It’s exactly one year that the Change government was handed the mantle of leadership of Nigeria for a four-year term. Irrespective of what anyone’s political leaning is, it’s very appropriate to measure the performance of PMB and his government as objectively as one can be. As a believer and supporter of this government, I have done some articles in the past to show support for the administration. Let see how our change managers have fared in the past one year.
The Positives
1. Successful implementation of TSA
The great idea to bring all government revenues under the umbrella of a unified single account known as treasury single account was birthed by Goodluck Jonathan’s administration. But for some political reasons, GEJ was not able to implement the program. Since coming of PMB, implementation of the TSA was one of the first orders he gave and we now know that the implementation has saved Nigeria up to N3 trillion that hitherto would have been kept in different government’s accounts from where the politicians could do as they wish with such monies. I think the president has done well here and I score him 8/10.
2. Reduction in cost of governance and blocking of wastages
In the past, it was not uncommon to read that as many as 200 or 300 delegates accompanied the president on international trips. Since the coming of PMB, such numbers have been reduced to 20s and 30s even on the most important of trips.
PMB has also stopped the practice of government sponsoring private persons on holy pilgrimage thereby saving the nation some millions of dollars in the process. Last year alone, the FG saved over $1 million by not sponsoring people on Haj. Some states later followed this line.
By reducing the number of ministries from 48 to 24, the FG has surely been able to save some monies that could have been spent on overhead costs. The president scores 7/10 here.
3. Appreciable success in the fight against BHT
No doubt this has to be one of the major achievements of PMB in his first year in office. Even though Boko Haram Terrorists group remain a threat to Nigeria’s security, it’s surely not as potent and as formidable as it was when the president took over as many of the terrorists have been killed while many towns and villages have been liberated by the Nigerian Army. This success has given renewed hope to the possibility of rescuing some of the Chibok Girls (if not all) from their captors. I score him 7/10 here.
4. Stemming the tide of corruption and prosecution of past corruption cases
Another signature achievement of PMB is the success being achieved in the fight against corruption. No matter how we dice it, we all know that corruption is responsible for the comatose state of our affairs. It was corruption that stalled our development as a giant of Africa. Since PMB’s coming, corruption has been given a bloodied nose even though there is still plenty of work to do. In addition to that, government officials now understand that they cannot engage in impunity and corrupt practices without getting punished.
We will have a better appreciation of the success of the government’s fight on corruption when the president finally reveals how much has been retrieved from past looters during his address to the nation tomorrow but we know the recovered monies run into billions of naira. Fingers crossed. Another 7/10 here.
5. Improved relationship with the outside diplomatic world
Despite criticism of his numerous travel abroad, discerning minds now know that Nigeria is gradually regaining her battered image in the comity of nations. The president had been recognized guest in many very important international functions where his efforts were recognized as well. It is our hope that by the time PMB completes his first tenure, our image will have been further improved globally. He scores 6/10 here.
The Negative
1. Failure to reduce number of presidential airplanes
Despite largely reducing cost of governance, it is absurd and annoying that PMB has not deemed it necessary to cut the number of presidential jets from 11 (?) to six or five. This runs contrary to his stand before becoming president and there cannot be any justification for keeping such large fleet of money-gulping planes. I hope the president sees reasons to reduce the fleet as a matter of necessity and in line with his frugal image. His score here is 0/10.
2. Indecisive in tackling Niger Delta Avengers and other militants
The president has been indecisive in bringing the ND Avengers and other militants under control such that their criminal activities have reduced daily oil production from 2.2 million bpd to about 1.6 million bpd.
Why announcing that the militants will be treated as terrorists when in fact you had not made up your mind on how to treat them? To sum it up, I have not seen the carrots neither have I seen the sticks. Like I said in one of my posts, should the militants succeed in crippling the economy of Nigeria, I will not blame them and their supporters. The blame will go to the Chief Security Officer of the country, who is responsible for securing our lives and properties just as GEJ took the blame for BHT. I score him 3/10 here.
3. Worsened economic situation
No doubt the president inherited a badly damaged economy. But the fact is, if the economy was doing fine he would not have won the election. In other words, the president and his VP were elected to find solutions to the myriads of challenges facing the country. So, by all means necessary, we expect PMB and his team to solve the economic problems and not to give excuses why they can’t tackle them. EOD.
Cost of almost everything has doubled or more than double since beginning of this year. I am not sure Nigerians can go like this for another one year without people dropping dead on the streets. So, the president must find the urgent solutions to resolve the crisis bedeviling the economy NOW. Nigerians need improved electricity, availability of goods and services at reasonable prices, job opportunities for the unemployed, etc. Here the president scores 3/10.
4. Handling Fulani Herdsmen Criminality
This issue of Fulani herdsmen is as old as the entity called Nigeria. However, it has assumed a more alarming dimension since beginning of this year. The security agencies, under the commandment of our C in C have not lived up to expectations. Just as with the ND Avengers and other terrorists, the president has remained hesitant and indecisive with how to deal with them. I score him 3/10.
5. Absence of solid programs at diversifying the economy
Past regimes paid lip service to diversification of the economy away from the largely oil-dependent to one that depends on multiple sources of income. Though we have seen the provisions in the budget that signifies that PMB will diversify the economy, however we have not seen necessary activities unveiling to support such provisions. For the fact that it normally takes time to diversify the economy and the fact that the budget was only signed in May, I will score the president 4/10 here.
So, by my analysis, the president has managed to score 48 out of 100. Not a good result in my opinion but he still has three more years to turn things around.
Post A Comment:
0 comments: