Setting agenda for Buhari’s next level governance

Former Chairman of Campaign for Democracy (CD) Comrade Mashood Erubami highlights the challenges that President Muhammadu Buhari should tackle in his second term.

President Buhari’s victory on the 23rd  of February, 2019, must once again set new agenda for earning greatness for the Country, such that must reaffirm his strong commitment to end Corruption and insecurity as necessary impetus to gaining the confidence of local and foreign investors to want to subscribe into businesses in Nigeria.

 

Multi stakeholder government

The next level government  must begin with the outright dissolution of the present Cabinet, Boards and Commissions appointments to enable  a new Cabinet that is inclusive of Nominees foremost  from  parties that contributed members  into the coalition which form the APC, while extending the hands of friendship to opposition parties in terms of concrete appointments that will make them participate in the government, so as to get the system working for the country without prejudice to the ongoing corruption fights which must continue unsparingly.

After dissolution of the cabinet and the Boards of the MDA’S, a meeting of the APC should be called to discuss and adopt  the sharing of the benefits of the Coalition in equitable manner. Also the adoption of sharing formulae  with the Opposition Parties, Professionals from the Private Sector, Labour, Women, Youths  Civil Society and Pro- Democracy Groups to form a multi stakeholder government that will ensure inclusiveness and participation.

 

Buhari and the people

To achieve well in the three critical areas set by the President  in the next level, he must begin to build the people around his government  turning the people and the  critical mass into safeguards against political interlopers who might once again attempt to slow down governance or make it fail, creating a new government of the people by the people and for the people. A new government that will  seek the promotion and defense of democracy and good governance in which the people and the critical mass must become the oxygen of democracy that will act as catalyst for social progress and economic growth.

Government should re introduce quarterly briefings on its budget execution and performance, stating projects locations,  state of project completion, threats, opportunity, monthly revenue generated  and shared, expenditure incurred, savings made  within the quarter to underscore the mantra of transparency and accountability.

 

Decision taking and the party

President Buhari should  relate very well with the Party. The party owns the government and he  is the instrument that will be  used to realise the objectives set by the party as contained in its Manifesto. All decisions to be taken by the President must be informed by the outcomes of dialogues, discussions and consultations with the Party which must not be allowed to go into disarray in any of the Constituency either in the state, local government or at the Federal level. Whatever divisions arising at those levels must be strategically resolved  to avoid polarisation in the party.

The Government at the centre must carry the Governors along  to respond rapidly to resolve all conflicts brewing among the members in the party to underscore the significance of internal democracy. The policy thrust of the government must conform with Party Manifesto while the party must have a good say in every government decisions, in how members are being selected and appointed  to serve in government making those appointed  to be responsive to party issues and responsible for party obligations.

 

Corruption

All inconclusive enquiries into how oil money was diverted, misused, personalised, and embezzled between 1999 and 2014,  particularly allocations for construction of roads, building of rails, airports, the $16b meant for Power Stations, and the Niger/Delta Bridge, should come under special scrutiny,  so that the guilty could be adequately sanctioned.

Corruption must be tackled head long,  fought strenuously and unsparingly in a nonselective manner to ensure non protection of one side of politics against the other in which political carpet crossing will not guarantee the forgiveness of  corruption offences of defectors into the ruling Party.

The anti corruption agencies must be reformed to be more effective and proactive in responding to corruption issues in line with global best practices.

President Buhari must continue to demonstrate boldness in tackling corruption in the military, legislature and the judiciary and the searchlight must be further beamed on the executive in a more visible and confidence building manner without creating any shred of doubt about providing coverage for anybody however highly connected and placed.

In fighting against corruption, all toes must not only be ruthlessly stepped on, the legs that carry the toes must be crushed using the law.

With Corruption out of the way of Nigeria, there will be available resources left for the building of Roads and Bridges, Construct power infrastructures which will  be available for the Manufacturers, Industrialists and for social services towards inducing  employment and creating  new capacities for better revenue generation.

 

Education

Human capacity development must be brought to its expected level of International standard and the money that would have gone into private pockets of Civil Servants and Politicians should be utilised to fund University Research on Science and Technology to make Nigeria become great from a government that works.

 

Boko haram insurgency

Concern by the escalating incidence of insurgents activities and general insecurity, we suggest that  the President must review  government strategies used in the last four years to combat insecurity and bring about a new measure that will focus not only  on the Insurgents but also their Masterminds.

Government must extend its dragnets widely  to cover all areas experiencing insurgency namely Borno, Yobe, Bauchi, Kano, Zanfara, Gombe and adamawa to expose and arrest Masterminds and their Agents for unsparing and non- selective prosecution.

Immediate measures must be put in place to engage the Book Haram Insurgents frontally and in more preemptive manner, chasing them out of their cocoons and halt their counter attacks against the Nigeria fighting forces.

Never again must the Insurgents attack any Barracks without counter repelling force on standby to ward off their menace instantly.

Infact, everything must be done to prevent direct Boko Haram insurgency on Civilian targets and Military bases. The heart warming steps being taken by the Buhari’s Administration must continue to halt permanently, the bombing of people, habitations and destroying of properties.

 

Labour and employment

The new cordial relationship that will be engendered by the APC majority in both the Senate and the House of Representatives must be effectively used to review past bills that were not signed into law by the President and the Executive bills rejected or not passed by the Legislators for conjunctive  re evaluation and Consideration for  immediate enactment into law.

The National Minimum Wage Act should be  considered for immediate signing by the President to complete the processes of lawmaking.

The president should encourage the State Governors to also pay the minimum wage as signed into law regularly and should seriously consider the review of the Revenue collection and allocation towards increasing the revenue accruable to the States and Local Government Councils.

This is without prejudice to finding out states  that mismanaged the bailout funds with adequate sanction on whoever embezzled the money meant for payment of backlog of salaries and pensions.

The president should continue his efforts to reduce unemployment, in addition he  should open more  space for massive recruitment of  unemployed Youths Graduates, that will be paid decent wages in the Agricultural Sector, Oil and Gas Industries particularly in the Service  delivery sectors while re emphasising areas for  self employment.

There  is need for a systematic short time restructuring of the economy, starting from redistribution and redirection of  National Revenue through which the Federal arm of government will be divested  of its huge share of National revenue and  many of the projects in which it  competes with the States and local Governments  of the Federation.

Another step will be to recognise the autonomy of local government and encouraging states to invest in areas where they  have comparative advantage.