Nigeria

By Sulaiman Maijama’a

Reading the report of the disheartening revelation that the Bauchi state government has uncovered over 7000 ghost workers and pensioners from its payroll, which will enable it to realise over 500 Million Naira savings monthly, has given me sleepless nights this week. This is one of the terrible experiences I have had in recent times. I did not know when I was engulfed by raw, unadulterated pain, thinking about how the state’s governor, Bala Mohammed, is taking bold steps to sanitise civil service and block all leakages, other ungodly and unpatriotic people are sabotaging his efforts. If the government is to employ fresh graduates on the N50,000 salary scale, 500 million is equivalent to 10,000 employees.

 When the global economy is ravaged, and governments all over are trying to cushion the effect. Bauchi State is not an exception; these people fail to have the conscience, unleash their cruelty on the resources of the poor masses. And while these fraudulent people, whom I describe as “demons in human structure”, are benefiting illegally from this organised financial scam, the Governor is unjustifiably being criticised for being seen at fault, and the civil servants are in difficulty. This is, indeed, more than double jeopardy. However, if justice is to prevail, one cannot point an accusing finger at the citizens of the state who have been registering their discontent and throwing a barrage of questions to the State Governor, Sen. Bala Mohammed, seeking clarification on why are the salaries of some workers not paid as at when due. Those who think to seek clarification on issues of this nature is a crime know nothing about the Constitution because every citizen is entitled to ask questions on any public issue, except for classified matters, as by law established.

For a couple of months ago, there have been concerns by the Bauchi State citizens, especially civil servants, as regards the hitches that result in delay of the payment of some workers’ salaries in the State. Because Bauchi State is a civil service state, the problem appears to be the greatest concern of the people these days. The opponents of the PDP led administration take that to their advantage by crashing in, posing questions to the Government in power as to why the delay and why despite death, retirement and record of no employment, there has been an exponential rise in the wage bill?

This fraud in civil service started long before Senator Bala Mohammed came on board as the executive governor of Bauchi state. Though his approach to bringing it to a halt is extraordinary, It appears we have a long way to go as the efforts have always proven to be an exercise in futility.

To address the challenges on the issue in September 2020, Governor Bala hosted a Media Parley with civil servants, labour leaders, Government’s officials, elder statesmen, stakeholders and the Media where massive corruption in the system was exposed. A financial consulting firm, DYNATECH Solutions Limited, contracted by the State Government to sanitise its payroll and nominal roll, had revealed that ghost pensioners had been paid over N700 million within one year. While addressing the government, DYNATECH said the sum of N744,000,000 had been siphoned out of the state treasury.

I was then happy when the Governor resolved not to spare anyone found behind the organised financial crime on the Government’s payroll. Unfortunately, however, less than one year down the line, some people could be brave enough to summon the courage and orchestrate their devilish act, just a replay of last year. Something then is wrong!  For Senator Bala to find a lasting solution to this, he must begin to speak to those found to be involved in collecting undeserved salaries and pensions “in a language that they understand”. What language do they understand?

I remember a couple of months ago when some crooks found to be behind financial scams on the state’s payroll were publicised; their names published on national dailies along with pictures and their places of work. Please, your Excellency, sustain this. Whoever is found indulging in such a shameful act, regardless of his social status, should be breaking news for the day on national dailies, radio and television stations. Their names should make the banner headlines, and their pictures take the front pages of the newspaper. This is the best way to embarrass them, just like they embarrass the responsibility they are entrusted with. It will also serve as a deterrent to others.

Since these people do not mean and wish well for the society as their actions result in general affliction in the society with public institutions being grounded to a halt, please, your Excellency, we want to see them facing the fullest wrath of the law, being chased to jail, for they are nothing but calamity to our journey to promised land.

Maijama’a writes from the Faculty of Mass Communication, Bayero University, Kano. He can be contacted via sulaimanmaija@gmail.com.

