“An institution is the lengthened shadow of one man.” Ralph Waldo Emerson, 1803-1882. (VANGUARD BOOK OF QUOTATIONS p 105). They can still be called a cabinet now; but, if care is not taken they will be regarded as a circus. Buhari had created a world record – five months — assembling “a dream team”. Five months is a long time to accomplish what other global leaders historically had finished in less than a month. So, something extra-ordinary was expected from the delay. Instead, what emerged was a team which is remarkable for the ordinariness of most of its members. A few man-for-man comparisons would help us to appraise the outcome of the delay – which was hailed as sagacious by Buhari’s Halleluya singers.
The Attorney General and Minister for Justice is light years behind Prince Bola Ajibola – who left the office to become a Justice of the World Court. It is doubtful if anybody had brought superior credentials to the Ministry of Education than Professor Jibril Aminu. Dr Kalu Idika Kalu was already a globally acclaimed economist, an ASPAU scholar, whose experience, at the World Bank, included helping to shape South Korea’s economic miracle. He was Minister of Finance. Professor Bolaji Akinyemi, another ASPAU scholar, was External Affairs Minister. Professor Ndachaba was in charge of Agriculture. Dr Okongwu was the Minister for Budget. He was also a World Bank alumnus.
All these, as well as others, too numerous to mention, were appointed by Babangida in less than six weeks. Where is the super star among the lot it took five months to select to compare with these stars – who still shine till today? Obviously, it is not how long it takes to recruit but how good a pool one is choosing from that determines the outcome. Now that we know them, it can be asserted that Buhari could sack the entire cabinet and replace them, ten times over, with men and women with comparable credentials without loss of effectiveness. The real worry is that the President runs the risk of being discredited by the people he had taken so long to appoint. Based on their performance and utterances so far, they can be categorized in many ways – few of which are flattering to their ego or that of their boss. Two have already declared they are not magicians – the Minister of State for Petroleum, Dr Kacikwu, who had become more famous than the President and Chief Audu Ogbeh, the Minister for Agriculture and Rural Development. Since Kachikwu’s pronouncement had already gone viral, there is no need to repeat it. Chief Ogbeh’s announcement, because it was tucked into a corner of the PUNCH on April 8, 2016, page 30, must have escaped the attention of most readers of newspapers – except your faithful servants at UniJankara.
According to Ogbeh, “You can’t borrow in this country to fund agriculture. Yet, they want us to do magic.” It is difficult to know who Ogbeh regards as “they” who want him to replace “Professor Peller”, but any adult in Nigeria in the last thirty years must have known that banks don’t fund agriculture except when the clients have obtained Duty Waiver from corrupt government officials. The CHANGE, not magic, Nigerians expected, is for a Minister and a government that would compel the banks to fund agriculture. Ogbeh and his boss know what to do if he cannot do this. At any rate, it is annoying when officials who are bereft of ideas define themselves in negative terms. When Jonathan tried to excuse his lack of will to discipline his subordinates, he said, “I am not a dictator, or a lion or a tiger..” That prompted me to ask on these pages, “What Are You Sir?” Perhaps, now that Kachikwu and Ogbeh had told us what they are not, they will quickly tell us what they are. There are various vacancies in a circus, apart from magicians.
The circus also needs comedians; and the Buhari team is getting dangerously close to becoming one. “Some act [even talk] and think later, and they only think of excuses more than consequences…” said Professor Kenneth Galbraith (VBQ p 2). Those who attended a workshop on Security, organized by the Gusau Institute, late last year, at the Shehu Musa Yar’Adua Conference Centre, would recollect Dr Kachikwu bringing down the roof with applause when he announced that the NNPC was deploying drones to fight pipeline vandalism. A quick check with a trusted insider at NNPC revealed that nothing of the sort had been discussed. The announcement made headlines in several newspapers the next day. That was the last anybody heard of drones. Surely, the reader must remember when Nigerians were told that Warri refinery was operating and would soon be joined by all the others. Today, we import 100% of our fuel once again. Do we need a magician to keep standing on one spot? Any clown, in a circus, can help us do that. As this column is being written on Saturday, April 9, 2016, my car is still stuck in the queue at the only filling station out of five, with fuel, around Campos Square, Lagos. The scarcity which Kachikwu promised would vanish by Thursday, April 7, 2016 is still very much with us. A walk through various parts of Lagos Island confirmed that the situation was the same all over.
That leads to the question: can anybody actually believe the man’s promise about ending it all in two months? Given the track record, it is hard to believe him. But, May is just round the corner. If those who had talked, Ministers of Information, Finance, Power, Justice, and Communications (to mention a few) give us anxieties, those who had remained silent are perplexing. The vast majority of those Buhari carefully selected are as good as Egyptian mummies. They are silent; nobody knows what they are doing, if anything or what they plan to do. It is a natural wonder why it took so long to appoint so many ventriloquists; who may be ideal for a circus but not a cabinet. “Water is life”, said Greek philosopher Thales, 650-546 B.C. We are in April, and no rain. A drought might be developing. But, neither the Minister for Water Resources, nor Agriculture nor the Meteorological Services had made an official announcement to alert farmers. For all we know famine might re-visit us. If it happens Nigerians will be given excuses fit for a circus. who had talked, Ministers of Information, Finance, Power, Justice, and Communications (to mention a few) give us anxieties, those who had remained silent are perplexing. The vast majority of those Buhari carefully selected are as good as Egyptian mummies. They are silent; nobody knows what they are doing, if anything or what they plan to do. It is a natural wonder why it took so long to appoint so many ventriloquists; who may be ideal for a circus but not a cabinet. “Water is life”, said Greek philosopher Thales, 650-546 B.C. We are in April, and no rain. A drought might be developing. But, neither the Minister for Water Resources, nor Agriculture nor the Meteorological Services had made an official announcement to alert farmers. For all we know famine might re-visit us. If it happens Nigerians will be given excuses fit for a circus.
VANGUARD
END
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