We have been looking at events in this part of the world to understand why they defy all attempts to embrace global best practices. Professor Sir Paul Collier says : "It is easier to rename countries than to change them". The controversy about 'Shithole' has just settled. There is a recent outrage when a French Journalist asked if there are bookstores in Nigeria, but has it made any difference?
I have just read a new report where Nigeria's Senate President, Bukola Saraki, described what is happening at the state controlled Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation,(NNPC). He said the state controlled NNPC ''stinks despite regime change''. President Buhari says ''it's disgraceful that none of our refineries is working optimally, but he's the Petroleum Minister for almost four years, his Chief of Staff is also Executive Director of NNPC and his kinsman is also the head of the NNPC.
Meanwhile Nigeria's thirty-six (36) Governors have accused the NNPC of failure to remit to the federation account the joint venture cash call for five years.[FEC Admits Shortchanging Nigerians To Fund Fuel Import; Independent January 31, 2018]
I learnt the head of the Petroleum Industry(NNPC), Mr.Maikanti Baru says the government now owes the corporation, so there may not be enough funds to fix the refineries or build new ones. The government simply turns into ''paper-tiger government'', that promises reforms and doing it their own way, at least they need to win the next election, and to win they must fund patronage politics. so where will they get the money to pay their e-fighters(social media warriors), traditional rulers, community leaders, women leaders, etc.
The World Economic Forum has just released a report that Governments wastes trillions of dollars annually fighting corruption instead of the provision of public services especially education, healthcare and infrastructure, in most cases the recovered funds are re-looted as we have seen in Nigeria.
A Pan-Yoruba group Afenifere describes Nigeria as a ''huge killings field''; 'primitive and barbaric enclave and the state is either complicit or unwilling to stop the dastardly acts''. Amnesty International has just released a new video captioned : Why did the Nigeria Air-force do the unthinkable? .
Opposition leaders in Kenya have just sworn in their leader Raila Odinga as alternative President. Nigeria has just deported seperatist leaders to Cameroon, etc.. We all know the implications.
The issues of 'corruption, political instability and resource management', have been identified as the major problems for the crisis in Africa, but there seems not to be genuine internal pressure to confront the status-quo. Till date it has remained winner takes all.
Until we decide to learn from the mistakes of the past, it will always remain 'development in reverse', endless outrage over 'shitholes' and bookstores. It's worst when the same people who are the reasons for the stagnation still wants to be incharge by endorsing themselves, manipulating ignorant people, and those who are only interested in what they will gain to endorse the status-quo.
I have seen couple of playcards/photos describing Raila Odinga as the 'President of the People' maybe President Uhuru Kenyatta is the President of the Government,or the President of Another People, that's just the beginnig.
Nigeria's leading opposition party , the PDP has told a visiting UN-team that they don't trust the government to conduct a free and fair elections. We all know the reasons.
In Africa, somethings don't change : 'Ignorance, Corruption, Civil-war, Plague', etc.
Uche Okeke.
No comments:
Post a Comment