PRESIDENT GOODLUCK EBELE JONATHAN: A CAPTAIN OR CAPTIVE?

I have come to the conclusion that politics is too serious a matter to be left to the politicians. ~Charles de Gaulle….

The above famous quotes by a former French general, resistant, writer and statesman and leader of Free France and the head of the Provisional Government of the French Republic sums up the outcome of the general elections held in Nigeria on the 28^th March and 11^th April, 2015.Were it not for the resolve of the masses to partake in the electoral process starting from the Voters registration exercise, collection of permanent voters card and the patience, tolerance, fortitude and enduring self-control exhibited during the electioneering campaign where political hate speeches, Violence during election and the ORUBEBE Scare at the INEC Collation center in Abuja almost threw the country into another Civil War of sort, however, as the turbulence gather dust and generated a quantum of heat and volcanic magma, the people of Nigeria became stronger and united in our Diversity.

Consequently, May 29^th 2015, will be another significant turning point in the history of this conglomeration called Nigeria. It is a day many have looked up to as a reckoning moment in the quest for hope, succor and a better Nigeria. The incumbent PDP led government headed by President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan will be transferring the baton of power to the Amiable President-Elect, General Muhammadu Buhari, whose emergence the common man has seen as divinely ordained. Political pundits have however raised a poser as to the status of the outgoing President during his almost 6years stint as the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic Of Nigeria, the most powerful and populous black nation in the World. Some say, President Jonathan is a CAPTAIN of a Giant Ship but lacks the navigational experience and clues to steer the ship to greatness while some other opinions has it that President Jonathan is a CAPTIVE in Aso-Rock where he just gave his nod to all advises and suggestions given to him by the CABALS surrounding him at the corridor of power. In the light of these foregoing some issues have been raised and these issues will serve as a checklist for the incoming APC administration, should they fail to buckle up, Nigerians will equally wait for them at the poll to show them the power of the BALLOTS.

In civilized and advanced political settings, a President of a country will stand tall and be firm and resolute in the handling of the affairs of the nation as a Leader and a good CAPTAIN, but Jonathan however, was carried away with the status of the President and not the function and performance attached to that office. Here are some of the areas Jonathan failed to take the bull by the horn:

1.     FUEL CRISIS: According to the All Progressive Congress (APC), it said the real causes of the debilitating fuel scarcity across the country are the looting of the $12 billion domestic gas fund under President Goodluck Jonathan’s watch, the Administration’s failure to pay fuel subsidy and the cost of interests on bank loans to oil marketers, thus making it impossible for them to begin another round of importation of refined petroleum products (The News). And with the ongoing fuel scarcity coupled with epileptic and worsening power supply in the past weeks, Nigerians face another round of government-imposed hardship until a messiah comes. Could this be a punishment from President Jonathan for failing to get our votes at the ballots?

2.     JOB LOSS: Going by the prevailing macro-economic indicators, particularly the plunge in oil prices, which ultimately put the value of the naira on a downward slide, pushing up prices of basic raw materials for production, this has forced companies across the sectors to resort to lay-off of hundreds of workers to cut cost. Similarly, the issue of capital flight has created a vacuum in the Foreign Direct Investment portfolio of the nation resulting in mass sack in almost every sector of the economy. The immigration recruitment tragedy where lives were lost as well as scores of injured applicants in the supposed recruitment scam will remain evergreen in the history of job scandals. Until the event of the immigration job scandal, I had only thought job scam was synonymous with the private sectors but Jonathan administration has proven otherwise.

3.     EPILEPTIC POWER SUPPLY: About four years ago, this statement was made by the outgoing President. “If I’m voted into power, within the next four years, the issue of power will become a thing of the past. Four years is enough for anyone in power to make a significant improvement and if I can’t improve on power within this period, it then means I cannot do anything…” Four years after, despite the huge investment and budgets provided for the revamping of the power sector, what we can infer from the charade called Electricity reform is incessant drop in power generation due to shortage of gas supply or as a result insufficient hydro source of energy. Apparently, corruption is the main clog in the wheel of progress in the power sector. We were told that our neighbor Ghana once celebrated one year of uninterrupted power supply, will our generation ever witness such feat?

4.     OVERBEARING DEBT BURDEN: According to Business News, the debt profile of both the Federal Government and the 36 states of the federation as well as the Federal Capital Territory rose by N1.2tn in one year, statistics obtained from the website of the Debt Management Office in Abuja showed. The statistics further showed that the nation’s total public debt rose from N10.04tn as of December 31, 2013 to N11.24tn by December 31, 2014. Also, Minister of Finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, said the Federal Government has borrowed about N473billion to pay salaries and fund the 2015 budget. With all these huge exposures, has Jonathan administration not mortgaged the future of this country?

