As we approach 2019 politicians of different shades have started to warm up their propaganda machine to win the hearts of Nigerians so that they can win their votes. Unfortunately, we are a people who do not consider the economic implications of our choice of political parties and their leaders before we cast our votes. We allow primordial sentiments to becloud all other socio-economic considerations.
This is the bane of our politics. After 16 years of People’s Democratic Party (PDP) rule, Nigerians felt there was the need for change. The desire for change became more impelling as the then opposition party the All Progressive Congress (APC) made change their campaign slogan. Nigerians voted massively for the APC and the change they promised. An X-ray of APC these three and halve years rule, shows nothing tangible that one can say is the positive change they brought, instead they failed in all the promises they made to Nigerians in 2015. Let us set sentiments apart and be truthful and sincere to ourselves. Which of the promises the APC made in 2015 have they fulfilled?
I know some ardent supporters of APC will say they did well in the anti-corruption war. Let us not forget that the present anti – corruption war was started by the PDP. It was not used to hunt the opposition party members to intimidate them to join the ruling party so as to be left off the hook. How else could one explain the array of PDP members fingered for corruption who quickly defected to APC and are now walking free and have now become campaign managers of President Mohammadu Buhari. Also, let us not forget that the two anti-corruption agencies- EFCC and ICPC, were created by PDP government under President Obasanjo.
The PDP anti-corruption war was not selective as prominent PDP members such as ministers went to jail and the then inspector General of Police was handcuffed and taken to court in Black Maria. Today, under the watch of President Buhari corruption is even higher. We were all living witnesses of high ranking government officials fingered for corruption by the anti – corruption agencies who have continued to remain in office. Some who were suspended on corruption cases were under mysterious circumstances recalled. The Buhari anti – corruption war is a charade. The PDP came to power in 1999, met a plundered treasury and battered economy with excruciating foreign debt.
The GDP growth rate then was below 2.5%. Nigeria was ranked the 47th position in world economic rating and 7th position in African economic rating. The PDP administration with a high sense of mission and patriotism brought Nigeria out of the debts, grew the economy to become the 26th largest in the world and became the largest in Africa. In 1999, The PDP assumed power when Nigeria had only 500, 000 telephone lines and we were told by military administration then that telephone was not for the poor. A determined PDP government proved them wrong when in 2001 the PDP under president Obasanjo rolled out the GSM lines, grew it to 98 million in 2014. The GSM has made phone available to the rich and the poor, provided millions of employment and it revolutionarised the ways of lives of Nigerians.
Today from the comfort of your home you can call your loved ones anywhere in the world. A Nigeria that was not found in the global radii of internet connectivity of the world in the year 2000 is today ranked very high.
Under the PDP administration, Nigeria joined the League of Nations that has launched satellite in space and proudly the first black nation to do so. To put Africa on the path of growth the PDP government under the leadership of President Obasanjo initiated the African peer review mechanism. This initiative led to the development of social infrastructure of the participating countries including Nigeria. This led to the rebuilding of dilapidated primary and secondary schools that were in sorry state. Today allover Nigeria you can see very beautiful primary and secondary schools.
The PDP did not one day blame the military for the massive plundering of the treasury or for the underdevelopment and decayed infrastructure nationwide. With great vision for a greater Nigeria the PDP came up with an economic blue print code-named NEEDS – National Economic Empowerment Development Strategy
This economic agenda was pursued with unremitting vigour by the PDP led federal government with great success. It was this success that attracted the attention of world economic watchers such as Standards and Poor, World Bank and others in 2013 to come to the conclusion that Nigeria is one of the fastest growing economy and if the present tempo of growth is maintained Nigeria will become one of the 20 largest world economies in 2020.
This promising economy was what the PDP handed over to the APC government in May, 2015. As a government that came to power with a change mantra, Nigerians thought that the APC led federal government will take us to the next level of socio-economic development. The APC government has been economically clueless, inept and has continued to inflict untold hardship on the Nigerian masses. Our democratic tenets are being eroded, freedom of speech of Nigerians are being curtailed and tyranny as was seen in the recent invasion of the National Assembly and the Ekiti state House of Assembly by the DSS operatives is becoming the order of the day.
Today, as I write millions of Nigerians have lost their jobs due the shrinking economy, there is a serious break down of law and order and great insecurity of lives and properties. The lives of fellow Nigerians including soldiers are being lost every day. We cannot continue like this. Change is needed. The positive change that we need must come from us (Nigerians). We must as a people begin to move away from ethno-religious based politics.
