Opinion: After rainfall, by Kola Amzat
Global history is replete of today’s great countries that had it quite horrible and disastrous at the beginning of their existence. In-fact, some nearly went into extinction during their process of growth and development.
The world is accustomed to the oppressed and frustrated story of the Americans in the captivity of the Great Britain and France in the 16th Century. After the Second World War of 1945, the city of Hiroshima, the pride of Japanese was totally in ruin. The heritage had to undergo a re-building process.
We’re not oblivious of the travails of Russians and Poland in the slavery camp of Germans under the watch of Adolf Hitler. Today’s Imperial Chinese had their horrific time in their journey to have a date with history, while in the captivity of Great Britain, Portugal and Russia.
Those hitherto troubled and captive nations, with many century of existence are now the pride of the global community, with highly developed and very prosperous economies, awesome and enduring infrastructural architectures, effective, efficient and blossoming system, as well as confident, resourceful and prosperous citizenry. But, the people of these great nations made immeasurable sacrifice for the prosperity they’re enjoying today.
They confronted and withstood the challenges of nationhood with equanimity and patriotic zeal and have now landed at the point of stability and prosperity.
In those countries, the leadership and followership collectively resolved to build their nations for generations yet unborn, having consciousness that they don’t have another country.
Are we not conscious of the historic and symbolic declaration of the illustrious and iconic Indian leader, Mahatma Gandhi titled “India could go naked, if they can’t cloth themselves with home-made manufactured goods and they could as well go hungry, if they can’t feed themselves with agricultural produce their country is endowed with?”
This is the point we are as a nation. We are in auspicious time when Nigeria must be rebuilt. The time our dear nation must be rescued from those who have over the years, hold it by the jugular is now. The time has come for rebuilding, repositioning, reengineering and restructuring in all facets.
While the process of rebuilding and repositioning is on, who told us that we won’t experience harrowing and very challenging times like the aforementioned great countries have had before they stabilized? From which book have we read it that, there won’t be sacrifice on our parts?
The squandering of several trillions of Naira that accrued to the country over the years is an eloquent testimony of the fact that, the country has not been blessed with patriotic and visionary leaders over years.
Nigeria have four refineries (4) located in Port Harcourt, Onne, Warri and Kaduna with combined capacities of 445,000 liters/day. The successive leaders simply abandoned them, preferring to be importing refined petroleum products and in the process, collaborating with oil marketers to squander trillions of Naira on petroleum subsidy, from where they’re largely benefiting.
They also connived with the monarchs in their several domains to continually annexing and appropriating humongous fortunes accruing from the solid minerals sector unto themselves.
Except for efforts of immediate past president on the railway and road networks, the successive administrations refused to make conscious efforts to build enduring infrastructures-railway, modern road networks, medical facilities, airports, electricity facility etc capable of providing formidable and lasting supports for manufacturing sector, SMEs, agricultural, even the solid minerals, as well as the nation’s educational sectors.
As against building indomitable institutions, the successive regimes’ defective policies have turned out to produce several individual billionaires and multimillionaires at the expense of the nation.
The parochial and defective policies have also had a disastrous effect on the nation moral, ethics and value standards so much that the younger generation have now cultivated despicable culture of “getting rich quick” irrespective of sources and consequences.
Tinubu administration is about the only regime in decade that has resolved to take the bull by the horns, adopting pragmatic solutions to nation numerous problems and challenges. He has given directive for the complete rehabilitation of two Refineries-Kaduna and Warri at a cost of $1.48 billion and $1.40 billion respectively before year 2023 is brought to a close.
With Dangote refinery coming to full operations with its 650,000 liters/day in a very short time from now and coupled with the plan already afoot to also bring back to life refineries in Port-Harcourts, do Nigerians need Soothsayers to start declaring to them that challenges in the oil sector would soon be a thing of the past? Is the pricing of petroleum products exception to the forces of demand and supply, when the market forces takes pre-eminence?
In a bid to transform the tax system and ensuring that business activities and investment, as well as economic growth are not unduly stifled, and most importantly, improve significantly the revenues streams accruing to the Federation Accounts, the president has inaugurated a crack Tax Reform Committee with Terms of Reference to address the key challenges in Nigeria’s Tax system, including multiple taxes and revenue collection agencies, fragmented and complex tax system, high cost of revenue administration, lack of co-ordination between fiscal and monetary authorities, amongst other responsibilities of the committee.
The all-important initiative is expected to create orderliness and normalcy in tax administration & management and of course, reveals new areas of revenue generation sources for nation.