Abba Kyari’s predicament will evoke, in some manner, watertight interpretation by the conspiracy theorists. They can have a soft landing and safe haven to drive their points homes. The US recently denied Nigeria access to purchase helicopters that would aid adequately in fighting the Boko Haram terrorists, bandits, and kidnappers who become a sharp thorn in the country’s flesh. The US scuttled the arms deal with Nigeria, citing the human rights abuses and violations, among others, as its reasons. Is the accusation valid? No! The Information minister falsifies it. 

Before Nigeria heal, recuperate, and move on, the shocking revelation of FBI reports that squarely and directly without evasion indicted the super cop Abba Kyari who has been vibrantly a leading figure in battling those violent crimes are gravelling the peace of the country. Though this isn’t the first time the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), a federal law enforcement agency that’s principal investigator of the Justice Department in the US, accuse Nigeria’s top official.

The current speaker of the House of Representatives was once charged until it was proved that the accusation was baseless, unfounded. The same happened to the late Senator Buruji Kashimu, who was accused of drug trafficking. His extradition to the US failed due to intricacies and involution associated with that international law. The chairman of Air Peace, Allen Onyema, was equally indicted by the FBI and the Americans demanded him to be extradited. It was later discovered that he’s ingenuously sinless. He was vindicated as innocent. Therefore,  the FBI isn’t always correct and voracious, as many Nigerians assumed.

However, even if the alleged report of Kyari’s indictment proved to be flawless and accurate, Nigeria must borrow or take up an American approach. I said so because it will be a lame decision for the country to get rid of such an adept and proficient police officer in these trying moments. Forget about Kperogis and Ochonus, who are not within reach of kidnappers and bandits, who write from their comfort zones in the US, calling for the super cop’s head. Don’t be prey to their flakes.

When former American President, Bill Clinton, was indicted for having an illicit sexual relationship with his secretary within the sacred white house, Monica Kalawesky, the indictment was proved beyond a reasonable doubt. Yet, the US assembly was sagacious in its judgement. They weighed Clinton’s advantage as well as his shortcomings. They had prioritised his advantages and didn’t impeach him, and he later continued to become one of the finest and successful presidents in American history. 

However, in this present critical moment of insecurity eating deep into Nigeria’s flesh, such as dreaded terrorists of Boko Haram in the northeast, bandits and kidnappers in the north-west and north-central and secessionists in the entire south, to get rid of Kyari for his alleged accomplice offence with the notorious Yahoo Boy — Hushpuppi — will come with consequences. Therefore, Nigeria must prioritise its National interest.

The US let go of the culpability of Saudi Arabia when Jamal Khashoggi was butchered in Turkey for the simple reason that they had wanted to pursue their billions of dollars deal (arms purchase) with Saudis. National interest always comes first.

Kyari has, in his two decades of service, done a superb and groundbreaking job in bringing the level of violent crimes in Nigeria down. His record is today the top desirable one in the police force. Notably, the Nigerian Government and all its institutions have never found him wanting in all these two decades of service. Kyari has been consistent with his career and currently heading a formidable team that has become criminals’ nightmare. It will be uncanny and suicidal to let him go for the funny accusation of a Yahoo Boy having telephone communication with him outside Nigeria. I urge the Nigeria Police Force to review the report of the FBI about the super cop.

Nevertheless, the FBI report is right or wrong; the officer should be given a top security operation to lead to “fatigue” for the mere mention of his name in the indictment report. After all, Kyari should try to eschew any nexus with people that can easily make others see him as a dissenter. His recent public appearance with Obi Cubana can be a massive slap on his personality.

One lesson Nigerians will learn from this saga is that our culture of highhandedness with the public office should be dropped. Public servants used to be like emperors, especially when they proved to be worthy and successful. It happened with Bank chiefs, politicians etc. Let us have strong institutions.

Salisu Uba Kofar-Wambai is a PhD student at the Department of Mass Communication, Bayero University, Kano. He can be reached via salisunews@gmail.com.

