By Ishola Balogun
As Nigerians grapple with the hash economic realities occasioned by a number of government policies, former deputy governor of Ogun State, Senator Adegbenga Sefiu Kaka has urged Nigerians to endure the pain, while the government carries out surgical activities to remove the cause of the pain and enjoy later.
He opined that Nigerians can only reduce the cost of governance by opting for a parliamentary system with unicameral or parttime legislature.
President Bola Tinubu has ordered a review of the earlier N8,000 proposal as palliative to cushion the effect of the fuel subsidy removal. In your view, what kind of palliatives do you think should be put in place?
With the situation we are in now, there is a need for immediate, short term and long term solutions. This is because whatever we are doing now, the relief must be such that it will endure as well as for the growth and development of the nation.
To start with the immediate solution, poverty has no boundary, from Sokoto to Yenagoa, from Borno to Ibadan, from Ilorin to Calabar povertyis manifesting and with the adage that an hungry man is an angry man there is need to provide succor to the people now.
In the short term, for ages, we have been talking about gas flaring, I don’t know what the previous government had done on this but we have failed to take advantage of this even for export and earn lots of foreign exchange, and of course as a cleaner energy to the fossil fuel we are battling with.
We failed in our duties to introduce gas propelled vehicles. So, in the short term, we can convert petroleum into gas energy for our cars, generators and machines. So, there are so many things we can do to promote a clean energy environment. The move will also engender competition as demand pressure will reduce on petroleum and naturally the price will come down. So, let us start thinking of banishing automobiles that rely solely on petrol and diesel.
Apart from petrol that was subsidized, the only source of energy apart from diesel, is electricity. So, if we channel our resources to improving electricity and gas energy, the impact will be great and life will be better, even to people in the rural areas. This will complement the solar or the hydroelectric supply. I must commend the President for being bold enough to declare a state of emergency on food security, but I am of the view that it is not only about food security, there must be security of life and property and of course all other sectors.
There has also been an increase in school fees in various universities and unity schools across the country, it seems the pain is endless… The destruction of the system was more or less endless. It is either we go suffering and smiling or a surgical activity to remove the pain once and for all, through the needed operation, and enjoy later. If we have to do that, it means we have to put our leaders on their toes. Go to the streets, the marketplace, the motor parks, everybody seems to know what the problems are, but what is in short supply is access to power, and those of us who have access to power do not have the courage to do what is right.
Education cannot wait for agriculture and food production. It is also from agriculture that you get materials for the agro-allied industries to function. It is after the locals are satisfied that you now place emphasis on exportation to earn foreign exchange. Over the years, we have seen our naira depreciate from 1 to 2 a dollar in 1986 and before our eyes now, it is over N800 to a dollar. If we must correct and reverse the trend, we must engage in active production, both for local consumption and for export purposes and of course add value to whatever we produce.
So, the boldness and courage of the President is good, this may be bringing some pain now, but it will bring some comfort and relief later. Let’s give him some time, I am so optimistic that things will be alright. We should look into the issue of gas flaring and resuscitation of agriculture. Yes, we have seen it at different levels in different states in the 60s, we can repeat it. We failed to capitalise on the outcomes of farm settlements in those days by using them as pilot schemes to expand our scope of operation.
The Bretton Woods Institutions, the World Bank, and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) are not our problems. We are the one wearing the shoes and we know where it hurts. Our problems are localised, so we have to localise the solutions. We should not allow anybody to import wrong ideas from abroad that will not work for us. Our culture is different from theirs.
The National Assembly want to spend N110billion on cars and palliatives. Are they excluded from makingsacrifices at this critical time?
We have an existing structure that is yet to deal with the problems. We moved, in the 60s, from the parliamentary system of government to the presidential system. The option is ours to come to terms with the fact that the presidential system is too expensive and that we can revert to the parliamentary system.
What is N110b in our budget of N20trillion? If we have respect for our legislators and you want them to function, we are purchasing one vehicle for them each and it is going to be used for four years. Remember that depreciation is normally four years. I am aware they will never take itaway free of charge and those who don’t want it will return it to the pool. We also have the option of making their job on a part-time basis before they were elected, or better still we can decide to go for the unicameral legislature. But we are not doing that, we only look at the fleet of cars and start making noise.
Remember too that they are not operating in isolation. Corruption in the system is endemic. You can be sure that 90 percent of Nigerians are corrupt. So, we have to start somewhere and make a firm decision. I have seen so many years ago that there is no subsidy, but inefficiency. The pain we inflict on the common man on the street is as a result of inefficiency of the government.
Our problems would have been well defined and solution proffered. All our problems are manifesting because of corruption in all sectors, not only in the National Assembly but also the Executive. Why can’t we tackle it once and for all. Let us take the right decision and it will be for the general good.
The president promised to hit the ground running but he was unable to form his cabinet two months after he was sworn in…?
The president has not violated any law on that. Let the individual put himself in the shoes of Tinubu. With the knowledge, exposure and interaction of the President across the length and breath of this country, if he had wanted to put up a list of ministers within one week of being inaugurated, he would have done it, and probably, it would have been better for him to have done that. I am sure he must have had his first eleven. I think those who are so fastidious about politicians and the game of politics will see what will play out.
The issue is that while the politicians were having sleepless nights, putting up the programme, the manifesto, the consultation, the election; the so-called technocrats and professionals were sitting on the fence.
And when they now win elections, they say give the technocrats this or that. We have done our bit and we have given the mandate to President Tinubu, let’s leave him to do the job, because he will be the one to be held accountable, not those who are shouting technocrats, not the professionals and not even the journalists. So let him do the job as meticulously as possible.
https://www.vanguardngr.com/2023/07/theres-no-subsidy-but-inefficiency-of-govt-senator-kaka/
