Buhari needs to act fast after May 29

 

That N2bn will be spent for “a befitting inauguration” with over 50 heads of state in attendance during the May 29 inauguration of Muhammadu Buhari as President did not make me happy. I am surprised that Buhari has not made any statement, rejecting such a flamboyant and expensive inauguration, especially at a time his party, the All Progressives Congress, is shouting itself hoarse about the debt and bad economy it is going to inherit.

It is said that morning shows the day. The first message Buhari should have sent out immediately after winning the election was to inform the incumbent president, Goodluck Jonathan, that he would not want an elaborate handover event, and also send out a press statement, stating categorically that given the economic condition of the nation, he would prefer an inauguration conducted quietly in the State House, Abuja and beamed live to Nigerians and the world.

Secondly, he should have sent out a strong message that he does not want congratulatory adverts in the media, and that anybody who does so will be marking himself or herself out as an enemy of his administration.

Even if Jonathan had insisted on an elaborate inauguration, Buhari would have insisted that he would not be part of any grandiose ceremony. A man who is going through austere times does not host an expensive party. When the financial situation looks brighter, heads of state and other dignitaries can be invited for other events. Such a first step would have sent a clear message round the world that the incoming president means business about plugging all drain pipes. Workers who are owed salaries would find it easy bearing the pain, knowing that their leader is serious about stopping all forms of unnecessary spending.

Sadly, one has not heard any APC top shot protesting against the elaborate inauguration. The APC’s silence shows that it endorses the flamboyance at a time the nation is in financial straits.

Thirdly, upon becoming the president, Buhari should reduce the aeroplanes in the presidential fleet to one.

Since winning the election, the APC has embarked on the strategy of demonisation of the PDP. It may sound great in its eyes, but it can only make some sense to the APC diehards. Some mild sympathisers of the APC who voted for Buhari have told me during discussions that the APC should drop that strategy and buckle up to face the challenging task of fulfilling its campaign promises to the nation on which basis the party was voted into power.

Since winning the election of March 28, 2015, the APC has changed its tune from being a party that would solve Nigeria’s problems to giving reasons why it may not fulfil all its campaign promises.

Buhari has been quoted as telling Nigerians not to expect miracles. He said that the APC manifesto is not the Bible or Koran that cannot be altered.

Last week, the Vice-President-elect, Prof Yemi Osinbajo, painted a picture of woe about Nigeria’s economy, all in a bid to prepare the ground for the reason why it may not achieve all it promised the public. The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Dr Ngozi Okojo-Iweala, countered Osinbajo’s claims.

On May 9, the National Chairman of the APC, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, lamented that Nigeria’s economy was near collapse. Last week, he lamented that Buhari would need N4.1tn to pay the outstanding salaries of public servants at the state and federal levels, fuel subsidies, as well as debt servicing, among other expenses.

On Sunday, the National Publicity Secretary of the APC, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, lamented that his party would inherit a country in crisis, noting that never in the history of Nigeria would a party inherit a more distressed country than the APC would do on Friday.

It has been lamentations galore. One would be expect that in all these lamentations and demonisation, that the APC would reject the election it won. As the English say: You can’t have your cake and eat it! If the party accepted its victory and mandate, then it must fulfil its campaign promises or be termed a failure.

It was voted in based on its campaign promises. When the campaign was on, it never gave a condition of what will be available for it to achieve its promises. It never said: “If we meet a buoyant economy, we will bring change to Nigeria.” It just reeled out a litany of promises: it will feed every school child in primary and secondary schools once a day, create three million jobs per year, provide allowances to the discharged but unemployed NYSC members for 12 months, etc.

Indeed, these are not too difficult to achieve if the government sets its mind to it. If Buhari puts Nigeria first and decides to improve upon what Jonathan has done, he will achieve more. The Sagamu-Benin Expressway has been done from Benin to Obatedo in Ondo State. Nobody wants to hear any reason why the part from Obatedo to Sagamu is not completed. None wants to hear excuses why the Second Niger Bridge is not completed. If the one started by Jonathan is fake, as the APC has told us repeatedly, then let it give us a real bridge.

The trains that are said to be 18th century coaches need to be discarded and 21st century trains provided.

The Nigerian economy, which is described as big only on paper, needs to be made real. The 70 per cent that live under poverty that is repeated in all comments about Nigeria need to be reduced to about 40 per cent in four years.

We need Buhari to build refineries and ensure that fuel supply is regular and cheap.

He can’t reduce the number of ministers because it is constitutional but he can reduce the number of advisers.

The demonisation strategy is counter-productive. In 1999, Governor Bola Tinubu went on a demonisation spree against his predecessor, Brig Gen Buba Marwa. It earned him the soubriquet “Baba Go-Slow” because he was accused of not doing anything except lamenting. He later got down to business and embarked on some projects that helped in reversing the unenviable image he had acquired by his more-talk-and-less-action stance. The seizure of the Lagos allocation by President Olusegun Obasanjo and Tinubu’s dogged fight against Obasanjo’s meddlesomeness and disrespect for the Supreme Court judgment also helped to attract sympathies for Tinubu and boost his image.

In Anambra State, when Mr Peter Obi took over as the governor of the state in 2006, he started demonising the administration of his predecessor, Dr Chris Ngige. It immediately drew the hate of Anambra people. Obi became unpopular in the state. Other factors contributed to that situation. It was only towards the end of Obi’s second tenure, when his achievements could no longer be hidden, that he began to get commendation.

Buhari is coming in at a time of high expectations. Reducing those expectations by demonising his predecessor will only draw sympathy to Jonathan. Pretending that he and his party never made those promises is not good too. What he needs to do is to start by firing up the zeal and nationalism of the masses through motivational words and selfless actions. He needs to show that he will lead by example. He needs to distance himself from anybody with tainted wealth, even if the person was instrumental to his presidential victory. He needs to promote love for our national symbols, belief in the country, keeping the environment clean, orderliness, respect for time, etc. He needs to re-introduce the War Against Indiscipline without using the military to enforce it. Rather, the new war will be fought by the way the President lives and acts.

These are populist actions that will endear him fast to many Nigerians – including his political opponents. It will be such that even when Buhari has not fulfilled many of his campaign promises, Nigerians will be patient with him, convinced that he means well and will deliver on his promises.