By Segun Tomori
How time flies! A year ago, the whole nation stood still, in awesome ecstacy at the birth of a new dawn. The almost impossible had happened. The symbol of change, Muhammadu Buhari, the then Presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) had defeated an incumbent President through the ballot, a first, in our chequered history.
He was sworn-in, in a grand style about this time last year. The atmosphere at Eagle square, the venue of the inauguration and across the country was that of excitement and renewed hope, we finally have the opportunity to get it right, the whole nation agreed in unison.
President Buhari who had made security, corruption and the economy the fulcrum of his campaign hit the ground running with the relocation of the military command and control centre from Abuja to Maiduguri – the epicentre of the Boko Haram insurgency. He also moved swiftly to visit neighbouring Chad, Niger and Cameron, a diplomatic shuttle that led to the establishment of an 8,700 strong Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF). Buhari later over-hauled the military hierarchy and results of his focus and political will is clear to all. Boko Haram, who hitherto occupied 14 local govts, allegedly about the size of Belgium have been uprooted from their supposed caliphate. The military, who seemed incapacitated and on the defensive in the past suddenly became motivated. They took the battle to the insurgents, cutting logistics and food supplies and launching coordinated air and ground strikes that has not only decimated Boko Haram, but left it in disarray. All these have been possible because Buhari appointed competent military chiefs and led them to war with unprecedented single-mindedness and support.
The anti-corruption war is another area the President has made some progress. Apart from the continued arrests and prosecution of alleged corrupt elements and recovery of looted funds, Mr Buhari has raised a national consciousness against corruption. Public officials are now wary of corrupt practices and this has reduced the impunity and wanton looting of State resources, prevalent in the Jonathan administration. Continuous auditing introduced into civil service payroll has uncovered and removed 43,000 ghost workers and saved the government N50b. Expenses such as travel cost, meal allowances have been reduced amongst other efforts to minimize recurrent expenditure. But not much has been done in terms of holistic fight against the menace. There hasn’t been a high profile conviction and not much has changed in terms of judicial or institutional reforms. One would have expected an anti-corruption marshal plan by the Prof Itse Sagay-led Presidential Committee on Anti-corruption whose time of assignment seem open-ended, quite unfortunately.
On the economy, this administration has not seemed to find its footing. While the slump in oil price and looting of our resources dislocated the system, not a few Nigerians believe much could still have been done. The haphazard handling of the forex shortage by CBN; the quite incoherent monetary policies that has plagued our exchange rate with fluctuations and huge disparity in the parallel and official markets; and the flip flop in policy as regards the petroleum downstream sector are some issues that have become a source of concern.
The controversy surrounding the budget which just saw it becoming operational early this month also affected the economy which has being in a standstill for a greater part of the past year. Many believe that the budget conundrum could have been avoided if appointment of Ministers were not unduly delayed, 6 months into the administration. Ministers appointed in November had barely 1 month or less to scrutinise budget proposals prepared by civil servants. The National Assembly is also not without blame as “padding” to suit its whims and caprices also elongated the stalemate. One doesn’t understand why the President didn’t utilise Section 82 of the constitution to keep the country running. It states that “the President may authorize the withdrawal of moneys from the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF) of the Federation for the purpose of meeting expenditure necessary to carry on the services of the Government of the Federation for a period not exceeding six months or until the coming into operation of the Appropriation Act”.
Just as we were heaving a sigh of relief on Boko Haram, some murderous herdsmen started wrecking havoc in towns and villages leaving blood on their trail. Recently, disgruntled militants brought ” Niger-Delta Avengers” into our national psyche, masterminding audacious attacks on oil installations and pipelines that has cut our daily production from 2.2m barrels of crude oil to less than 1.4 m. The President’s response to the herdsmen attacks which became pronounced in Agatu, Benue State, has been less than swift and proactive. We saw an escalation of the attacks to Enugu amongst others before we heard a concrete and somewhat firm reaction from government. How this translates into action, remains to be seen.
The threat posed by Niger-Delta Avengers is being given the attention it deserves. The administration has adopted a carrot and stick approach which involves parleying with aggrieved militants; giving back pipeline protection to them as witnessed under the last administration and deploying its military strength to fish out and crush those that remain recalcitrant. I think it is important to point out that this government, early in its life, has made the Niger-delta a priority with the “clean up Ogoni” project in deference to the United Nations Environmental Protection (UNEP) report that was abandoned by past administrations. On this, the President has shown strong political will to address the perennial challenge of environmental degradation of the Niger-Delta.