By Tajuddeen Ahmad Tijjani

Various reports revealed that US senators are planning to halt the agreed sales of warplanes to the Federal Republic of Nigeria on human rights concerns. This unpopular decision leaves many Nigerians in awe, wondering why would the so-called peace-loving United States do that to a nation bedevilled by security challenges, ranging from violent secessionists, killer herdsmen, banditry, kidnapping and Boko Haram — an insurgency that consumes more than 36,000 lives from 2009 to date. 

The number one enemy of Nigeria is insecurity, as the country’s security agencies are having difficulty in surmounting the problem over the years. No doubt, the government of the federation is trying everything humanly possible to end the ugly trend. However, the challenge continues to prove insurmountable, mainly due to the lack of state-of-art weaponry in the country’s arsenal. Understanding this particular shortcoming forces the Buhari administration to shop for sophisticated armouries from the United States of America – a perceived important ally of the Nigerian state. Unfortunately, the bilateral relationship that exists for decades between the US and Nigeria that is expected to play a significant role in facilitating the arms deals and intelligence sharing has been disregarded by these US senators.

Suffice to say; this is not the first time the US turns down Nigeria’s demand for war gadgets on the purported account of human rights records. Denying Nigeria’s request during the Jonathan administration was undoubtedly one of the significant factors that made Nigerian forces deficient in combating Boko Haram, hence leaving the insurgency to prevail then. Now we are faced with many other terrorist acts; we cannot afford to experience the repetition of what happened before. Therefore, to accomplish this task of securing the territorial integrity of our nation, we must think outside the box and source alternatives to acquire sophisticated war gadgets that would help us eliminate terrorists and terrorism in the African most populace nation.

Ostensibly, America is not helping matters in our war against insurgency. No good ally would deny Nigeria a purchase of weapons at this challenging moment of turmoil. As a matter of urgency, the federal government should leave America and shop for the needed warplanes elsewhere. We can try the likes of Russia, China, Japan, South Korea or Germany to have expeditious delivery and usage because they are best with sophisticated ware fare all over the world.  

It’s high time for Nigeria and Africa to realise that some Western countries are not interested or concerned about our peaceful coexistence. It’s, therefore, significant to give priority to research and development to find ways to save ourselves from such last hour denials. Relying on the US to help us address the multiple security challenges in Nigeria and Africa is becoming suicidal. We must find some better allies that would be ever willing to help us out of any predicament unconditionally.

Tajuddeen Ahmad Tijjani writes from Galadima Mahmud Street K/Kaji Azare, Bauchi State.

By Muhammad Tsaure

The Biafra saga is no longer South East or South-South issue; instead, it has culminated into something more devastating and absolute hatred to Buhari in particular and Northern Nigeria in general.  I garnered series of experiences primarily based on the discussion I held with a significant number of people from the southeastern region. I learned from them that they mainly think the North doesn’t want them to leave the union because the proportionate percentage of the country’s GDP comes from their region. Thus, if they secede, the North will be left bankrupt and nowhere to turn to.

Unknown to many of those people, this thought is nothing short of ignorance about the exact nature of Northern Nigeria. The North is endowed with whatever a country needs to survive, prosper and develop. We are not parasites, as they claim. But, if they want to go, please, let them go in peace. Nigeria doesn’t necessarily need Igbos to survive.

The North has come of age now; we can fend for ourselves and don’t need any region to live and survive as a country. Whoever wants to go, let them go. The North has treated Igbo people with dignity, love and leniency. The entire Biafra States are not up to Kaduna State in terms of population as well as geography.

In 2015 I was at the Niger-Delta University (NDU) at Wilberforce Island for a conference organised by the Literary Society of Nigeria. After presenting my research paper entitled “Diaspora Literature: A Protest Literature or Romanticism?” We went along with other colleagues to Yenagoa (the capital city of Bayelsa State) to explore or otherwise become a group of tourists. But, to my amazement, the entire Bayelsa State is not up to Bichi local government area in Kano or Funtua local government of Katsina State. Yet, they have three Senators; representing Bayelsa Central, Bayelsa West and Bayelsa East and five Members House of Representatives, and one minister of State on Petroleum.

