Can those who made a fortune out of acting with impunity be trusted to midwife a reconciliation between transparency and accountability? Can those who made a fortune at the expense of poor Nigerians now be the trusted architects of a more inclusive economy?
2018, a milestone year in which impunity caused a messy divorce, on a global scale, between transparency and accountability. Whether it was the killing of a Saudi journalist writing for a U.S. paper, in the Saudi Embassy, in Turkey or the attempted murder on British soil, of a former Russian Spy, some events happened in ‘full glare’ of the world, leaving an undisputable ‘smoking gun.’ And yet those involved seem to have gotten away with it simply by acting in high office, with unprecedented impunity – as if daring the world with a smug, “and what are you going to do about it?” Meanwhile, back in Nigeria, accountability seems to have accepted to undergo ‘marriage counselling’ with transparency, following the ‘arrest and prosecution’ of impunity. The present administration vowed to fight corruption, but many are divided over how successful they have been in that quest. However, on the issue of a war they didn’t declare – that against impunity, few are those who can dispute the level of success they have achieved.
Those who acted with impunity under the Jonathan regime seem unable to continue in that vein, too scared, perhaps, to flaunt the wealth they have amassed in their reckless pursuits. The 2019 elections now seem to be giving them a platform and voice with which to stage a comeback. The scene is now set for an epic, battle royal – a ferocious war amongst many combatants sworn only to one purpose – the ouster of the Muhammadu Buhari administration to reinstate ‘the way things were before.’ This is not a political piece however, but an attempt to appeal to sense and reason. Let me digress for a moment. Some women I know are great fans of Nollywood and long before the renaissance of going to see made-in-Nigeria movies at the cinema, these ladies religiously followed the new titles released each week by the “marketers.” They could tell, simply by the line-up of the cast whether a movie would be interesting or boring and could often tell the storyline simply from the theme song – to them, these are very Nigerian stories and those stories follow a pattern.
Looking at the array of combatants for the coming electoral battle in 2019 and the theme song they are chorusing, even if they have changed the movie title, should the discerning expect the storyline to be different or should they expect a more interesting story from these actors they have come to know so well? Can those who made a fortune out of acting with impunity be trusted to midwife a reconciliation between transparency and accountability? Can those who made a fortune at the expense of poor Nigerians now be the trusted architects of a more inclusive economy?
Vote in the leaders and party that will hold fort even if repair is beyond them and banish those who will return us to ‘the way things were.’ Nigerians deserve a better future and now is the time to prepare for it. What do you think?
Like it or not, all our politicians have seen the global rise of populism. Many will be seduced by the politician’s ability to couch in populist terms the lust for wealth-by-all-means and the lust for power to keep it coming; or the greedy longings for what the Nigerian rich flaunt, regardless of the means adopted in acquiring it or the selfish reliance on material resources as a yardstick of national progress. The battle lines are drawn between those who believe the ends justify the means, so long as the economy “grows” (meaning money is swirling around freely again – the way things were) versus those who seek more sustainable paths to growth through building the right societal foundations, including good ethics and values like transparency and accountability in pursuit of a Society that is good for all. A vote for this brand of populist rhetoric is a vote for the destruction of the foundations of our society and a mortgaging of the already slim chances we have at making a proper recovery from years of abuse by various brands of dictators.
We need a government that is interested in and capable of identifying the constraints to growth in each community in Nigeria, one capable of finding innovative ways of removing such constraints in ways that enable the majority of Nigerians see a sustainable increase in their incomes. A government that is able to help each citizen living on less than N500 a day (and that is over 125 million Nigerians) achieve at least N1,500-N2,000 a day, through productivity gains. This should include women and Nigeria’s teeming youth, persons living with disability and the chronically unemployed. A government that is able to develop policies that encourage the existing value-chains incorporate the poor as producers, employees and customers to improve their livelihoods and spark off inclusive business models. The establishment of such a clear proposition will attract serious investment from the private sector in response.
This is when government resources can be freed up to consolidate on these gains by strengthening infrastructure and the rule of law. Nigeria’s GDP could more than quadruple and sustainable economic growth could be a natural outcome. If you start ab initio, on the premise that you could sacrifice good values such as integrity, transparency and accountability, so long as you record some “economic growth” that makes “money flow freely again”, this high risk (foolish) strategy would turnout at best to be a bubble, and false growth which will inevitably end in a major crash. Nigerians need to see through the wiles of crafty, foxy politicians who are after nothing but their own self-perpetuation and preservation in wealth and power.
It is true the new breed may not fully seize power till 2023 but can such a fresh, new future come from old guard, re-cycled, politicians? What should the reasonable Nigerian do? If your choice candidate and party is unlikely to be able to improve the situation by 2023 then why not make a choice that will do no harm until then? Vote in the leaders and party that will hold fort even if repair is beyond them and banish those who will return us to ‘the way things were.’ Nigerians deserve a better future and now is the time to prepare for it. What do you think?
Soji Apampa is a co-founder of The Integrity Organisation Ltd. (Gte). Twitter: @sojapa
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