*Voodoo Economic Reform
*Genocidal incompetence
*Perverse Corruption, as signposts of Tinubu’s era
By Steve Osuji
WHAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN? Do you shudder to think what might have happened if Nigeria didn’t get the so-called independence in 1960?
Imagine what might have been had the British retreated in 1980 or year 2000?
One thing would be for sure: so much would have been positively different from what they are today.
Nigeria has no doubt regressed after her so-called independence in 1960. The emergent leadership had gone from poor to abysmal and 65 years after, every facet of life in Nigeria has been spiralling downward since then, almost coming to a head now. Yes, Nigeria’s current situation is like one who has earned a doctorate in his field of study. Nigeria has earned a PhD in the art of social dysfunction and extended malady.
PHD: POOR, HUNGRY AND DISEASED. After 65 years, about three quarters of Nigeria’s populace are poor, hungry and diseased in varying degrees.
Yes, her population grew exponentially from about 45 million at independence in 1960 to its current 235 million, it has been an uncontrolled and wayward escalation with no strategic intelligence whatsoever.
Most Nigerians can’t feed themselves today. Fixing the car at the mechanic workshop the other day, most of the men and apprentices had only garri (cassava flakes) to soak in water for lunch.
This is the situation in Lagos, the largest city in Nigeria. Raging double digit inflation which has been further exacerbated by the Bola Tinubu administration has condemned about 10 million Nigerians to acute poverty in the last two years.
Also in the last two years, lower limits of Nigeria’s currency like the 20 and 50 naira notes have become worthless and naturally disappeared. The 50 naira note can no longer buy the least biscuits or candy.
Coins had long vanished from the system. Nobody seemed to notice, nobody cared, nobody seemed to understand the import of an economy that transacts with 100 naira note as its least currency. The so-called economic advisers seem too clueless to see or understand this red flag…
Assailed by so much hunger and lack, diseases fester among the populace. Medical care was long out of the reach of the average citizen Joe. He resorts to harmful local mixtures and concoctions. In no time, his organs are inflamed and he’s wasted by such underlying ailments like diabetes, kidney crash and associated heart traumas.
BILL GATES WEEPS FOR NIGERIA’S KIDS: A few days ago, Microsoft founder, moneybag and philanthropist, Bill Gates, called the world’s attention to acute infant malnutrition and mortality in Nigeria.
As reported by The Nation newspaper,
“A kid born in northern Nigeria has a 15 percent chance of dying before age five. You can either be part of improving that or act like that doesn’t matter, … Philanthropy cannot substitute for government responsibility,” Gates warned.
But Nigeria’s governments, both current and past have been anything but responsible. This matter of massive child mortality, especially in the north of Nigeria has been raging for over a decade.
Former President Mohammadu Buhari for eight years, couldn’t muster the gumption to act even though the scourge resides in his backyards.
The incumbent, President Tinubu doesn’t seem to think that thousands of children dying yearly calls for a comprehensive and urgent action because he hasn’t acted with any urgency so far.
Today, we celebrate 65 years of independence in a country that can’t surmount such mundane matters as child mortality and minimum nourishment.
LIKE A WAR THORN COUNTRY: Nigeria is not at war yet she depends on basic nutritional supplies to keep her infants alive. But for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and UNICEF interventions, child malnutrition would have left Nigeria a basket case where infants are dying in their millions for lack of food.
But Nigeria today is in a more blithering situation than a country in a protracted war.
Internally Displaced Persons’ (IDPs) camps holding hundreds of thousands litter the north and middle belt of Nigeria.
For one and half decades, hapless Nigerians have been trapped in makeshift existence with governments prostate and unviable over the dire situation.
Between former President Mohammadu Buhari who spent eight years and the incumbent Tinubu, who’s in his third year, none of them has visited some of these problems with the required vision or dexterity.
BOLA TINUBU’S BLACK OCTOBER: Though Nigeria’s tragic leadership gets worse with each new regime, the Tinubu presidency has taken the prize for insouciance, incompetence and rabid corruption.
The country and her people have therefore, lapsed into a horrendous and deleterious era never experienced in her entire 65 years.
The twin issues of corruption and incompetence of the current administration have left Nigeria prostate under Tinubu.
Hardly any sector of the economy or sphere of life is running or ringed to function.
The much-touted economic reform is a fraud that has further diminished the living indices of Nigerians so far.
The oil and gas sector, Nigeria’s mainstay and major livelihood has been vired into private hands since the arrival of Tinubu.
PERVERSE CORRUPTION: Former president, Olusegun Obasanjo, described the capture of the economy as “perverse corruption”.
Consider the incongruity of Nigeria having the largest private refinery in the world yet the NNPC still imports Petroleum products.
Imagine the inherent malady of Nigeria’s brand new giant refinery importing crude oil while Nigeria exports crude.
Imagine fuel being cheaper in non-oil producing countries along the west coast while Nigerians pay premium market price for fuel; shone of any subsidy as obtains in oil producing countries.
Imagine Dangote Refinery, such a strategic economic asset never achieved since independence being threatened by orchestrated labour issues while Tinubu government looks on.
Industry watchers say all this is in aid of protecting refineries abroad where senior government officials have interest.
No economy, nay, society, grows where corruption stalks the land. Apart from the oil sector, taxes and levies have been unleashed on the people from all angles. While these unbridled taxes stifle the economy, the bulk of the revenues daily disappear into private pockets with nothing to show.
The same way are debts consummated and drawn-down every other month but the economy continues to shrink; hunger keeps ravaging the people.
Nigeria had the largest economy two years ago before Tinubu. Today it’s not among the top four. Yet Tinubu’s propaganda machine tells us beautiful tales from their fantasy isle.
Insecurity also ravages the country. Kidnappers, bandits and terrorists have been having a field day.
From the northeast to northwest to the middle belt, Nigeria is in turmoil. Yesterday, it was Kwara State, a hitherto quiet place, that has come under the torment of bandits. They are killing, kidnapping and wasting the citizens! It’s an era in which leaders are bereft of holistic thinking!
For a violent insurgency that has been going on for over a decade, intelligence has failed Nigeria woefully. Even upon an advance notice, attacks are hardly preempted.
Nigeria has remained on the back foot in the battles against terror in the land. Always arriving at the scene late after the citizens have been worsted.
A BROKEN SOCIETY: At 65, Nigeria is a shambolic and broken society. It’s a country where unimaginable things happen and anything goes.
It is a country where the first lady can blatantly abuse her office and surreptitiously raise N20 billion overnight in the guise of building a national library. And she makes-believe she’s doing us a favour!
It is a country run by a president with a dodgy identity and even a dodgier election mandate who would rather attend a provincial coronation ceremony than address the world at the UNGA.
Due to obvious incompetence and even incapacity, President Tinubu has ducked appearing at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) for two years consecutively.
This speaks volumes. What manner of leader would shun the ultimate global podium; a rare stage to address the world?
Why would Tinubu shuttle the world (he has travelled abroad over 60 times since inception) but would not honour the UN? One reason is that most of the trips are on medical grounds.
Again, what manner of man is it who’s bearing an acute underlying medical condition yet would fight to preside over a country?
Let us conclude that it is because of successive poor leaders like Tinubu that Nigeria’s Independence Day is a misnomer and October 1st has become a dark, dark day in Nigeria’s annals.#
Osuji was editor at The Guardian and THISDAY among others
Feedback: steve.osuji@gmail.com
OSUJISTEVE/01.10.25
