OPINIONS: BUHARI AND THE BURDEN OF FORLORN EXPECTATIONS

Rather than cast this discourse in the mould of a 'rejoinder' to Dele Momodu's BUHARI AND THE BURDEN OF EXPECTATIONS in his PENDULUM Column in Saturday, March 14, 2015 edition of Thisday newspaper, this piece should be read from the perspective of a 'reminder' of the inevitability of a Goodluck Ebele Jonathan victory over the forces of vile propaganda, cant and morbid desperation.

It is not  hard to decipher where Dele Momodu is coming from, given his prominence as a majordomo in the All Progressive Congress's bilious propaganda machine that has virtually awarded the 2015 Presidential diadem to his principal, Major-General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), even when votes are yet to be cast an counted but Dele  Momodu is not our focus. His convoluted deductions are.

Before we advance further in this discourse, we must remind ourselves of certain elements of any electoral contest that many people, often take for granted. No election offers a consolation prize. You either win or lose. There is no grey area, melting zone of No Man's Land that offers a consolatory refuge. You either savour the sweet aroma of victory or marinate in the foulness of failure. Elections bruise or massage egos depending on whether you win or lose.

In spite of the foregoing , those who want to hallucinate are free to do so but should be ready to adjust!

In contrast to the all-conquering scenario being painted by Dele Momodu in the column under review, serious and dispassionate followers of the trending political tide in Nigeria see the fortunes of the APC and its presidential candidate gradually ebbing, whittling and fizzling away, by the day, in many areas hitherto thought to be impregnable fortresses under Buhari or Tinubu's imperial subjugation.

Momodu's piece gives the impression that there exists a  Tabula Rasa  (or virginland) in Nigeria that is traceable to the lack of initiative by the Jonathan Administration that has resulted in a  state of arrested development in many areas of governance which only a re-invented Muhammadu Buhari can set aright. This messianic illusion has driven Buhari, himself (and by extension his major cheerleader) and the unwary and brain-washed  horde of party 'faithful' that has been fed on a sour staple of the “super human and divine mission” of Buhari in the 2015 General Elections and the ”fact” that he (Buhari) must triumph, therefrom. In Dele Momodu's words: “At any rate, I am one of those subscribing to the permutation of a General Buhari victory no matter how tall a dream it seems. As a matter of fact, I am willing or ready to place a bet that the election is not going to be as closely and keenly contested as many people think. I foresee a landslide that would (sic) make it difficult for trouble makers to practice their trade”. It is glaring from the write-up that Momodu's empirical analysis of how a Buhari victory is going to be wrought, are predicated on his “rock star”  and “cult-hero” status and not on any positive and tangible thing the man (Buhari) has done in the uplift of his community or the Nigerian nation at large.

What 'rock-star” status and cult-hero billing does Buhari's command that is traceable to the enthronement of good governance, respect for human rights, verifiable and people-friendly policies, programmes and projects?

The only credit Buhari possess is that he is the current local champion who is wearing the toga of a “liberator” and the “Defender of the Faith” in a region groaning under the weight of impoverished youngsters who eat from the crumbs that drop from the rich tables of the elites.

The kernel of Momodu's predilection for a dream Buhari victory is that whether the “baboons and the foxes”  like it or not, the APC “must” triumph and they will be “soaked in blood” if it does not come to pass as predicted. He (Momodu) was not fair to his principal as he failed to regale Nigerians of Buhari's numerous “achievements and strides” that qualify him for the 2015 Presidential Election, in the first place. These 'achievements and strides include: a) the overthrow of the democratically-elected government of Alhaji Shehu Shagari on December 31, 198  b) Selective incarceration and treatment of political detainees (especially Chief Obafemi Awolowo, Cheif Adekunle Ajasin, Mr Ebenezer Babatope, Ayo Ojewunmi, Mr Sam Mbakwe, Mr Jim Nwobodo, Prof Ambrose Alli, etc) in the course of stabilising his dictatorial junta   c) Truncation of the Lagos Metroline Project   d) Institution of draconian restrictions on the Nigerian Press, civil society groups, trade unionism and the general populace    e) the illegal air-freighting of 53 suitcases of currency by his ADC, Major Mustafa Jokolo, into Nigeria in breach of an ongoing restriction ordered by Buhari himself    f) punitive jailing of Fela and others and freedom from prosecution for Alhaji Alhaji , who lost hundreds of thousands of dollars in Austria under embarrassing circumstances and Alhaji Awwal Ibrahim, former Niger State Governor, who was caught with a huge cache of foreign  currency in London.    g) the mismanagement and ceding of the day-to-day administration of the Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF) under Buhari's watch and approval, in defiance of existing government best management practices which resulted in the loss of more than N25 billion in circumstances yet to be unravelled   h) refusal to attend or appear before the Oputa Panel to clarify certain human rights infractions committed by his 20-month military junta etc, etc.

