Ship in for CHANGE Or Ship Out ~Olajuwon Obalola
Like most people are already aware that the only constant thing in life
is change. But suffice to say that change will not be effectual if
there is nothing to show for it at the end of the day. Thus while some
are celebrating the victory, others are licking their wounds in defeat
and hoping for a better outing next time.
But in all these, the nation must move forward. And for the country to mobe forward, the majority of the people will like to see a manifestation of change in greater magnitude and quantifiable measures.
Most Nigerians have since got to know that the greatest problem militating against the material and social wellbeing of the nation is CORRUPTION that has become so pervasive that it was possible for a sitting president to seek to rationalize it by making the demonic distinction between "corruption and stealing". It cannot be worse than that!
Like the French would say, a fish that will rot must start from the head. This country has been unlucky to have as leaders, individuals who could not or deliberately refused to, see the direct connection between personal integrity and progressive national leadership. We got to the nadir of this failure of the out-going president who felt comfortable with the unmitigated looting by his men and women which erroneously made him to equate national wellbeing with the emergence of large fleet of private jets.
Nigerians are good people. They just need a leader who will show them that it pays to be honest and fair. We must reduce on the incentives for corruption by firmly and judiciously punishing infractions instead of tolerating them or looking the other way. Sai Buhari(The President-Elect) will be surprised to see how willing Nigerians are to do things properly once they have come to the realization that he also is doing the same thing.
General Buhari should as a matter of urgent national priority look into the problem and challenges of electricity in the country. It may not be out of place to suggest that he declares a total state of emergency in the power sector. His getting the power sector right will add impetus to his credentials.
If it is the only agenda that his government will achieve in the next four years, Nigerians will be eternally grateful to him. All loopholes and drainage pipes and hindrances that have been making it near impossible for the country to have steady and uninterrupted power supply should be broken no matter the individuals or institutions behind this pathetic situation.
Even if it means temporal banning of importation of generating sets, let the president-elect do it. But in doing this, he should not cancel most of the ongoing power project contracts.
It should be noted that if electricity problem is sorted out and we have greater number of hours of power supply, local consumption of fuel and diesel will drastically crash as about 30 per cent of fuel consumption is for powering generators and other sundry machines as a result of lack of electricity.
In trying to build a new refinery and in fact stop fuel importation the President-Elect should also try and stop oil bunkering and gas flaring that is costing the nation billions of naira. Daily oil theft is drawing the much-needed resources that are supposed to accrue to the national treasury because it is siphoned. The in-coming President should not be afraid to step on powerful toes behind the oil bunkering but if possible cut off the rotten toes that have been dragging the country backward.
When all these money are recovered from stoppage of oil bunkering and other illegal activities associated with the oil sector, the next logical thing is for the new administration to guard national treasury tenaciously and jealously. Why many Nigerians voted for the President-Elect was because of his firm belief that he would ensure that no kobo get missing under his watch.
And with his statement on March 11 2015, at the liberation stadium Port-Harcourt in the course of his Presidential campaigns said "If we don't kill corruption, corruption will kill us".
This is a very serious clarion call that must be addressed with all the attention it deserves as it will not make any real sense for revenue to be hyped only for it to be frittered away or even brazenly stolen by pretty thieves, corrupt government officials and smart and dubious business men/women.
If the coming administration is able to do the aforementioned, its next place of focus will be the National Assembly and it will not be extra ordinary cut down the excesses in terms of the lawmaker emoluments. Thank God the incoming governing party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) has the majority in the Senate and House of Representatives anf can easily initiate bill that will scale through to achieve this.
To cap it all, there is the need for this change to reintroduce the war or campaign on indiscipline. No need to belabour the point that the country may not make giant stride if the issue of our way of life is not addressed. And to do this, discipline has to be inculcated in our way of living. The era of impunity is gone, in its place let orderliness, decency, adherence to rule of law be the guiding principle of the new order.
Olajuwon Obalola (@OlajuwonObalola)
But in all these, the nation must move forward. And for the country to mobe forward, the majority of the people will like to see a manifestation of change in greater magnitude and quantifiable measures.
Most Nigerians have since got to know that the greatest problem militating against the material and social wellbeing of the nation is CORRUPTION that has become so pervasive that it was possible for a sitting president to seek to rationalize it by making the demonic distinction between "corruption and stealing". It cannot be worse than that!
Like the French would say, a fish that will rot must start from the head. This country has been unlucky to have as leaders, individuals who could not or deliberately refused to, see the direct connection between personal integrity and progressive national leadership. We got to the nadir of this failure of the out-going president who felt comfortable with the unmitigated looting by his men and women which erroneously made him to equate national wellbeing with the emergence of large fleet of private jets.
Nigerians are good people. They just need a leader who will show them that it pays to be honest and fair. We must reduce on the incentives for corruption by firmly and judiciously punishing infractions instead of tolerating them or looking the other way. Sai Buhari(The President-Elect) will be surprised to see how willing Nigerians are to do things properly once they have come to the realization that he also is doing the same thing.
General Buhari should as a matter of urgent national priority look into the problem and challenges of electricity in the country. It may not be out of place to suggest that he declares a total state of emergency in the power sector. His getting the power sector right will add impetus to his credentials.
If it is the only agenda that his government will achieve in the next four years, Nigerians will be eternally grateful to him. All loopholes and drainage pipes and hindrances that have been making it near impossible for the country to have steady and uninterrupted power supply should be broken no matter the individuals or institutions behind this pathetic situation.
Even if it means temporal banning of importation of generating sets, let the president-elect do it. But in doing this, he should not cancel most of the ongoing power project contracts.
It should be noted that if electricity problem is sorted out and we have greater number of hours of power supply, local consumption of fuel and diesel will drastically crash as about 30 per cent of fuel consumption is for powering generators and other sundry machines as a result of lack of electricity.
In trying to build a new refinery and in fact stop fuel importation the President-Elect should also try and stop oil bunkering and gas flaring that is costing the nation billions of naira. Daily oil theft is drawing the much-needed resources that are supposed to accrue to the national treasury because it is siphoned. The in-coming President should not be afraid to step on powerful toes behind the oil bunkering but if possible cut off the rotten toes that have been dragging the country backward.
When all these money are recovered from stoppage of oil bunkering and other illegal activities associated with the oil sector, the next logical thing is for the new administration to guard national treasury tenaciously and jealously. Why many Nigerians voted for the President-Elect was because of his firm belief that he would ensure that no kobo get missing under his watch.
And with his statement on March 11 2015, at the liberation stadium Port-Harcourt in the course of his Presidential campaigns said "If we don't kill corruption, corruption will kill us".
This is a very serious clarion call that must be addressed with all the attention it deserves as it will not make any real sense for revenue to be hyped only for it to be frittered away or even brazenly stolen by pretty thieves, corrupt government officials and smart and dubious business men/women.
If the coming administration is able to do the aforementioned, its next place of focus will be the National Assembly and it will not be extra ordinary cut down the excesses in terms of the lawmaker emoluments. Thank God the incoming governing party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) has the majority in the Senate and House of Representatives anf can easily initiate bill that will scale through to achieve this.
To cap it all, there is the need for this change to reintroduce the war or campaign on indiscipline. No need to belabour the point that the country may not make giant stride if the issue of our way of life is not addressed. And to do this, discipline has to be inculcated in our way of living. The era of impunity is gone, in its place let orderliness, decency, adherence to rule of law be the guiding principle of the new order.
Olajuwon Obalola (@OlajuwonObalola)
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