While it might be expedient to tell Nigerians our troubles will be over with diligent implementation of the budget, it is not as simplistic. Our problems are more structural than it is developmental. As laudable as the welfare programmes of this administration are, it will be merely scratching the surface if the President does not lead, and champion a restructuring of our dysfunctional federation. Our Federation distorted by military adventurists in their bid maintain their stranglehold on power and the nation’s resources, subsists till date. The unitary system they imposed has stifled the regions and States and created a strong centre to the detriment of federating units. We must go back to true Federalism practised in the First Republic where regions developed at their own pace; exploited their resources and paid taxes to the Federal govt. That was the period of the famed groundnuts pyramid in the North; the Cocoa revolution in the west; and the boom of Oil palm plantation in the East.
Devolution of powers from the centre, fiscal Federalism and a form of confederation that will bring back the era of strong regions will be a step in the right direction. Most States are merely worth their names on paper, a merger or regional collaboration may be the way out to solve the present insolvency of some States. A constitution of a semi-autonomous regional political structure may be the way out of the quagmire of hostility and tension, itself a result of our divergence in language and nationalities; deep seated perception of social injustice by some regions.
Our Federal Police system is long over-due for restructuring in view of the complex security challenges bedevilling the nation. A Policeman not conversant with the culture and terrain of a locality finds it difficult to bond with the people, earn their trust and effectively discharge his duties. That is why decentralization of the central Police to pave way for State Police with limited jurisdiction is now a necessity. The argument in certain quarters that we are not yet ripe for State Police is misplaced. States like Lagos and others are already funding Federal Police in form of various crime-busting outfits. It is an anomaly for a Governor, the Chief Security Officer of a State not to be in control of the Police under his jurisdiction. The Enugu State Governor might have saved his State from the herdsmen attack if the Police were answerable to him having received intelligence about the attacks days before.
That President Buhari needs a reinvigorated economic team to lead a “marshall plan” that will jumpstart the economy is not in doubt. The President seems to be the only President since 1999 that doesn’t have a Chief Economic Adviser, I stand to be corrected. While it is true that the Vice-President, a Professor of Law, is the head of the economic team, a sound economist with vast experience in dealing with our peculiar situation will be an asset that will assist the administration in achieving its set targets. Time is of essence, this government has effectively two years to prove its mettle so it must embrace new ideas, fresh hands to propel it to success.
If we must win the war against corruption, we must rally the people behind the campaign. The National Orientation Agency (NOA) must be empowered and overhauled to lead the campaign against the menace across States, towns and villages. Media outlets, symposiums, street campaigns are among mediums that can be employed to sensitize the people. All this will however not yield the desired results if high-profile cases cannot be successfully prosecuted in record time.
Judicial reforms that will lead to the establishment of Special Courts for Corruption cases should be considered. The Sagay-led Presidential Committee on Anti-corruption should be given a deadline to submit its anti-corruption blueprint that should include stiffening of existing laws, strengthening the anti-corruption agencies and drafting a bill that will pass the onus of proof of ill-gotten wealth from prosecution to the accused. Once we can secure convictions and jail some of the so-called “big fishes”, a clear signal will be sent that no one is above the law. This will reverberate across the country and spur attitudinal change among a large segment of the populace.
Whether it is grazing reserve, ranches or secluded farms, this administration must do something drastic to rein in the murderous activities of some herdsmen. Nomadic cattle grazing has become obsolete and become a source of constant friction between the nomads and host communities. Ranches proposed by government is a step in the right direction. It will yield cattle that are healthier and more productive. The argument in certain quarters that nomadic grazing is a culture is not tenable with modern realities where every region of the country had given up on a huge aspect of their tradition for peaceful coexistence. The Fulani herdsmen should not be an exception.
As the Buhari administration moves into its second year, speed is of essence. Citizens will no longer tolerate excuses as one year is long enough a time to settle down. Nigerians will expect to see dividends of change as the implementation of the 2016 budget progresses. Lessons ought to have been learnt from mistakes of the out-gone year. We remain hopeful that given the commitment of the President, we can say next year that the glory of the latter is greater than the former.
Segun Tomori is a Legislative Aide to a Member of the House of Representatives (MHR) and Public Affairs Analyst based in Abuja. 08062672869, Twitter: @seguntomori
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