The conference lasted for six days, and I visited the entire eight (8) local government areas of Bayelsa State. You hardly believe whether or not people are living in some of these local governments. Houses scattered, each community has its language or dialect.

The same week I came back home, I went to Bichi local government of Kano state to verify my assumption or guess. On reaching there, the conclusion I had to make was that Bichi local government is far larger in terms of population, buildings, and whatever one could think of than Bayelsa State. And nobody in the North ever complains about that.

Muhammad Tsaure is the Principal of Government Secondary School, Tsaure. He can be reached via 76muhammadtsaure@gmail.com.

Press Release

Kano state government has described as fallacious a trending story on social media platforms on a purported plan to officially disallow women regardless of any faith from getting behind the wheel.

The state commissioner for Information, Malam Muhammad Garba who made the clarification in a statement issued on Thursday, said government had at no time contemplate on the matter.

He said the story, which could not be traced to any credible source, was nothing but the imaginary thinking of the authors.

“The trending story lacks any credibility and that is why it is wholly attributed to a source that cannot be substantiated,’’ it added.

Malam Garba pointed out that if at all there was such plan, the state government does not have to be involved in any secretive meeting to decide on a critical issue that has to do its teeming populace.

The commissioner stated further that even Saudi Arabia which for decades had laws that sanctioned women from driving has, after all, lifted the ban in 2018.

He said it was interesting that some of the scholars quoted to have supported the alleged ban have already dissociated themselves from the story.

MALAM MUHAMMAD GARBA

Hon. Commissioner for Information, Kano state

By Muhammad Sabiu

Nigerian Super Cop, DCP Abba Kyari, has ‘strongly’ refuted the allegations against him that he was involved in a scandal of bribe-taking from Hushpuppi, an infamous Nigerian fraudster currently standing trial in the United States for fraud.

Recall that in a report published on Thursday by Peoples Gazette, an online Nigerian newspaper, Mr Kyari was alleged to have received a bribe from the fraudster to have the latter’s rival arrested.

In the report, the US Justice Department was quoted to have revealed the alleged link between Hushpuppi and the famous police officer.

“Court documents outline a dispute among members of the conspiracy, which allegedly prompted Vincent to contact the victim and claim that Abbas and Juma were engaged in fraud. After this contact, Abbas [Hushpuppi] allegedly arranged to have Vincent jailed in Nigeria by Abba Alhaji Kyari, 46, of Nigeria.

“According to the affidavit, Kyari is a highly decorated deputy commissioner of the Nigeria Police Force who is alleged to have arranged for Vincent to be arrested and jailed at Abbas’ behest and then sent Abbas photographs of Vincent after his arrest. Kyari also allegedly sent Abbas bank account details for an account into which Abbas could deposit payment for Vincent’s arrest and imprisonment,” the department said in a statement.

However, hours after Peoples Gazette published the story, Mr Kyari took to his Facebook account to vehemently refute the allegations labelled against him.

READ MR. KYARI’S FULL STATEMENT

Friends: Abbas who we later came to know as Hushpuppi called our office about 2years ago that somebody in Nigeria Seriously threatened to kill his Family here in Nigeria and he sent the person’s Phone number and pleaded we take action before the Person attacks his family.

We traced and arrested the Suspect and after investigations we discovered there wasn’t an actual threat to anyone’s life And they are long time friends who have money issues between them hence we released the Suspect on bail to go and he was not taken to any jail.

Nobody demanded for a kobo from Abbas Hushpuppi. Our focus was to Save people’s lives that were purported to have been threatened.

Later, he saw some of my Native Clothes and Caps on my social media page and he said he likes them and he was connected to the person selling the clothes and he sent about N300k directly to the person’s account. The Native Clothes and Caps (5 sets) were brought to our office and He sent somebody to Collect them in our office.

Nobody demanded any money from Abbas Hushpuppi and nobody collected any money from him. We responded to a distress call he made on threat to his family and released the Suspect when we discovered there was no life threat from the Suspect. This is the true story. Vincent is alive, he can be contacted.

For those who are celebrating that this is an indictment on us and mentioning some fictitious Big Money, They will be disappointed once ALL distress Calls from ALL Nigerians provided they are life-threatening.

For Good Nigerians who appreciate our Service please don’t worry as our hands are clean and they should please not respond to those celebrating and creating many false Narratives without any Evidence. We are used to such types of people and false newsmakers and distributors.

Thank you all and GOD bless Nigeria.

By Lawi Auwal Yusuf

For any right-thinking, upright government with the political will, the EndSARS protests was not an incidence to be taken for granted or forgotten. On the contrary, the turmoil was the greatest challenge of Nigeria in 2020 after the Covid-19 epidemic. There are lessons to learn. It deserves special attention, critical thinking and drastic measure, not an indifferent and lackadaisical attitude.

It was a phenomenon that has shown that things are not well in this country. And it sent a strong and clear message that poverty, inequality, mass joblessness and underemployment are at their highest pinnacle. It manifested the annoyance, frustration and anger in the citizens of this dystopian country.

The hopeless, idle and ratty youths have fed up with their misery, plight, wretchedness, redundancy and unhappy dire future. This means that Nigerians are irritated and have despaired with the long-anticipated miracle change promised by the Buhari administration and his mega-merger party. This rebellion had evidently signalled the administration’s failure and its vague, obsolete and unrealistic policies that should be thrown overboard and swiftly replaced or radically reviewed.

A similar event like SARS brutally led to more than a decade of wars and fracases in many countries of the Middle East. What sparked off the disturbances was just even more trivial than what caused the EndSARS protests in Nigeria, where the SARS operatives slew a suspect extrajudicially.

The Arab Spring, which started in 2011, was ignited when a cop molested a fruit-seller on the street of Tunis. Muhammad Al-Bouazizi, a breadwinner, set himself ablaze in protest of confiscating his wares by the police from which he made his ends meet and put food on the table for his family and his aged parents.

After intense pressure from millions of demonstrators that took to the streets of the country’s metropolitan cities, it resulted in the ouster of the then authoritarian President of Tunisia, Zainul Abidin Ben Ali. And subsequently, these protests proliferated in neighbouring countries. Similarly, it led to the fall of other long-ruling regimes and sit-tight dictators like Muammar Gaddafi of Libya, Hosni Mubarak of Egypt and later Muhammad Mursi, Abdallah Saleh of Yemen, Sa’ad Hariri and Hassan Diab of  Lebanon, Umar Al-Bashir of Sudan, Abdulaziz Bouteflika of Algeria, Blaise Compaore of  Burkina Faso and the currently embattled Bashar Assad of Syria. And most recently, Ibrahim Boubacar Keita of Mali, a West  African country and a member of the CEDEAO (ECOWAS) and a neighbour to Nigeria with the closest proximity to Nigeria among the mentioned states.

And I am sure it is unarguable that police in Nigeria are more hostile, ruthless, brutal and more corrupt than these countries. Nevertheless, their leaders were more committed to developing their economies and serving their masses than the Nigerian unpatriotic, unmindful, extravagant and wanton politicians. Their leaders were more just, accountable, transparent, modest, nationalist, less corrupt and materialistic and love their people more than our leaders do. Moreover, their masses are far better off than Nigerians. Despite these, their people revolted against them, and it is the wish and age-long dream of  Nigerians to have leaders like that of those countries so that our country can reach their level of development. And one may think that if genuine and urgent efforts are not made to resolve the problems of this country, it may be next.       

Furthermore, the EndSARS resistance has shown that Nigerian politicians are no longer running the country’s affairs with the mandate and consent of the people because they believed that they are deceived and betrayed by politicians. Thus, democracy is an illusion as it has metamorphosed into a democratic dictatorship.

