Unrealised Expectations!

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year everyone! I wish us all a prosperous 2022 in peace, joy, safety and good health. Amen. It is interesting to note how the Fundamental Objectives and Directive Principles of State Policy contained in Chapter II of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended in 2018) (the Constitution), are actually in consonance with these general omnibus prayers. How well has the Buhari administration fared, in playing their part in fulfilling their obligations in this regard, six and a half years after they assumed office, and less than one and a half years to go?

Taking Stock and Getting Prepared

As we begin 2022, it is apposite that we take stock to see where we are, especially vis-à-vis this administration’s main campaign promises – annihilation of Boko Haram (security), fighting corruption and revamping the economy. 2022 will be crucial in our nation’s history, hopefully leading to a watershed (for the better) in 2023, since the Presidential candidates for the next election will soon emerge; we must avoid endorsing and voting for people who are full of false promises which they have no intention of fulfilling, or who simply lack the capacity, ability and wherewithal to fulfil them, and are also incapable of dispassionately assembling the right team to surmount Nigeria’s teeming problems, but would rather make appointments based on extraneous reasons that have nothing to do with understanding and ability, like politics and ethnicity. We will therefore, be studying our candidates closely. For those who are already in Government or have been previously, what were their achievements in the positions they held? For those who have never held public office, how well have they performed in their endeavours?

Security

At the inception of the Buhari administration, the main types of insecurity Nigeria was experiencing were Militant activities in the Niger Delta, and Boko Haram insurgency (and kidnapping to a lesser degree). President Buhari’s campaign promise to restore security to the country, was one of the main reasons he was voted into office. It is trite that, it is unlikely that an insecure environment can thrive economically. It was the hope of millions of Nigerians that when President Buhari, a retired Army General, also known for his stand against corruption, took up the mantle of office, things would change for the better. On the contrary, Nigeria’s ratings on the global security index fell to almost rock bottom, while we have become the poverty capital of the world. Going by this discouraging report, it means that two of this administration’s main campaign promises have not yet been fulfilled.

Permit me to digress a little first. I cannot but mention the snippets of the Channels Television’s ‘Politics Today’ programme I watched on New Year’s eve, in which Lt General Buratai (Rtd), the former Chief of Army Staff (2015-2021), who left the security of Nigeria, if not in shambles, in a much worse condition than he met it (with the assistance of Ibrahim Idris Kpotun, who will go down as one of the worst Inspector Generals of Police in Nigeria’s history (2016-2019)), and had to be practically chased out of office because of the dissatisfaction, mumblings and insistence of Nigerians as a result of his non-performance, was giving advice and words of wisdom on how to quell insecurity! Advice which he himself obviously did not take when he had ample opportunity to do so, while in office for almost six years.

Expectations of 2017 and their Fulfilment Five Years On

By the beginning of 2017, very little had been achieved in terms of security. The little impact that was first made at the inception of this administration, seemed to have been lost almost immediately. In my first editorial of 2017, I had listed some of my expectations from Government for that year. They were 12 in number. At the time, the Niger Delta region had been somewhat unstable because of the unholy activities of the Militants – kidnapping oil workers, threatening oil installations etc, and this had had a negative impact on oil production, and consequently, oil revenue therefrom. Considering the fact that all prices had fallen to an all-time low, my first prayer was that peace should be restored to that region, so we could at least, meet our oil production quota, and boost our economy, even though oil revenues were reduced. Thankfully, that issue seemed to have been resolved; relative calm returned to the region, and oil production improved.

My second expectation was that, the Petroleum Industry Bill be passed. This was finally achieved four years later, as the Petroleum Industry Act was passed in 2021.