5.     MONUMENTAL LEVEL OF CORRUPTION: Should General Muhammadu Buhari decide to tackle only the corruption virus bedeviling this nation, I am religiously certain 8 years won’t be enough to wipe the scourge. Nigeria has for long
been among the most corrupt nations in the world, this view is reinforced essentially by the perceived kid gloves with which both government and anti-corruption agencies like the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Independent and Corrupt Practices and Other Offences Commission (ICPC) and the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) treat corruption offences. It is disheartening that corruption among public officials remains high. It has also been widely speculated that it is on the basis of the high incidence of corruption in government and the apparent nonchalance of the anti-corruption agencies that Nigeria continues to rank high on the inglorious list of the most corrupt nations in the world. Since the emergence of Jonathan as the President of Nigeria in 2011, corruption has taken another dimension never seen before in this country, Jonathan does “never give a damn” about declaring his assets publicly so why would any of his aides and advisers give a hoot about probity?

6.     HIGHEST LEVEL OF INSECURITY: The Boko-Haram terrorist organization really exposed the weakness of this outgoing administration, it was so bad that smaller nations like Chad, Niger and Cameroon were at the frontline of the battle against the insurgent and Nigeria Soldiers were falling like a pack of dominos. If there was any time in the history of this nation where pogrom has assumed impunity status, it is during the reign of our President Jonathan. Political killings, Dare-devil armed robbery bandits, Kidnapping for ransom, wanton destruction of lives and properties are all the visible security drama experienced during the outgoing administration.

7.     FALL IN STANDARD OF EDUCATION: Despite the fact that our outgoing President is a supposed PhD holder, this educational status of Mr President does not translate in any way to the development of the educational system, rather the educational sector witness a deep plunge into the abyss of failure.

8.     HEALTH SYSTEM BASTARDIZATION: It’s no news that Nigerians offer the highest patronage of health faculties in India, Turkey, Germany and other parts of the world. Affluent individuals and government officials fly out at the slightest headache for “check up” at enormous cost. The statistics are shocking. According to the former President of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), Osahon Enabulele, annual spend on medical tourism by Nigerians is now well above N120 billion, with an estimated 5,000 patients travelling to destinations like India and Turkey on a monthly basis, constituting a huge foreign exchange drain to the nation. It’s ironical that those responsible for fixing and improving healthcare delivery in the country choose instead to spend millions of tax payers’ money on medical tourism in other countries. The National Health Bill that seeks to curb the incessant travelling abroad of government office holders for medical care seems never to see the light of the day; our medical practitioners are always on strike for the same unfulfilled agreement between them and their employers. There seems to never be an end in sight to this ugly trend.

9.     SECTIONALIZATION OF THE NATION: The outgoing President, Goodluck Jonathan, who comes from a minority group in the Niger-Delta region and who we all elected to serve Nigerians of all ethnic extractions but rather appreciates/prefers one ethnic group over the rest in terms of appointments, contract award, national unity, etc. Jonathan is definitely a sectional leader and has caused the most damage to the unity of Nigeria than any other president! I pray the incoming administration deem it fit to tie the knots that once bonded us together in this country.

10.                         LOSS OF INTERNATIONAL REPUTATION AND RESPECT: During the outgoing administration’s era, Nigeria witnessed a whole lot of backlashes from the international communities. The Oritsejafor private jet caught with almost $10million cash packed in suitcases inside the jet was seized in South-Africa by officials. The illicit quantum of dollars was allegedly meant for the purchase of arms for the Nigerian Security, at that point it is clear Nigeria has lost her Dignity as the giant of Africa, I thought when Nigeria sneezes all other African countries catches cold but here we are not even diplomatically recognized by even South-Africa that we toiled day and night to fight for their independence from the Apartheid colonial masters. It’s really a big shame for a giant of Africa who does not at all command respect on the African soil.

In conclusion, inflation is still killing our economy due to poor management and corruption, our basic infrastructure is in comatose despite the huge budgets in the last 6years, foreign reserves has been depleted as if it is their personal account, the judicial system has been co-opted in the Indiana Jones style of governance in Nigeria where justice is bought and not earned, Trust is now alien to the people because government has turned many people to liars. President Jonathan FAREWELL message is supposed to be our WELFARE but I will like to wrap up my rhetoric with the ROTARY INTERNATIONAL four way test Question to President Jonathan, though it is rather a purely subjective form of self-analysis. Truth is, of course, relative. And it goes thus...

ü Is it the TRUTH?

ü Is it FAIR to all concerned?

ü Will it build GOOD WILL and BETTER FRIENDSHIPS?

ü Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned?

Olanite Lekan

lekanolanite@gmail.com