Lastly, as every Nigerian is responsible and must be blamed for the nation’s state and as we have all paid the price for this destructive behaviour of these youths, change must begin with each and every one of us. Therefore, on the part of the government, I suggest it should convene a conference and bring together technocrats from different professions like sociologists, economists, political scientists, security experts and so on to assess the situation and its causes come up with solutions to avert any future reoccurrences.

Lawi Auwal Yusuf Maikanawa writes from Kano. He can be reached via laymaikanawa@gmail.com.

By Salisu Uba Kofar-Wambai

Though conflicts, for the most part, originate in the social world beyond the media, it is through the different media of journalism and circulation of news that many of them become publicly known and, often, pursued. Moreover, it is through many media lenses that the conflicts are variously defined, framed and visualized. Hence, media must always be socially responsible in its reportage not to stir up violence through its operations.

Journalism is a serious business in a multi-ethnic country like Nigeria, a country with over 400 ethnic groups, two major religious groups belonging to several sects, among other diversities. The media, especially the online newspapers, which serve as a watchdog and mirror of the society, cannot afford to be biased, lopsided and insensitive in the way they report such ethno-religious issues in the country.

Nigeria is a unique country on earth. You can hardly get a country that’s almost equally divided along two religious lines as Nigeria. Unfortunately, many studies conducted have shown the dirty hands of media in fanning the embers of hatred, animosity and conflicts they ought to have resolved among the followers of the two faiths.

The demonization of Fulani, the reportage of Sharia issues in the early 2000s, Boko Haram coverage, Niger Delta militancy reports, recent secessionists uprisings were all given oxygen by the media to survive, which seriously poses a threat to the unity and integration of the country.

However, irresponsible newspapers and so-called professionals working in the industry are to blame. The recent derogatory reportage of the unguarded utterances of the Afenifere, a Yoruba social-cultural organization, by Sahara Reporters is a textbook example of media complicity in causing violence in the country.

It looks like the Sahara Reporters had underrated and underestimated the profession’s ethics regarding such a sensitive and slippery issue. The editors haven’t done their onus professionally. Editing is a process of preparing language, images, or sound for presentation through correction, condensation, organization and other modifications. So, given the complex configuration of Nigerian society, an editor ought to be versatile and very knowledgeable of religious sensitivities. Newsroom desks must be given their cause to do their works. For instance, should the editor-in-chief be busy, the subeditors in the religious desk should handle it.

An editor is a gatekeeper who controls and sifts what will be disseminated to the enormous and varied readers, who have emanated from different social backgrounds, religious beliefs, and ethnic nuances. Therefore, an editor in a Nigerian newspaper ought to be someone with deep comparative religious knowledge who knows the sensitivities of every belief and faith. 

In a heterogeneous society like Nigeria, an editor must be Mr Know-All to escape falling into a ditch and trap of such violence invocation.

He should be aware that If Christians can compare every dimwit, imbecile character with Jesus (PBUH), Muslims don’t do it this way. In Islam, Prophet Muhammad (SAW) is sacrosanct, inviolate. Thus, no one should compare the Prophet with any being, let alone Sunday Igboho, a run-away character the Nigerian government sees as a criminal and murderer.

I thought these so-called editors would take a lesson from what Isioma Daniel did, who tried to align Prophet Muhammad SAW with the dirty beauty pageants in the early 2000s. It turned out to be the worst professional blunder by Thisday newspapers. That single act that could be corrected by almighty editing led to gigantic violence that claimed more than 200 innocent souls in Kaduna.

 I also wonder that Afenifere apologists have more Muslims than Christians in their membership; they ought to know this. Therefore, that’s why many were suspecting that what transpired was deliberately done to instigate war.

Sahara Reporters is the only newspaper that reported such an incident as such. Most media outfits have abandoned the reports for their editors knew the consequences. They look at the news items and the society at large.

No matter what, the professional interest must not be mortgaged to religious and ethnic ties. We must allow competence and expertise to overshadow those personal interests.