Dele Momodu made a peripheral reference to what he thinks Buhari will concentrate on if he, ever, gets elected. As usual, the expectations of gainful employment; security; sound economy; power and energy and education are intertwined wth the proposed “corruption-free” governance that Buhari is expected to actualise.

It is common wisdom that the All Progressive Congress (APC) manifesto has no substance but premised on a matrix of a vaguely-interpreted mantra of change” built around a phalanx of political dinosaurs and celebrated economic blood-suckers poised to unfurl, like mambas, as soon as a Buhari victory is attained – a forlorn hope, thought and expectation; that will NEVER come to pass!

It beats the imagination of well-meaning political pundits on the aspects of Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd) political make-up that will give him an edge over a Dr Goodluck Ebele Jonathan with a trailer-load of authenticated, verified and people-friendly giant strides in good governance, prioritised policies, programmes and projects that past administrations have either glossed over or never thought of at all.

The driving force of President Jonathan's quest for a second term in office is predicated, solely, on the achievements and successes recorded in his first term in office and not on any morbid and “cult-hero” adoration built on hollow propaganda and violent posturing. These achievements include but not limited to:

AVIATION: The institution, for the first time of a holistic Aviation Master Plan and Roadmap. For the first time in over 30years, the 22 Federal Government-owned airports in Nigeria are being remodelled, reconstructed or rehabilitated in line with international best practices. To ensure air safety, state-of-the-art navigational aids such as Instrument Landing Systems (ILS) and the Total Radar Coverage (TRACON) have been installed in all the airports. In addition, the President has approved the removal of taxes and tariffs on aviation spare parts and accessories for enhanced air travel safety and encouragement to investors.

AGRICULTURE: The Jonathan Administration is providing direct access by farmers to fertilizers and feeds distribution and ending many decades of institutionalised corruption in the sector. Over N25 billion has been saved by the government from this new arrangement. The Federal Government has commenced the establishment of 14 Staple Crops Processing Zones (SCPZ) across Nigeria to reduce post-harvest losses and waste. With farmers now graduating from subsistence to commercial farming, Nigeria's food import bill has reduced from N1.1trillion to N648billion, placing it on the path to food self-sufficiency and security. The government has launched the Dry Season Farm Support Programme to encourage all-year farming with a seed sum of N14billion representing an increase of 56% over that of the 2013 season.

EDUCATION:  The government of Nigeria, under the watch of Dr Goodluck Jonathan recognises education as an instrument of growth that, in its quality state, reflects on the society through the production of a pool of young men and women who will ultimately power national development. In order to achieve this goal and others, the Jonathan Administration has established 12 new universities (nine (9) in the north and three (3) in the south) to absorb the teeming numbers of aspiring students in their catchment areas and beyond. This is in addition to the post-graduate programmes for 7,000 lecturers of State and Federal tertiary institutions and sponsored by the Jonathan Administration to improve and enhance the quality of instruction. In order to minimise the over 10.5 million school dropout number in the country, the administration set up some special intervention programmes such as the Girl-Child, Almajiri and the Back-To-School initiatives.

WATER RESOURCES: In this very vital sector, seven (7) new water supply projects were embarked upon and completed to give over 4.3million people access to potable water. In addition to its primary purpose, over 4,000 jobs were created in the process.

POWER AND ENERGY: The Jonathan Administration successfully unbundled the hitherto low-performing Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) and priviatised its functions and handed them over to 11 distribution and 6 generation companies. This arrangement is expected to get further filip when 10 National Independent Power Plants (NIPPs) are completed and handed over to these private investors. In addition, the president has inaugurated the “Operation-Light-Up-Rural –Nigeria” programme to use renewable energy to supply electricity to rural communities not captured in the National Grid. There has been a tremendous increase from 2,000 megawatts in 2010 when Dr Jonathan assumed office first, as acting President and President, to about 4,500 megawatts generated presently.

HEALTHCARE DELIVERY: At the last count, over 1,500 Primary Healthcare facilities have been refurbished, re-equipped and supplied with essential drugs, dressings and other medicaments. A major attainment in the health sector during President Jonathan's first term was the total eradication of the Guinea Worm Disease which affected over 800,000 Nigerians annually and the health scare of the dreaded Ebola Virus Disease which claimed some lives before the re-certification of Nigeria as free from the scourge.

