By Alex Abutu
Since the present administration took over the leadership of the country, Nigerians and the world at large have been on what is described as high jump in street parlance.
It started from the very first day of the Presidential inauguration when Mr President announced the fuel subsidy removal without any notice to prepare the people or consultation on possible options to an immediate increase in the pump prices of PMS.
As Nigerians started thinking of how to adjust to the realities of the new pump prices of PMS of N540 per liter which they were told is now determined by market forces, another blow was fuel was added to the fire by fuel marketers who jacked up the price to N617 per liter.
As if this is not enough, government perfected strategies on how to disburse a world bank loan aimed at cushioning the impact of the fuel subsidy removal by announcing a monthly stipend of N8000 for some selected families.
As the process of picking the selected Nigerian families to collect a miserable N8000 per month for 6 months was on, the President, Vice, members of the National Assembly and judges are to get a 114 percent increase in their monthly remuneration.
Members of the National Assembly are to also get about N70 billion from the World Bank largesse to carter for themselves and their families.
All this is happening with the national minimum wage still at N30,000 per month after two decade. Today most civil servant working in Abuja, the Federal Capital city, are living in suburbs such as Nyanya, Suleja, Keffi, Gwagwalada where transport fare to city center used to between N200 to N400 but now transport on same routes to city center has increased by almost 200 percent.
The biggest question is: How do the government plan to checkmate corruption in the face of this hardship that civil servants are facing?
As civil servants are ranting away in their offices, government again increased the cost of education. Unity schools which gave parents a breathing space in the past just witnessed a 100 percent increment and as expected universities followed suits.
Another question begging for answer is: Will the children of the poor ever get quality education in Nigeria again?
Leaving the fuel subsidy removal and its attendant consequences, government agencies are openly fighting each other over a suspect in an open court.
What a shame.
In the past we hear, the country was not able to make a head way in the fight against insurgency because the various security agencies were not supporting or cooperating with one another but taking that to the level of fighting each other over a suspect is not only unacceptable but a total disgrace.
If a suspect is in court for an offence against the state, why should two government agencies fight each other when each has their roles and functions properly spelled out even in the status book.
Just the other day, the federal government rolled out what it called palliative measures to cushion the impact of the fuel subsidy removal on Nigerians and one of the measures is the declaration of an immediate State of Emergency on food insecurity to tackle the increase in food prices.
Presidential spokesperson Dele Alake said in a statement that Mr Tinubu is “not unmindful of the rising cost of food and how it affects the citizens.” Food prices have been on the rise across Nigeria in recent years. The situation deteriorated due to the impact of government policies such as the removal of subsidy on petrol, among others.
Nigeria’s annual inflation rate rose to 22.41 per cent in May from 22.22 per cent in the previous month, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). The food inflation rate also quickened to 24.82 per cent in May from 24.61 per cent in April.
Like all the pronouncements by the President since assuming office, this also lacked background as it does not show that it was backed with data or qualitative input from best policy advisory.
A state of emergency means a state of emergency. You don’t start thinking of what to do what declaring a state of emergency. How well are our research institutes faring to galvanize the nation’s food production architecture. How prepared or what are the expected contributions of the research institutes?
The time of playing to the gallery with unguarded pronouncements is past. In order not to become a laughingstock in the comity of nations, it is very crucial that every government pronouncement must be subject to a careful review and must be able to withstand the test of time.
The best this government can offer Nigerians at this hapless time is to constitute a national think-tank to assist with the articulation of numerous programme and policy options that would benefit the average Nigerian and shield him/her from the severity of pronouncements unleash on the people so far.