Salisu Uba Kofar-Wambai is a PhD student at the Department of Mass Communication, Bayero University, Kano. He can be reached via salisunews@gmail.com.

By Tajudden Ahmad Tijjani

The Bauchi State government has indeed taken the bull by the horns by suspending the license of all private NCE awarding colleges. It’s a fact that any society that does not prioritise education will retrogress.

The state government’s decision is a welcome development. All private National Certificate of Education ( NCE) granting institutions have had their license revoked in the pearl of tourism because of their negative contribution to the state’s educational development. The standard of education in the state is persistently getting lower. 

For the operators of such mushroom NCEs, losing their license will be a tough pill to swallow. Notwithstanding, it’s the right call from the government’s side because allowing them to continue operating results in the graduation of incompetent, quack teachers who are the benchmark of our state’s underdevelopment.
Indeed, anywhere In the world, the importance of education can never be overemphasised; quality education is essential for long-term development.

Last September, the United Nations (UN) ratified 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to serve as benchmarks for every nation to ensure global prosperity, protection of the planet, and poverty eradication.

All countries and stakeholders acting in collaborative partnerships will implement the plan Goal 4—Quality Education: Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning.

The call for a Quality Education, not merely access to any education, by the UN is a great step in ensuring that all children and adults, not just those born with a silver spoon, have access to quality education.

Education is more than just a content delivery system; it is a system designed to help all children and adults reach their full potential and see themselves as contributing partners of society. The former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon set the SDG process in motion in 2012 by declaring that every child must be in school. The quality of those schools must improve so that students are prepared to be productive citizens ready to lead the future. 

Indeed, supporters of our beloved state should applaud the Bauchi state government’s decision to not only renew the licenses of these schools but also to sanction any defaulting so-called institutions per existing laws.

 However, let the government ensure that standards are strictly followed, that rich content is provided, and graduates are produced who are assets and productive in the twenty-first century, rather than liabilities.

Tajuddeen Ahmad Tijjani writes from Galadima Mahmud street, Kasuwar-kaji Azare, Bauchi State.

By MA Iliasu

In May 2021, a lecturer of Managerial Economics stood before his graduating students and raised a question: “What is the benefit of government intervention?” And as any man with as little as second-hand knowledge of the economic theory would expect, the response was dominated by arguments raised along market inefficiency corrections. However, the lecturer didn’t seem convinced. He asked once again: “What market inefficiency has the interference of the Nigerian government ever corrected?”. Similarly, the class went silent, a poverty of options so revealing for a graduating year that champions Keynes and government intervention. And for an endeavour so rich with controversy and a lecturer of investment-banking speciality known with open admiration towards a free market, the mood was that he was trying to discredit the whole notion of government intervention, as do many new classicals and monetarists at the encounter with Keynesianism. And who had sufficient reason to blame him?

Meanwhile, while the teacher had a point to discredit government intervention with evidence from Nigerian experience, the encounter also reminds us about the dilemma of the economic society in which unreasonable applied entities bring shame to reasonable economic principles. Indeed, learning the dynamics since the loop in 2008 warrants the argument of government intervening to stimulate the economy proving more viable and efficient than any policy prescription on the alternative, which exonerates the logic of intervention and asks what’s the Nigerian government doing? Yet, it equally seeks to discover what is wrong that’s demoralising the Keynesian tolerance and even the benefit of doubt borrowed by classroom experts?

Inflation in Nigeria is at an all-time high. Productivity is nearing an all-time low. Debt status is rising. The value of the domestic currency is depreciating. The exchange rate is unfavourable. Deficits are being recorded regularly in the balance of payment. At the same time, the impact of the unemployment rate is proving possibly the most threatening phenomenon seen in the country since the Civil War. Among many other disastrous economic signals last seen rallying together, they formed a coalition that devastated a whole economic society in Greece.

The economic culture in Nigeria proves childish at both national and individual levels. A beleaguered government that’s living beyond its means – expenses weigh more than incomes – taking loans from international institutions to cover its deficits with no respect for the weakening revenue base. The inspiration to sustain whose child play also comes from the expectation of bailout in the event the game can no longer be played – which is the likeliest outcome, which at this trend of the global economic crisis is also utterly ill-advised. And the cancerous logic is extending within the economic society.

