. In saner societies, that statement alone can earn them an immediate sack. That is why I like President Babangida for his security proactivity. I was a mere teenager when a one-time Governor of Benue State (for 3 days) made a careless statement to the press. The man was fired the next day and retired from the Nigerian Army. You don't make statements like that in security circles in public! Not even when you entertain the thoughts and entertaining such defeatist thoughts are even uncalled for!
The other day, the President told the nation that he was not a "general" nor was he "Pharoah of Egypt" and that we should not expect him to confront the challenges we have with a military mentality. My question is? Who then is the Commander in Chief of the Nigerian Armed Forces? If the president cannot think and act as a Commander in Chief, who does he expect to think? If we have a President who speaks in this manner, why would Boko Haram not become more audacious with their attacks? Why should we have Damaturu turn into a killing field last week? If the security services were on top of their jobs, wouldn't it be good security sense for them to become proactive in neighbouring states to Borno where the sect is operating from as its headquarters?
When the nation is reeling under heavy economic challenges, we have a government that should be protecting the defenseless citizens even thinking of taking away from them what they have as a cushioning effect. Petrol at N65 is even expensive for a nation living on generators which is powered by fuel! If we take the price above N100 per litre through subsidy removal, now that there no electricity, are we saying the ordinary Nigerian should not even fuel their generators again? Are our leaders thinking? If you are removing subsidy, can you correctly account for the funds that have been entrusted to you in the past?
In my facebook page today, I have been advocating that the President and his team should take a pay cut by 50% and the National Assembly members should forgo 50% of their allowances and lead by example by engaging in deliberate sacrifices. The truth is this: these leaders do not really care about what happens to the ordinary Nigerian.
Ordinary citizens who try to galvanize others to protest the injustice and misgovernance are now being hounded by the State Security Service (SSS) wasting valuable man-hours that should have been spent working on the real criminals who are ravaging our streets with bombs. Poor managers always major on the minor. That is what is happening.
Without sounding so pessemistic, I want to state clearly that we are heading for the status of a failed state without even taking a closer look to confirm this. We must not forget that the average Nigerian is becoming restive daily through consistent frustration. When a government fails to live up to its name and responsibility, it may end up bearing the brunt of the consequences from a population pushed too far to the wall. A word is enough for the wise.
I had expected by now that he would have sent an Executive Bill to the National Assembly to do a death blow on extravagant expenditure in government. He didn't... The cost of running government is much higher today than it was 5 years ago.
I had expected that the President would be very proactive with security matters by picking highly skilled security people and not follow the traditional pattern of appointing service chiefs on the basis of "next in line". We have chiefs in our security services who are all confessing that the Boko Haram phenomenon caught them "unawares". Security people using the word "unawares"? It can only happen in Nigeria. In saner societies, that statement alone can earn them an immediate sack. That is why I like President Babangida for his security proactivity. I was a mere teenager when a one-time Governor of Benue State (for 3 days) made a careless statement to the press. The man was fired the next day and retired from the Nigerian Army. You don't make statements like that in security circles in public! Not even when you entertain the thoughts and entertaining such defeatist thoughts are even uncalled for!
The other day, the President told the nation that he was not a "general" nor was he "Pharoah of Egypt" and that we should not expect him to confront the challenges we have with a military mentality. My question is? Who then is the Commander in Chief of the Nigerian Armed Forces? If the president cannot think and act as a Commander in Chief, who does he expect to think? If we have a President who speaks in this manner, why would Boko Haram not become more audacious with their attacks? Why should we have Damaturu turn into a killing field last week? If the security services were on top of their jobs, wouldn't it be good security sense for them to become proactive in neighbouring states to Borno where the sect is operating from as its headquarters?
When the nation is reeling under heavy economic challenges, we have a government that should be protecting the defenseless citizens even thinking of taking away from them what they have as a cushioning effect. Petrol at N65 is even expensive for a nation living on generators which is powered by fuel! If we take the price above N100 per litre through subsidy removal, now that there no electricity, are we saying the ordinary Nigerian should not even fuel their generators again? Are our leaders thinking? If you are removing subsidy, can you correctly account for the funds that have been entrusted to you in the past?
In my facebook page today, I have been advocating that the President and his team should take a pay cut by 50% and the National Assembly members should forgo 50% of their allowances and lead by example by engaging in deliberate sacrifices. The truth is this: these leaders do not really care about what happens to the ordinary Nigerian.
Ordinary citizens who try to galvanize others to protest the injustice and misgovernance are now being hounded by the State Security Service (SSS) wasting valuable man-hours that should have been spent working on the real criminals who are ravaging our streets with bombs. Poor managers always major on the minor. That is what is happening.
Without sounding so pessemistic, I want to state clearly that we are heading for the status of a failed state without even taking a closer look to confirm this. We must not forget that the average Nigerian is becoming restive daily through consistent frustration. When a government fails to live up to its name and responsibility, it may end up bearing the brunt of the consequences from a population pushed too far to the wall. A word is enough for the wise.