The president’s recent declaration of a state of emergency on food security in Nigeria is a crucial and timely intervention to address the pressing issues of food scarcity, as well as ensuring availability of portable water. The declaration encapsulated in “Enhancing Agricultural Sustainability and Resilience Package” is anchored on 5 pillars–Investing in Rural Infrastructure and Resilience, Empowering Small holder Farmers and Communities, Strengthening Value Chains and Market Systems, as well as Enhancing Agricultural Productivity.
Of course, the primary assignment of the incoming Minister of Agricultures & Rural Development is to ensure that all the contents of the declaration are implemented to the letter. Do we need a prophet from heaven to announce to us that this would significantly provide solutions for the food and water challenges in Nigeria?
The recent resolve of the president to institute a new security architecture by appointing new Service Chiefs, IG, new Comptroller General of Customs, new Immigration Chief, and host of new officers for military formations particularly for Villa and FCT, Abuja should attract commendations from all and sundry, as it’s an historic move to draw the curtains on challenges of banditry, insurgence, kidnapping, IPOB insurrection, cultism and other criminalities that have held the nation by the jugular over years, as well as impeding her growth and development, particularly with respect to influx of foreign investments. The reverberating effects of those appointments would soon be noticed in all the strata of security sector in a short while.
The Electricity Bill Act recently assented by the president is designed to institutionalize a new Power Architecture that would open a new chapter in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity in Nigeria.
Recall that the new bill has completely broking the monopoly in electricity generation, transmission and distribution at national level, as it has empowered individuals, companies and states to venture into business of electricity generation, transmission and distribution.
This is akin to building electricity institution, as well as rescuing the manufacturing companies, SMEs, households and other electricity users from the firm grips of shylock monopolists who have no other objective other than profiteering.
We’ve also seen the conscious efforts and deliberate attempts by the president to ensure that appointments made into various offices reflect the federal character, as well as giving sense of belonging to all the six geographical zones across the country.
For emphasis, South West already have the President, Chief of Staff to the President, Chief of Army Staff, and Inspector General of Police. South South has the Senate President. The Deputy Speaker, House of Reps, Chief of Navy Staff reside with South East. North West has the Speaker of House of Reps, Deputy Senate President, Chief of Defence Staff. As well as Chief of Air Staff. North East has the Vice President, Deputy Chairman, and APC while North Central has Secretary to the Government of Federation.
The above initiative is in contrast to past nepotistic development, as it geared towards ensuring that no part of the country is marginalized whatsoever. The development is also to ensure the country is close-knitted, as well as promotes unity and harmony in all nooks & crannies.
Since the inauguration of President Tinubu into office, as well as the appointment of new helmsman for Central Bank of Nigeria, the Apex Bank seems to have been re-integrated into the polity, as in contrast to the Bank’s aloofness under Godwin Emefiele watch. The “thorough house-cleaning” of monetary policy which the president earlier promised is already manifesting with the implementation of unified exchange rate, a reforming initiative that would redirect funds from arbitrage into meaningful and productive investments that drive the real economy.
The regular presence of the Apex Bank governor in Aso Villa for meetings, is an eloquent testimony that there is a new era of harmonization between fiscal and monetary policies, and of course, the nation economy would be better for this rapprochement. This is how to build an institution and not necessarily empowering an individual to continually super-intending on institution that supposed to be serving the interest of the citizenry.
In Nigeria democratic history, no president has displayed absolute knowledge of governance in all facets like President Bola Tinubu, and I stand to be corrected. It’s also remarkable and instructive that, he has done all these within the spate of two months in the saddle.
His quick-wittedness, courage, decisiveness, boldness, zeal, patriotism and willpower as Nigerian helmsman is unprecedented in the history of our democratic governance.
This is why is painful and regrettable to see few disgruntled characters in the political space making spirited efforts to cause disaffection and unnecessary uproar and pandemonium amongst the citizenry with their propaganda and sheer falsehood that the nation is going into extinction following petroleum prices increase, a development imposed on OPEC member countries due to the prevailing market prices in the international market.
No country attracts greatness if her nationals continually cast aspersions on her, as well as running her leadership down at the slightest provocation. We profit nothing if our country is in turmoil and state of pandemonium as a result of negative pronouncements of very few myopic, parochial and small minded individuals.
The generality of Nigerians have given President Tinubu their express mandate for the next four years and no one could change that. It’s also gratifying and gladdening that the president has been making very impressive and remarkable moves to address quite a number of onerous challenges he inherited from the previous administrations, as well as taken heroics step to rebuild, reposition, reconstruct and reset the nation institutions in all facets, a development that is bound to herald prosperity, and bring forth New Nigeria that we all crave and yearn for.
Of course, after rainfall comes sunshine. This is my message to good people of this nation
Kola AMZAT (FCA)
LAGOS BASED FINANCIAL CONSULTANT,
09077509348