My fifth expectation, was for the issue of lack of electricity to be tackled effectively. This was done initially, up to about 2019/2020. Today, electricity supply has decreased, and once again, become poor and epileptic. Where I had given pass marks of C4 and even A3 or so by the end of 2017/2018 (using the old West African Examination Council scoring system), currently that score has dropped drastically to a P7. I couldn’t really care less about buck passing – whether it is the fault of the DISCOs, GENCOs, NERC or maybe the Minister of Power who is not coming down as effectively as he should on all the stakeholders; but, presently, the situation has been extremely discouraging. Electricity is a basic need, not a luxury. Why are Nigerians being made to exist, as if we are living in the ‘dark ages’? If you recall, President Obasanjo had also promised electricity for all by the 2000 or thereabouts. Needless to say, he too did not deliver on his promise. We talk about the ease and cost of doing business – without stable electricity supply, doing business will always be difficult in Nigeria, while the costs of doing business will be higher than they should be.

My seventh expectation was for all the remaining Chibok girls in captivity, to be released. This was partially fulfilled, as the Buhari Administration secured the release of some of them. Today, over 100 Chibok girls, Leah Sharibu (a Dapchi girl) and several other students remain in captivity; because, since the Chibok days in 2014, kidnapping of pupils and students, especially in Northern Nigeria, has become the order of the day.

My eighth expectation was that Government would invest in infrastructure. In terms of social infrastructure, there has been some investment in housing, but not much in the area of education and public hospitals. In terms of economic infrastructure, we see the development of the roads, railway network and airports (some projects having been commenced during the Jonathan administration). This boost in economic infrastructure is a step in the right direction; Nigerians are slowly starting to reap the benefits of it. I visited my hometown Ibadan, Oyo State last December, having not been there in over three years. My journey on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway each way was completed in less than two hours; unlike in the past, where because of traffic due to the bad roads, the journey could take up to four hours or more one way (up to nine hours on a particularly bad day). It was also interesting to compare notes while in Ibadan, with Yemi Candide-Johnson, SAN, who had travelled to Ibadan on the train to attend the same event that I went for. We can now choose our means of transportation to Ibadan; being able to travel by train to Ibadan with relative ease, has possibly reduced the traffic on the expressway as many prefer to use this mode of transportation.

However, not all my other expectations (and that of millions of Nigerians) have been met. Contrary to my ninth expectation, the Naira has continued to decrease in value instead of regaining its former strength; unemployment is rife; insecurity is the worst that it has ever been, as not only has Boko Haram not been decimated, other types of crimes like kidnapping, ‘banditry’ and the Farmer/Herdsmen crisis have gained ground; the fight against corruption has not gone very far, though we have seen a few convictions; the manufacturing industry is still more or less moribund, while the Civil Service, Nigeria Police and other agencies including the Judiciary, have not been reformed.

My Expectations for 2022: The Judiciary

I feel that it would be tautologous to list my expectations for this year, as I have repeated them once too many times over the years. They are mostly the same as those of 2017. My expectations really just amount to wanting good governance. In 2022, it is our hope that these expectations, which are our rights guaranteed by the Constitution, will be better met. Naturally, many are cynical, saying that if they have not been met in six and a half years, it is unlikely that they will be fulfilled in the remaining less than one and a half years of this administration’s tenure.

As a Lawyer, I have a keen interest in my own constituency, the legal profession, and the Judiciary. I expect that the first thing on the 2022 agenda, as far as administration of justice sector reform by this Government is concerned, is an increase in the salaries, allowances and conditions of service of judicial officers, which have remained stagnant for about 15 years. This is unacceptable. According to Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, SAN: “We need to significantly improve the remuneration of Judges and Magistrates. There’s no reason why the salaries of Judges, cannot be benchmarked against that of Senators and Members of the House of Representatives”. I concur. Presently, the basic salaries of judicial officers, can only be compared to the newspaper allowances of the Members of the Legislature! Yet, our judicial officers are known to have one of the busiest dockets in the world; while, on the contrary, our Legislators who are mostly underworked – compared to the Judiciary anyway, are known to receive one of the most fabulous salary and allowances packages in the world. I will continuously harp on this issue, until we see some positive results, which hopefully, will be now.