Suddenly, and after a confusing lull, government at the centre stirred itself into a flurry of activities to step down and control the escalating spread of the dreaded COVID-19. The President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.) finally addressed the nation, broached the introduction of social cushions, and announced a lockdown to begin almost right away for Lagos, Ogun and the Federal Capital Territory. Ogun State succeeded in renegotiating the onset of the shutdown, shifting it by a few days, but Lagos, the epicentre of the pandemic and the FCT, Abuja commenced theirs the day after Buhari’s broadcast, with not enough time to prepare for the accompanying deprivations and fallout.
Considering that most of the states were already in varying degrees of shutdown, enough time ought to have been given to Lagos and the FCT to prepare for the total lockdown that was imposed with less than 30 hours interval from the President’s broadcast. Issues have been raised by some lawyers, as well as Noble laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, about the legal aspect of the lockdown, posing the question, whether the President has the constitutional right to shut down the states in a federal system; the arguments have raged back and forth.
What is important, however, is that while nobody disputes the necessity of stern actions, the method and sequencing of their implementation would appear to have needed further thought. Characteristically, policy is made on the hoof, tending to complicate the scarcity and availability of resources, with which to prosecute the battle. For example, the dire shortage of isolation centres, ventilators, and test kits is beginning to matter, making the exercise look like a hand to mouth affair. More importantly, the health personnel who called off a looming strike in deference to the overriding circumstance of a pandemic continue to complain, nonetheless, of abject neglect. Speaking on national television, on Wednesday, an official of the National Association of Resident Doctors, Dr Aliyu Sokomba, regretted the dire neglect of medical personnel, which has resulted in the death of several of them, because of the shortage of protective equipment and a disgracefully low amount being paid to them as hazard allowance. Unknown to most Nigerians, far more people have died from Lassa fever than from COVID-19, which mercifully, has only claimed two lives so far, as against close to 180 for Lassa fever. In other words, because of the persistent neglect of the health sector, symptomised by low budgeting, year after year, we came quite unprepared for the battle, depending on good old luck and the expectation that the pandemic will not bite deep into the national soul.
True, the reliefs introduced by both the federal and state governments, will go some way in alleviating the distress of the most vulnerable, among whom the brunt of the lockdown will be most felt. However, they look more like afterthoughts, considering that they ought to have been in place before the lockdown was announced. Furthermore, considering our status as the poverty capital of the world, it is not entirely clear, what percentage of the poor and desperately poor the ameliorative package will eventually reach. There are other problems. In a country, which according to the United Nations has a housing shortage of about 22 million units, many of what passes for home are ramshackle starved of basic amenities, and are incubators for diseases. In this context, those kids who have taken to playing football on the streets around their dwelling places may simply be escaping, so to say, a sit-at-home order, in a situation where the home itself is an overcrowded shack. Bear in mind too, that the fitful and wobbly supply of electricity could not have made staying at home, a pleasurable option. More importantly, is a crisis of survival for many in the informal sector, who eke out a living by going to hustle on a daily basis, in the urban, as well as rural settings.
The protests and audible murmurs against the lockdown derive mainly from the narrow survival chances among this sector of the populace. The subsequent revision of the guidelines for the lockdown, which for example, allows markets to be open for a few hours every other day, is in the right direction. Understandably, there is a policy dilemma involved in instituting such measures as these. Perhaps, had more time been taken to study the implications, the bite of the lockdown, which is still in its early stages, may not have been this deep. Perhaps, emphasis should be laid on the protective and preventive dimensions rather than the kind of lockdown that so much resembles a clampdown. A little more slackening of the guidelines and an increase in relief measures will, in my view, do no harm.
Awujale’s diamond anniversary
As a rule, this columnist has often refrained from public comments on the Awujale of Ijebuland, Oba (Dr.) Sikiru Kayode Adetona, easily, one of the most revered monarchs in this country. The reason for my reticence on this score is related to my position as the pioneer occupant of a Professorial Chair endowed by the monarch, hoping thereby to avoid an allegation of incestuous commentary. However, it is extremely difficult, on this occasion of reaching 60 years on the throne and still counting, not to say a word or two. Obviously, in a country where life expectancy falls short of five decades, spending six decades as paramount ruler is itself exceptional. What is even more unusual is for such a tenure to be bedecked with achievements spanning the areas of poverty alleviation, institution building, educational advancement, and perhaps more importantly, moral capital, which allows him to speak truth to power, and to counsel with impartiality and sagely insight.
One of his legacies, certain to endure, is the creation and nurturing to global reckoning of the Ijebu Development Initiative on Poverty Reduction, which has frontally tackled and reduced unemployment, by creating jobs and entrepreneurial activities on an industrial scale. The delightful puzzle about the institution is its phenomenal growth from a seed money of N500, 000 to one, which a few years ago, had generated over N100, 000,000 a decade ago, and benefitted at least 5,000 people, conservatively estimated. This speaks without doubt to the capacity to mobilise resources and engage the power of creative fundraising, volunteering action and leveraging “regberegbe”, the age-grade associations, for which the Ijebu are famous. Obviously, breaking new grounds in educational development is another feature closely associated the monarch. The institution of a Professorial Chair in Governance, likely to dovetail into an Institute of Governance speaks eloquently to this dimension. What is noteworthy here is not the sheer size of the endowment but the fact that, up to date, and as a result of outstanding managerial acumen, only the interest of the endowment is being employed to run it.
Sitting down to parley with Kabiyesi, when the opportunity arises, is an intellectually stimulating occasion laden with wit, sharp ripostes, and the ability to narrate historical events with accuracy, and educational interface itself. Here is someone, therefore, who has elevated the chieftaincy institution in Nigeria to unaccustomed grandeur, not merely by material wealth, but by intellectual and moral fortitude. Here is wishing Kabiyesi many more years of an eventful reign.
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