RAILS: The Jonathan Administration has revived the rail transportation system which has been in a comatose state for over 30 years. A major success was recorded with the commissioning of the reactivated Lagos-Jebba rail lines at a cost of N12.13 billion and the launching of the Maiduguri-Duwari Mass Transit Train Service (MTTS). Additionally, the Administration has signed a total of N67 billion worth of contracts for the rehabilitation of 2,119km three rail lines made up of 463kn rail line from Port-Harcourt to Makurdi; 1,016km lines from Makurdi to Kuru (including a spur line to Jos and Kafanchan; and 640km line from Kuru to Maiduguri. The contracts are inclusive of comprehensive rehabilitation of the tracks, bridges and culverts within the 2,119km scope.

EMPLOYMENT AND JOB CREATION: Over 120,000 people have been employed so far under the Community Service Scheme tagged the Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme (SURE-P) initiated by the Jonathan Administration.  Another aspect of the job creation aptly labelled YOUWIN, is designed to give grants and empower young Nigerians with feasible entrepreneurial ideas but who lack the funds necessary for their actualisation. In doing this, YOUWIN has directly created over 240,000 jobs in diverse sectors of the Nigerian economy while over 80,000 other jobs are on stream for 2015.

THE ECONOMY: The confidence of those bodies organisations who matter on the viability and sustenance of the Nigerian economy has, largely, been very fair to the Jonathan Administration for its ability to steer it in the face of global challenges that impart on the component nations' individual economies. The respected UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) recently named Nigeria as the Number One destination for investments in Africa, attracting over $7 billion in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) just as the Cable News Network (CNN) included Nigeria in the list of fast emerging economies in the world. As a sign of confidence in the economy of Nigeria, the 1 billion Eurobond floated by it was oversubscribed.

ROAD INFRASTRUCTURE: As at the last count, over 28,500m of roads have either been constructed or rehabilitated in the six geo-political zones of the country. The ongoing ones include the reconstruction of the Abakaliki/Mbok road (OgojaJunction); the dualisation of the Kano/Maiduguri road; the rehabilitation of Apapa/Oshodi Expressway; the dualisation of the Suleja/Minna roads the construction of the Loko/Oweto bridge over the River Benue with approach roads to link Loko in Nasarawa State with Oweto in Benue State etc.

In the last three years, 32 roads projects have been completed. The number includes: the dualisation of the Ibadan/Ilorin road (Section I-Ibadan/Oyo); Vom/Manchok road in Plateau State; repair of the expansion joints of the Third Mainland Bridge in Lagos; the rehabilitation of the Funtua/Gusau/Sokoto road (Section II – Gusau/Talata-Mafara); dualisation of the Onitsha/Owerri road (Section I) and Onitsha Eastern Bypass in Anambra State; rehabilitation of Uba/Mbalala roadand the Obiozara/Uburu/Ishiagu road to Kaduna Refinery; the Gbongan/Iwo road in Oyo State; the rehabilitation of the Gombe/Numan/Yola road (Section II-Numan/Gombe in Adamawa/Gomber States: the 15km interstate Aiyegunle/AkokoEdo road in Ondo and Edo states etc. The full list is a subject for another day!

On the issue of security, it is conventional wisdom that no continent in the world is free from terrorism and terrorist activities, Africa inclusive. The Boko Haram scourge festered before Dr Jonathan became the President of Nigeria. Since then the terrorist group has been adopted, equipped and mentored by those who wanted presidential power by all means, especially violence, mayhem and intimidation.

Momodu's inference that Buhari is an experienced hand at curtailing insurgency, with a specific reference to his much-hyped role in routing the Maitatsine Sect, is mortally defective. In 1980 when Alhaji Muhammad 'Maitatsine' Maruwa was killed, Buhari was on a course at the American War College from June 1979 to July 1980, when he returned and resumed duties as the General Officer Commanding, 4 th  Infantry Division in Enugu until 1981. He knows that the feat being credited to him is not true. In fact, Mr Kayode Uanreroro, who retired as an Assistant Commisioner of Police and now a practising lawyer in Lagos, led the Police team that captured Maitatsine, not Buhari!

Nigerians are not fooled by Buhari's contrived metamorphosis and constant window-dressing as a “committed democrat” from his well-known template as a morbid and rabid hater of politics, politicking and politicians who he is tolerating for the moment for their nuisance value as they are the ones funding his present shot at the presidency from the spoils of corruption as attested to by Dele Momodu.

The vital question remains a nagging one: What is the morality behind a Buhari expending the proceeds of corruption and corruptive activities in his avowed quest to be the President of Nigeria, whereas he is fabled to have zero tolerance for corruption and corrupt people? What he is not aware of, is that discerning Nigerians will give their verdict on March 28, 2015 and retire him, permanently, from the stranglehold of the political profiteers and investors whose sole aim is to privatise Nigeria and rape her dry.

They will be rejected and Jonathan will triumph.

Written by Chris Osa Nehikhare, Publicity Secretary, Edo State PDP.