God has given us all we need to live life of abundance and splendor. Our desire for change must be inspired by what this political party and its leaders have got to offer in terms of our socio-economic wellbeing. The change we need today must be the one that will remove our
common wealth from the hands of a few selfish politicians and bureaucrats who acting in concert have unleashed poverty, misery and disease on the poor masses of our dear nation. With prudent management Nigeria has more than enough to provide her citizens free education, free health, affordable housing and social security for the aged and the unemployed.
The looting of our common wealth which has continued even in this regime must be stopped. Any party aspiring to lead this nation must be ready to mobilise our God given resources for the greater good of the Nigerian people. Nigerians should reject at the polls any political party that does not have the welfare of the masses as its program.
We must not vote for a party because the leader or the leaders are from our ethnic persuasion, religion or region. We must not allow religion to be our guide in our choice of leaders. We must ask ourselves: can this party and its leaders perform and change our lives for the better? We must look at what the antecedence of such parties and their leaders are.
What Nigeria and Nigerians need today are revolutionary leaders; leaders who can grow enough food for our people. Leaders who can create millions of jobs for the teaming millions of young Nigerians; leaders who can roll up their sleeves and quickly go to work and not leaders who spend all the time to blame others for their failures.
We saw what former Governor Raji Fashola did when he was in Lagos. He turned Lagos into a beautiful city we can all be proud of. The present Governor Akinwunmi Ambode is also doing well. Come 2019 I would have voted for Governor Ambode to continue his good works in Lagos. Unfortunately, the god fathers of Lagos politics have said no to his second term bid. The only black spot in his present administration is the refuse disposal. I think he has taken that up and very soon Lagos will become clean like the era of former Governor Fashola. Though there are still many state governors who are yet to rise to the occasion and make life easy and comfortable for its citizens, our greatest problem is the federal government. That is why I strongly support a total restructuring of the Nigerian federation. My own idea of restructuring should be that the six geo-political zones should be another layer of federating units with the existing state structure and local governments which should be under the regions intact.
There should also be six regional capitals with regional police. Each state should also have its police and maintain its state capital. Any attempt to eliminate the states and the local government structures will be anti-people and retrogression back to the era of four regions and under development. Were it not for the creation of more states which gave rise to new state capitals like Damaturu, Uyo and Yenogoa, who would have thought that Uyo the Akwa Ibom state capital could have grown to become a modern city today.
The Federal government’s share of the federation account should be shared into two and halve be given to the regional governments. The constituent states of each of the six regions should contribute 5% of their revenue to their region. The President and Commander-in – Chief should be rotated between the regions on the bases of North and South. The Federal government should have exclusive reserve in the issues of the Army, Immigration and the customs. There should be six vice-president from each of the six regions to assist the President. The basis of our restructuring should be on the resolutions of the 2014 COMFAB organised by former President Goodluck Jonathan. The present structure has put some members of the federation into undue advantage leaving the rest of us perpetually disadvantaged socially and economically. No member of the Nigerian federation should be held down for others to catch up.
The starting point for the desired new change in Nigeria for a shared economic prosperity should be free education, free medical care, full employment and affordable housing for all Nigerians. The greedy who have perpetually held us in abject poverty and misery will argue where is the money for these people oriented programmes. My answer to them is that we have more than enough money to execute these programs. All that is needed is good planning, love for ones country, prudence, plugging all leakages and unwavering commitment to a shared economic prosperity of our dear nation. The new leaders Nigeria and Nigerians need today are courageous leaders who will look at the cabals who have held our nation hostage these years and say to them, enough is enough. Our common wealth must be deployed for the benefit of all Nigerians irrespective of the circumstances of their birth.
The Nigerian nation must be rescued from the present jungle our nation has been plunged into. We are today living in times that demand men of great courage and exceptional patriotism to restore peace, normalcy and prosperity to our dear nation. We live today in times that beckon on us to reflect on the words of the French philosopher, Frantz Fannon, who said “The future will not take pity on those who possess exceptional privileges of being able to speak the words of truth to their oppressors but have taken an attitude of passivity, mute indifference and sometimes of cold complicity”.
Iduh, a veteran labour leader, wrote in from Lagos.
END
Be the first to comment