Agenda for PMB (II)
Going forward, Buhari and his party, the APC, must not keep an unnecessary distance between themselves and happenings in the national assembly so that carpetbaggers would not hijack the leadership of both houses and mount roadblocks against the government’s plans and programmes, as happened in 2015.
The president and his party should ensure absolute discipline from the onset of the 9th Assembly. No one is saying that they should overtly interfere in what goes on at the assembly but we all know that there are many ways of skinning a he-goat. Leaders of the Assembly are supposed to project the stance of their parties at all times otherwise there will be no cohesion and the ‘Next Level’ hopes of the electorate will be dashed or, at best, short-circuited.
Some radical and bold policies must be explored to fast-track development so that President Buhari can maximise the deliverables of his second tenure. Four years may look like a long time but we shall soon be knocking on the doors of 2023 before we know it. Buhari must race against the clock from Day One. That underscores the need for a cooperative national assembly.
I have in the past made some policy suggestions to this government - like giving generous incentives to more private sector players to invest in local production of petroleum products as the Dangote Group is doing. And we have to operationalise the modular refinery idea so that even small players at local government level can make their contribution to the national pool. It is a bleeding shame that we still continue to abandon the stream in our homestead and continue to wash our weary faces with foreign spittle.
President Muhammadu Buhari should not renew expired oil bloc licenses of individuals. Let’s have a policy of oil blocs going to the constituent states of the federation. With that, no state can claim that it is unable to meet its commitment to the people. The system of gifting oil blocs to individuals is partly responsible for the security challenges we have been having all over the country as political warlords team up with such moneybags to destabilise the country whenever they can’t have their way.
The spate of kidnappings, cattlerustling, armed robbery, assassinations and inter-ethnic killings glaringly expose the inadequacy of the present system of policing and security management. We need state police and local government vigilantes. To allay the fears expressed by concerned Nigerians that the state police could be used by governors to oppress their political opponents, the new system should be designed in such a way as to insulate the police from local politics.
The current police force could remain federal and operate side-by-side with the state police to fight crime. Federal crimes will continue to be prosecuted by the Feds while state crimes are handled by the state police. The present police structure and manpower level can no longer cope! Experience has shown that nobody understands the local terrain like the locals themselves. Witness how the introduction of the ‘Civilian JTF’ became a game changer in the war against Boko Haram terrorism!
Government must enforce a strict BUY NIGERIA policy all round. The current system of procuring all our requirements from foreign lands and thereby creating jobs in those places while our people languish in idleness must stop. In spite of pious government pronouncements, agencies such as INEC and UBEC continue to maintain a “Charity begins abroad” policy. For example, established Nigerian printing presses with verifiable records of performance are routinely bypassed in favour of foreign presses. Government must now enforce a transparent procurement process.
No one is surprised that, of the 250 textile manufacturers in Nigeria, only about 25 were currently struggling to keep the shop open. The twin evils of smuggling and counterfeiting have taken their toll. These must be stamped out during Buhari’s second term so as to help assimilate more jobseekers and improve local economies. The immediate implementation of the Leather Policy to ensure that Nigerians in the sector are no longer mere tenants in their own houses.
I do not forget, for one moment, that President Buhari himself has set his eyes on higher attainments during his second term: N-Power to engage one million graduates; skilling up 10 million people; the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme to support input and jobs to one million farmers; Livestock Transformation Plan to create 1.5 million jobs; Agriculture Mechanisation Policy with tractors and processors to create 5 million jobs; provision of $500 million in funding for the tech and creative industry to create 500 thousand jobs and train 200,000 youth for outsourcing market in technology, services and entertainment; creation of Regional Industrial Parks and Special Economic Zones, etc.
Also on PMB’s ‘To Do’ list is the completion of the Lagos- IbadanKano Rail, Eastern Rail (Port-HarcourtMaiduguri) taking the network through Aba, all South-east state capitals, Makurdi, Jos, Bauchi and Gombe, and the Coastal Rail (Lagos-Calabar); consolidation of the current Trader Moni, Market Moni and Farmer Moni schemes, targeting 10 million Nigerians from the current 2.3 million; ensuring that 35 per cent of appointments go to females and increase in the number of youth for appointments to boards of public agencies.
Grand! But hit the ground running with a team totally committed to service delivery. Remember, the house that pounds yam noisily thinks the silent homes have nothing to eat. It would be quite refreshing to see some unexpected faces apart from the usual APC ‘suspects’. Imagine seeing a Moghalu or Durotoye or Baba-Ahmed nominated for one national assignment or the other!
(To be concluded next week)