Helping Buhari re-invent Nigeria

Zero tolerance for corruption is the centrepiece of President Buhari’s public policy. He has his work cut out in the various sectors but no one realises more than the taciturn leader that every good intention of government can be sabotaged by corrupt people in government and their acolytes/collaborators outside. I rather admire the methodical way […]

Zero tolerance for corruption is the centrepiece of President Buhari’s public policy. He has his work cut out in the various sectors but no one realises more than the taciturn leader that every good intention of government can be sabotaged by corrupt people in government and their acolytes/collaborators outside. I rather admire the methodical way he has gone about the task of assembling a team. We had got so used to the system of simply compiling the names of errand boys and girls and proxies of fixers and bankrollers that not many people bothered about the background or quality of ministerial nominees anymore. In some cases we had ministers for minister’s sake. Not any more, says Buhari.
The corollary to the careful empanelling of the federal cabinet is the need for attitudinal change among Nigerians. We have become so used to bad behaviour that anyone who suggests that we do the right thing is instantly labelled a spoilsport. Civil servants take bribes to sign documents. Policemen collect their bribes openly. Motorists and commercial motorcyclists drive against traffic at full throttle. Immigration and Customs officials openly beg for alms from travellers at the airport.
‘Yahoo-yahoo’ boys have taken over the social scene. Road safety officials routinely lounge in their patrol cars eating roasted corn while kabukabus and other motorists run red lights and drive on pavements in an insane rush to nowhere. Values of honesty, hard work, compassion are now considered ‘old school’. Rather than condemn treasury looting, my countrymen are more concerned about protecting thieves from their own ethnic groups. It is as if stealing is okay if perpetrated by my townsman but criminal if perpetrated by other people. Simply put, we have lost our moral compass.
The Buhari revolution has to be driven, in part, by the National Orientation Agency. We need a new kind of war against indiscipline; a moral rearmament programme. No, not the militarised version but a structured scientific programmed aimed at attitudinal change. We must touch the minds of our young people who have for too long been fed on a diet of treachery, greed and magical unearned wealth.
Programmes have to be designed that celebrate the old values that helped the founding fathers of our democracy record many achievements that now look as if they belonged to another planet. We just have to go back to doing things properly and behaving decently. We have become so rude towards one another that a three-kilometre drive round town looks at times like attempted suicide; a routine click of the mouse on a chat site elicits the vilest cyber civil war complete with cyber-bombs and open display of ill breeding.
A reorientation of Nigerians must also entail exposing the warts that various government agencies need to work on so that government will start looking believable as it matches words with deed. Simple etiquettes have to be relearned. The danger of living on the fast lane of life has to be reiterated in messages designed for the younger generation; they should quit believing that it is all right to live fast, die young and have a nice looking corpse.
Attitudinal change is not an easy thing to achieve as we found out in our MSc class in the 80s. But it can be achieved. It is social science, not a jamboree; not another opportunity to duplicate the bureaucracy or act as a satellite of the information ministry. We need to rediscover the inner goodness we all have, the fellow-feeling, the sense of order, the self belief that we can make our own patch of earth a desired tourist destination. As Brian Tracy says, “You cannot control what happens to you, but you can control your attitude toward what happens to you, and in that, you will be mastering change rather than allowing it to master you”.
The task of embarking on the reorientation enterprise is as important as the other important steps the president is currently taking to reposition the country. Even with ministers and officials with the right aptitude, it is only when the people themselves have the right attitude that we can all hope to attain the desired altitude.
Inside PDP’s Fraud, Inc.
Former President Goodluck Jonathan is reportedly a very unhappy man, because he is only just beginning to realise the level of duplicity perpetrated by those who took charge of disbursing funds for his re-election bid. From the accusations and counter-accusations being thrown back and forth between officials of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and the party’s creditors, Nigerians are shocked that they had grossly underestimated the level of insane recklessness undergirding the party’s operations.
A contractor, Silon Concepts limited, through Festus Keyamo chambers in suit no: FCT/HC/CV/2017/2015 has dragged Senator Nenadi Usman, the PDP and Chief Amadu Ali to court in a bid to get paid for contract executed. As that is going on, a certain George Uboh, who runs a security company, alleged that the following deposits were made into Jointrust’s account: 500 million naira on 11/02/15, Global Scan Systems Nigeria Limited, owned by Sir Emeka Offor, Offshore Logistics Solutions, 202 million naira on 11/02/15;Global Scan Systems Nigeria Limited (owned by Emeka Offor), 1.2 billion naira on 11/02/15; Interbridge Company, 100 million naira on 11/02/15 Castilo Towers BDC, 250 million naira on 11/02/15, Interbridge company, 122 million naira on 01/02/15, Prime Concept, 110 million niara on 20/02/15Eco system, 500 million naira on 13/02/15, DI International, N250m on 19/02/15, Crescent Pillars Ltd,  21 million naira on 19/02/15”.
He also alleged that the following payments were made from the Jointrust Dimentions account:
1.1 billion naira to Femi Fani-Kayode on 02/02/15 (Ah, no wonder!); another  240million naira to Femi Fani-Kayode on 19/03/15 (Yeeparipa!); N67m to Dee Bakers Ltd on 03/02/15; 95 million naira to Rigir First BDC on 03/02/15; 370m naira to Goodluck Support Group on 23/03/15; N80m to People’s Democratic Institute on 10/03/15; N260m to Social Capital Limited on 27/02/15; N250m to Social Capital Limited on 03/02/15; N80m to Fendship Express Nig Ltd on 13/01/15; 120m naira to Achike Udenwa & Viola Onwuliri on 13/01/15; 10m to Ibitoru Linda Ofili, on 13/01/15.
I hear there’s plenty more to come from PDP’s cesspit. The soap opera of PDP’s Fraud, Inc. has only just begun!