IBB, Atiku, Jonathan, All the Same

Nigerian politicians are at it again, trying to outmanoeuvre themselves for the big prize; the proverbial national cake which all these years has been treated like war booty by the leaders.  There is no serious debate about how to move the country forward developmentally. There is no serious debate about providing jobs, and basic utilities of water, electricity and health care to the people. There is no serious debate about curbing the worsening security situation in the country. And of course there is no serious debate about providing Nigeria with selfless leadership. The debate has been about nothing but who among the oppressive elite political class gets the drivers seat next time around.

To these politicians, some of whom have been there and done nothing for the people, it is just another opportunity to foist their avarice on Nigeria.  They grab and grab and keep taking without giving. Obasanjo ruled that country longer than any single person yet no one can point to any major achievement of his.  It was his military regime that Nigerianized foreign corporations by decree. It took the much maligned Abacha to reverse that with the Enterprise promotion Decree which opened up the road for foreign investors to return to the country.
Babangida's performance needs little thinking to recall. Is it the annulment of the June 12 election?  Is it the improperly managed devaluation of the naira and the attendant economic downturn? Is it the political charade that preceded the June 12 election. The same man is planning to go round asking people to vote for him.
What about Atiku Abubakar? It was Atiku's PDM that made it possible for Obasanjo to be President in 1999.  Too bad Obasanjo outsmarted all of them at the end, from Chuba Okadigbo who was removed as Senate president early in the Obasanjo government to Atiku whose ambition was scuttled by his former boss.
Despite his personal issues with Obasajo, Atiku presided over his own empire of booty sharing from the Vice presidential wing. He is definitely not the messiah Nigeria needs.
What about Joanthan? I don't know but he has acted like he is just comfortable being President without doing much.   One cannot point to a particular direction the country is headed under him. He promised political reform but reform does not end with the appointment of a radical professor as electoral commision chairman.  What has he really done as President? Oh! he banned the Eagles from international competition.
Really who is out there?

Overpaid Legislators, Constituency Projects or Corruption

How much does it cost to maintain a Nigerian legislator? Former president Obasanjo was reported Wednesday August 5, (Sun News) as saying he believes it costs up to 250 million naira.  A whopping figure which if multiplied by the number of legislators in the National Assembly runs into several billions.  Having been president, Obasanjo's comments should not be ignored because he is in a position to know. What is all that money used for?
Obasanjo mentioned constituency projects where the legislators would hire contractors for projects in their various constituencies. Do they really use the money for that? Is there an accounting process instituted for the purpose of monitoring the projects and fund disbursement?
Sun News also quotes the former president as saying: "... we can’t continue to have a National Assembly that is consuming a disproportional part of our resources and then expect that we would be able to make progress. They pass budget that can’t be implemented, because it has to be beefed up to satisfy their whims and caprices. Even what the ministries did not ask for they put it."
While Obasanjo cannot claim to be a saint, a nation run with such flagrant disregard for fiscal responsibility is doomed.  If the legislators actually use the funds for constituency projects, as budgeted, it would serve the various communities well, it would create jobs, infrastructure and other visible development in such communities.  In the US, members of Congress sometimes use what they call earmarks to attract projects and certain infrastructure  to their constituencies.  Even at that, it generates a lot of controversy and political debate but the difference is that those earmarked projects actually get built unlike in Nigeria where the money probably ends up in private coffers. 
Really, how much does it cost to maintain a Nigerian  legislator, from the salaries they approve for themselves to all the allowances, housing, furniture, vehicle, domestic staff, constituency staff and offices etc.?  

Beyond Yar' Adua

Nigerians have raised so much uproar about Yar'Adua's absence from Abuja that one begins to wonder what that is all about. Government in Nigeria has never been of much benefit to the larger citizenry anyway, irrespective of the person in charge. Who cares whether it is Yar' Adua now or Jonathan? That government, like the ones before it, has done little for Nigerians. Who cares whether the President is at home or in a Saudi Arabia hospital? We are not talking about a dutiful leadership seriously churning out development projects for the country. We are not talking about a truly democratic government in which the people's will is held sacrosanct. We are not talking about a nation that has known ideal leadership to the admiration of the world. We are surely not talking about a President who has earned the respect of world leaders for his achievements. While humane considerations require that the ailing president gets our sympathy and prayers, the political uproar is absolutely a distraction from the real issues at stake. The problem with Nigeria has not been caused by Yar' Adua's absence. The problem is a conspiracy of the political elite against the citizenry. Yar' Adua has only been out for a few months but had been present for years as President and achieved not much. His government has not given Nigerians regular electricity supply. They have not given Nigerians other basic utilities, potable water supply, fuel automobile or otherwise. Yar' Adua's presence is not going to change this and will not cause the crime rate to abate. His return to Nigeria is not going to improve the state of corruption in the country. It sure would not stop the Abuja politicians from continuing to do business as usual with the mantra of self before the people.
Really, all the noise about Yar' Adua being absent makes no difference. It only matters in whose picture is placed on the walls of public offices with the inscription "President and Commander in Chief". People should stop wasting time demonstrating and debating the issue. We should instead be addressing the needs of our people and how to make the government serve those needs.