Begging your pardon, Mr President

To be fair, what is really important in presidential addresses isn’t the quality of delivery, but the quality of content, so when analyzing speeches it’s vital to concentrate on the substance and not pursue the shadows of personal attacks. The 2014 Independence Day speech was deficient in substance as regards what was said, and what […]

To be fair, what is really important in presidential addresses isn’t the quality of delivery, but the quality of content, so when analyzing speeches it’s vital to concentrate on the substance and not pursue the shadows of personal attacks. The 2014 Independence Day speech was deficient in substance as regards what was said, and what wasn’t. Comprising over 2,500 words, it never mentioned corruption once. There was no explanation or apology for the failure to jail treasury looters, end epileptic power supply and crush Boko Haram. Nothing about discouraging ethnic separatist movements, or improving security. No explanation of the scandalous $9.3 million cash ferried to South Africa. No explanation of what government is doing about the Chibok girls.  No explanation of the missing $20 billion oil money which the finance minister promised to locate. No mention of the excessive cost of governance and unjustifiable benefits of political office. Citizens who have been at the receiving end of government’s failures expected this valedictory independence speech to address their concerns, instead they were fed a diet of contradictions. For example when expressing gratitude to security forces Mr President claimed they remain “undaunted and unwearied”. Begging your pardon, but aren’t these the same officers and men currently being court-martialled and sentenced to death for mutiny? Is mutiny a sign that all is well? The speech glorified the overly expensive and unrepresentative national conference calling it the “greatest centenary gift to our country”. But begging your pardon, isn’t it a fact that that there is no constitutional provision for implementing the report?
The Independent National Electoral Commission was enjoined to work “conscientiously” to ensure free and fair elections. Is INEC not being frustrated from establishing more polling booths to ensure fair elections? Road building and infrastructure renovation was hailed. But begging your pardon isn’t it true that in six years this government has not completed a single new express road, and has only managed to completely renovate few sections? Power sector reforms were said to be on course. But are we really “on course” when power generating and distribution companies make massive profits while citizens live in darkness? The speech commended government for ensuring a “major increase” in the participation of indigenous oil and gas Companies in the industry. But aren’t these the same people involved in fuel subsidy scamming, tanker round tripping, and failed marginal field operations? The “new” automotive policy that encourages the production of made in Nigeria vehicles was acclaimed.  Begging your pardon there is a significant difference between making something and assembling it. Is there any major component of these vehicles which is actually “made” in Nigeria? The “commitment” to addressing housing deficiency through a mortgage re-finance program was hailed. But isn’t it true that committed governments build houses for the poor because developing low cost housing isn’t profitable for private investment?  The reduction in our national food import was also highlighted. But this is no achievement when Nigerians no longer eat three square meals a day, and can’t afford imported “luxuries” such as sardines, corned beef and baked beans.
The establishment of 14 new federal universities was applauded. But begging your pardon isn’t it true that no Nigerian University ranks in the top ten in Africa?  Renovation of school buildings was celebrated, whereas Nigeria has the largest population of children out of school in the world, and failure rates amongst school leavers are at the highest ever levels. The claim that two and a half million jobs have been created, flies in the face of reality. The unemployment level among graduates, and lack of opportunities is alarming and no amount of phantom statistics can hide the nationwide human misery. The renovation of airports as opposed to motor parks has no impact on the 99% of citizens who can’t pay the scandalous prices of tickets which makes Nigeria one of the most expensive countries in the world for air travel.  Rebased statistics can’t hide the truth that the majority of Nigerians are becoming poorer and more wretched by the day. (Previous governments achieved far more, with far less than is available these days.)  Free education and free medical services were available in many areas, while sports facilities, airports, educational institutions, health facilities, and express roads were constructed rapidly. In contrast the scandalously expensive and structurally defective Abuja National Stadium is the only major new development completed since 1999.  
Those enjoying the “dividends of democracy” are the asset strippers, subsidy scammers, failed contract operators, pension fraudsters, pardoned corrupt politicians, political jobbers, former militants, and political office holders, who continue to loot the treasury with complete abandon. As elections approach, opposition parties claim there are no less than 38 solemn promises made during the last election which have remained largely unfulfilled.
Convincing the electorate of this is their problem, suffering the ill-effects is everyone else’s.  Mr President asked those with genuine grievances to bring them to the “table of dialogue”. Begging your pardon but where exactly is that table? What effective machinery has government set up to cope with the plethora of complaints that citizens have concerning the way they are ignored, dehumanized, and exploited by political leaders?