Buhari’s next moves

So far, his moves have been deliberate and measured. No theatrics. To a great extent he has restored the dignity of the highest office in the land, staying above the political fray but stepping in when fellow party men extend political handshakes beyond the elbow. Judging from online comments by the opposition PDP, I can […]

So far, his moves have been deliberate and measured. No theatrics. To a great extent he has restored the dignity of the highest office in the land, staying above the political fray but stepping in when fellow party men extend political handshakes beyond the elbow. Judging from online comments by the opposition PDP, I can see that many of the president’s critics miss Buhari the Soldier. They were hoping that he would step into the democratic waters with authoritarian boots so that they could justify their crude pre-election vilification. They thought they would see a Buhari who would send most senior civil servants home or herd former governors into detention as was the vogue during the military regime.
Alas, they’ve been disappointed by the calculated steps the man has been taking to get a comprehensive picture of the extent of the rot so that he can then decide what medicine to apply. For nor playing Hurricane PMB, yesterday’s men accuse the president of being slow. Do they know the meaning of the word? Where were they when it took former President Jonathan four years to realise that Nigeria was at war? In the run-up to the elections, the president described himself as a converted democrat, meaning that he does believe in following the democratic process to achieve desirable ends. The courts may not be as fast as a mob but then who wants to be at the receiving end of jungle justice? Very soon, they will change the music and start accusing the president of witch-hunting. The ‘Change’ slogan of the president’s party may have been a campaign battlecry, but it is the people who own the change we now have because that it what they voted for. Revolutions fail or succeed to the extent that they are ‘owned’ by the people. I would rather wait for the full facts that would enable me recover 10 billion dollars from an eminent thief than rush to collect 10 million cents from the same person under a hurriedly prepared charge or plea bargain. Let the president continue to be methodical and deliberate; we expect his broom to sweep wide because there is simply too much of our national assets in private hands – assets that could reduce some of our misery.
The coup that happened in the National Assembly was unforeseen. That singular occurrence implies that the prepared list of ministers and other political appointees will have to be juggled. Yet, some people say, release the list of ministers as if they were living on the moon. Also, the efforts of the Rochas Okorocha-led Progressive Governors’ Forum have not yet yielded the desired results. Only when the final list of officials of the national assembly is agreed upon can the executive now finalise its own based on the principles of federal character and equality of zones. I am satisfied with Buhari’s speed for now. His first one month has not been without achievements-as broadcast by my friend, Kolayinde: *“They say Buhari is slow … Yet refineries are about to start full operation; oil marketers are falling in line; he has ordered the sale of surplus Presidential jets; corrupt politicians and their accomplices have started returning their loot; he has released over N4 billion to fight Boko Haram and the new Multinational Joint Task Force is about to start full operation; he is scrutinising the accounts of all federal ministries. He has visited more than six countries in one month to advance Nigeria’s cause …
Left to me, I prefer this type of ‘slowness’ to hastiness without direction…”* From revelations in the public space so far, the anti-corruption agencies will be very busy in the next four years. Recent revelations from the office of the Auditor-General of the Federation showed that the NNPC failed to remit N936bn crude oil sales money in 2012; the organisation over-deducted subsidy to the tune of N260bn in 2012; foreign crude oil customers owed Nigeria $75m under the noses of the regulatory corporation; $50m was illegally moved from NNPC’s JP Morgan account; the DPR failed to remit N109.7b unpaid royalty from 21 oil companies in 2012; and the DPR also allegedly failed to account for N2.1b gas flare penalty owed by 33 oil companies. These are but a tip of the iceberg. There is no better place for the president to start the clean-up than in the NNPC. Equally frightening is the allegation making the rounds that the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, spent N290 billion to run its operations last year; also, that it spends about N800 million daily without appropriation by the National Assembly and that millions of dollars were pad out in bribes to legislators of the 7th Assembly.
There is an urgent need to strengthen the anti-graft agencies. It is an open secret that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, and the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission, ICPC, are grossly underfunded. And we expect them to investigate, prosecute and nail thieves who are worth billions of dollars? I have a theory: the less you fund and equip your anti-graft agencies, the more fertile your country becomes for graft and heinous financial crimes! Don’t forget that one of our national problems is that those who ought to be in jail are the very ones legislating and lording it over the rest of us. As my favourite preacher, the inimitable Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah reportedly put it, “African educational systems have surprising outcomes.
The smartest students pass with First Class and get admissions to Medical and Engineering schools. The 2nd Class students get MBAs and LLBs to manage the First Class students. The 3rd Class students enter Politics and rule both the 1st and 2nd Class students. The Failures enter the Underworld of crime and control the politicians and the businesses. And, best of all, those who did not attend school become Prophets and everyone follows them….” GAY WEDDING In defiance of Biblical injunctions, a pastor wedded a gay couple and got confused when he reached the part where he was to pronounce them husband and wife. The pastor blurted out: “I now pronounce you … Man-United”!