Nasir Abbas
1 August 2008
opinion
The founding fathers of America's independence were vanguards of freedom and an egalitarian society. Their modus operandi was through the operational guide (the constitution).
The late George Washington and Thomas Jefferson who were the first and third American (U.S.A.) presidents respectively were people of conviction, conscience and vision premised on the American dream i.e. a level playing field for the hope (children) of tomorrow.
George Washington and Thomas Jefferson were slave owners, but bequeathed legacies worthy of emulation for other nationals who were of the Jewish, Irish, Italian, Asian and African-American stock. All these people found a new lease in exploring the opportunities available even though most of the achievements recorded by the African-American were through the civil rights struggle with the emancipation declaration.
Sir Ahmadu Bello, Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa of blessed memory and other notables of blessed memory from the North and Southern parts of Nigeria worked in perfect harmony with Dr Azikiwe and Chief Obafemi Awolowo also of blessed memory in the struggle for Nigeria's independence with a vision for a better and greater Nigeria.
The dream of Ahmadu Bello was level playing fields where opportunities would abound for one North irrespective of religion, tribe, gender or status; but first and foremost, education was his top priority and it was free bearing in mind that an educated society is an enlightened one. Agriculture received the much-desired attention or rather it was top on the agenda and within the timeframe that he was the Premier of Northern region.
Much was recorded in terms of his achievements and the late premier was neither a product of Harvard nor the London Business School, but a trained teacher with a rare personality whose reasoning improved the lives of many in all ramifications. He had conventional wisdom and focus to catch up with the advanced world in terms of real development, but his dreams were short-lived when the late Major Nzeogwu Chukwuma extinguished life out of him in the January 1966 coup.
Kaduna city celebrated 100 years of existence recently. To mark the centennial celebration, a colourful durbar was organised at the Murtala Square in Kaduna and the venue was filled to the brink. The Kaduna State governor, Architect Namadi Sambo and perhaps the organiser were not oblivious of the fact that the late premier lived all his life in Kaduna and the architectural edifices - Lugard Hall, Ahmadu Bello Stadium, Murtala Square, Hamdala Hotel, Kaduna Textiles, to mention but a few - were the premier's legacies.
Unfortunately, the city today is living in a past glory as the climate is no longer investment-friendly considering the ethno-religious crises in the recent past. The government reserved areas have been mutilated and shared among party stalwarts, cronies and friends and other serene environments are choked up or defaced with buildings. The industries in Kaduna South are virtually extinct; unemployment is bedevilling the city giving rise to undesirable waste product of humanity with the proliferation of motorcycles as means of transportation system. Street-begging has become a common feature together with epileptic water supply.
The present governor, Architect Namadi Sambo, is perhaps more articulate in moving the state forward with his 11-point agenda than his predecessor. Again, the governor is conversant and well-informed with regard to the food crisis as the food crisis is now a topical issue not only in Nigeria but the world at large.
Perhaps, tough measures must have been put in place by the government of Namadi Sambo to arrest these ugly situations and perhaps not. It is sad and disappointing that the fertiliser distribution exercise in Kaduna State was championed by questionable characters and the farmers were left with no option but to source for the commodity in the parallel market at the exorbitant price of N6,000 per bag as against the government's subsidised price of N2,000 respectively.
The government was sad and disappointed over the unfortunate circumstances. To expedite action, it commenced investigation over the shoddy deal and in the course of the investigation, it was discovered that a commissioner was the suspect. He was subsequently asked to quit. That is a good example and a deterrent to those with the penchant for anomalies; the sad truth is that the fertiliser that was distributed was substandard, had expired and a whopping N7bn was said to have been expended to purchase the commodity. However, in the first place, the government was not serious if it had wished to make a change and not to take a cue from what happened with the past administration.
The current government should have charted a new course with more realistic approach and effective planning in the distribution exercise. The Zamfara State approach was a good example as the commodity was dispensed directly to the farmers on credit at N2,000 government-control price.
One may be tempted to ask where Governor Sambo was when the former commissioner was taking unilateral decision. Reports have it that cronies and party stalwarts were mostly the beneficiaries and not the farmers. The second question is how will the state government recover this huge amount of money? Clearly, the government is not bringing the contractors to public domain. What would be the punitive measures considered appropriate to the contractor(s) and what about the cartel involved in this illicit sharing formula?
The government seems to have gone on sabbatical, while opinions vary over who does what and how it is done. This negative image was directly created by the government and the governor would have to bear with it. Henceforth, how the government deals with serious issues shall be a matter of choice.
The episode has again opened a can of worms. From day one, I was not comfortable with the government's decision in negotiating the 60-million-dollar loan for the rural transformation. If the Kano State government could use its excess crude oil revenue for urban renewal, what stops the Kaduna State government from doing same? The Kano State government's initiative over the urban renewal was flashed in the Cable News Network (CNN) as an important news item on 25th June, 2008.
Governor Sambo's administration is almost getting to one year and a half in office and has an 11-point agenda, but I doubt if they are practicable and implementable with only two and a half years ahead. It is not by sheer coincidence that the governor is not oblivious of the perennial water problems in the past administration, but the problem has continued to linger with a lot of water vendors roaming the streets. The free medical care system is a mere pronouncement as people still pay to get medical attention elsewhere and the free drugs proclaimed by the government is none other than simple Panadol.
With due respect to Governor Sambo's professionalism as an accomplished architect, the Jigawa State government is well ahead of Kaduna State in terms of its housing policies. The major streets in Kaduna metropolis and parts of GRA are kept clean while roads in the slums and shanties are still in a state of disrepair. The Niger State government is expanding the township roads and putting other roads in good shape. I am not making a comparison, but only calling on Governor Namadi Sambo to prune his eleven-point agenda down to at least four-point agenda.
Abbas is of Human Rights Front, No. 5, Katsina Road, Kaduna.
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