The individual households whose position proves more difficult have been deliberately imitating the culture in their search for economic escapism. Records show when the Covid-19 loans were made available for employees and business owners to reduce the pain caused by the pandemic, the applicants rallied up to enjoy the incentives without thinking that someday they are expected to pay back. The popular belief is a satirical question that asks: “when the government comes looking for a payback from an insolvent beneficiary, of what grave would be the consequence?” – so much like an institution of government which lost the plot and economic agents who have resented to a carefree, self-destructive autopilot culture.

The fact is when a loan applicant predicts insolvency by the expected time of repayment before even securing the loan in the first place; questions need to be asked on the logic, responsibility and the economic motive behind it. Because it seems like a ploy to use the money on non-renewable and nonrefundable ventures – funding consumption deficits caused by inflation – which is an endemic culture so common among Nigerian economic households. One which was effortlessly taught and subconsciously propagated by the assembly of the states and federal governments that apply for foreign loans to service non-renewable and nonrefundable ventures, mainly covering deficits caused by a high recurrent expenditure that can’t be tamed by achievable income streams, which is also a consequence of the very actions both the government – that’s expecting repayment from people while in itself doesn’t know how to repay its own – and individuals who are swimming deeper into the norm. Such a devastating comedy of errors!

The circle eventually ends up like the Greece economy, where the government was cuffed by debt with no viable formula for repayment. Half of the populace was insolvent and unable to repay loans. The other half came together to endure the torture of the ever-rising inflation, causing more unemployment and a significant reduction in productivity. The unreasonable printing of money in the name of the so-called quantitative easing also destroying the effectiveness of monetary policies by causing the velocity of money to outweigh the productivity. The consequence is more inflation and even lesser productivity.

Meanwhile, such wasn’t the initial logic of government intervention. Securing loans to cover deficits was meant to fund renewable expenditures that shall bring back profitable economic value capable of boosting the repayment process and the fluidity of market efficiency. Rather than amputating the currency and foreign exchange values to secure loans that’ll not only be misused in servicing pensions and luxuries but paradoxically damage the work rate and the effectiveness of hardworking economic enterprise in Nigeria.

An intermediate macroeconomics lecturer once asked in a test: “would Keynes agree with [the] Nigerian government if he was to come back?” during my third year in college. As the lecturer taught, the correct answer was yes because the government embarked upon the Keynesian prescription of the budget deficit and fiscal intervention as unmistakably stated in the annual budget. But I trusted the application of the policy to be so wrong as learnt in the vivid results of the quarters that I couldn’t betray my conscience as to answer yes. No, in my results-backing opinion, Keynes wouldn’t agree with Buhari or any brain in the economic cabinet for that matter. The attempt, whether deliberate or not, is a mockery of the policy. Which instead of stimulating the economy, it’s ending up destroying the engine beyond an easy repair. The Greeks can attest by experience, as shall any Nigerian who’ll live beyond now. So if yes was the correct answer, then no was even a more accurate answer. If all were to be judged from it, Nigeria is the deepest loophole that happens to the logic of intervention. The economy just couldn’t have done any worse in total free-market mode.

Intervention means intervention anywhere in the world. But some interventions are closer in reason to the actual rationale behind intervention than others. To which Nigerian experience is immune. The comedy of errors witnessed in the country is no more than an institution of government subjecting the economy like a nomad does a cow to get milk. How sympathetic of a nomad to feed the cow and ensure its health before milking? Nigerian government can’t say the same with our economy with the direct negligence and the alarming-albeit-avoidable debt culture. A tragedy to the principles! A field day to the policy alternatives! And an absolute joke of applied departments! Lord have mercy!

MA Iliasu is an economist who writes from the ancient metropolis of Kano. He can be reached through his email: muhada102@gmail.com.