It would be exactly 17 years by May 29, 2017
that a democratically elected government at
all levels was inaugurated. It becomes imperative, ipso facto, to speak only in general terms of the impact of democracy on our lives, the determined effort by government to make democracy meaningful for Nigerians, and the increasing expectations to civic society about the need for those in authority to make democracy dividends real in their lives.
Even as it is only five months away to May 29, 2017, economic hardship and squalor reminiscent of the Biblical seven-year lean period of the Egyptians and the prevailing economic recession in Nigeria, have given impetus to national discontent and concern over how the anguish of beleaguered Nigerians can be ameliorated in the shortest possible time.
Thus, when it is remembered that President Muhammadu Buhari who, by May 29,201‘7, would have spent a two years of his four-year term as President, assumed office on the crest of public optimism, he would certainly be placed on the crucible of history as we usher in the New Year when expectations are high.
President Buhari, upon assumption of office after a historic defeat of an incumbent President, had promised change. He spoke of fresh possibilities and of a responsible government that would lead Nigerians towards a new dawn and new realization and create a new country where everyone would live happily once again. Nigerians took his word for it, based on his antecedents.
So far, nothing remarkably positive along those lines has happened. There is virtually nothing on the credit side of his balance sheet to warrant giving the present government a pat on the back. The government has not even succeeded in re-directing the focus of civil society towards properly defined objectives and principles about state governance.
So bad and so sad are the state of affairs now in the country that even the poor folks (talakawas in Hausa) who rejoiced the most at his election – one man walked from Yola to Abuja and another from Lagos to Abuja in celebration – are feeling let down. They are rattled by the persistence of the same old problems – economic hardship, job losses, growing unemployment, unstable power supply, insecurity, infrastructural deficit, high cost of living among others.
Buhari’s rating and popularity have shrinked to the level that in many cities nationwide, change is dubbed a negative word. While ‘change’ has become a mere propaganda gimmick to remind All Progressives Congress (APC) sympathizers that they made a wrong choice, some are even saying that APC meant ‘chain’ which was misinterpreted as ‘change’.
Nevertheless, whatever may be the tension and stress occasioned by Buhari’s rule, Nigerians may have so far by their conduct and choices, resolved that democracy is the surest guarantee for individual and collective freedoms and happiness in the society. Thus, it is expected that President Buhari would have gone beyond rhetorics and act speedily at re-jiging the nation’s ailing economy.
Nigerians and indeed, the global community expect Buhari and his cabinet to stop the blame game and buck-passing by evolving concrete policies and programmes that would re-invent the economy and bail out Nigeria from economic recession. Infact, the Federal Government should have used 2015 and 2016 to evolve a template and roadmap for economic prosperity, stable polity, security of lives and property and other national challenges.
As it is, Nigerians expect that 2017 would bring forth solutions and results, not mere talks or promises that are never kept. Hence, the Federal Government must be focused and consistent in policy execution. The anti-graft campaign must be vigorously pursued rather than being made a lop sided war against perceived political enemies as presently is the case.
In other words, the ‘Change Mantra’ of the present government must begin with our political leaders. Politicians in Buhari’s cabinet that were found wanting or indicted should be prosecuted to serve as a deterrent to others.
Even as The Tide expects the 2017 Federal Budget not to be left unimplemented like others before it, Nigeria must go beyond oil and gas and diversify her economy in line with present realities. The agricultural and non-oil sectors (solid minerals) that are still untapped could be the ultimate elixir to get Nigeria out of the woods.
Restructuring of the polity, the strengthening of democratic and political institutions and purging the electoral process of the culture of impunity are just some of the other ways of making 2017 a year to remember for good.
By the time these steps are taken, we would have fully realised the symbolism of democratic rule and the socio-economic wellbeing it offers.