Who Is Afraid Of Fashola’s “Budget of Consolidation”?
On Tuesday, 17th November, 2009, the Lagos State Governor, Barr Babatunde
Fashola presented the 2010 budget estimate of N429. 59 billion to the
Lagos State House of Assembly, for approval. I learnt the budget
christened “Budget of Consolidation” represents an increase of 5. 7
percent over that of the preceding year. I also learnt it has a
persistent disbursement of N178.82 billion and a capital overflow of
N250.8 billion.
As that sounds very interesting, what makes it more interesting is the
fact that this realistic budget came at a period the National Houses
of Assembly threw caution to the wind and painted Nigeria with
undemocratic norms embedded in lawlessness demonstrated by the recent
shameless tussle being exhibited by both arms of the House on where
the national 2010 budget should be presented. As a result, we have
been inundated with arguments back and forth from David Mark and
Dimeji Bankole, quoting from the constitution, which House represents
the leadership and which one should succumb. They seem to have
forgotten their primary responsibilities and are now on an endless ego
trip at the expense of the electorate and tax payers.
In our party, the Action Congress (AC), under the able chairmanship of
Chief Bisi Akande, and the unrelenting Publicity Secretary, Chief Lai
Mohammed, one unique thing is our consistent conformity to democratic
norms which ordinarily should set the pace for the recalcitrant
People's Democratic Party (PDP) to follow. But for the PDP's selfish
practice of democracy, it has always been foolhardy to imbibe a sound
democratic culture. There is no party in the history of Nigeria that
has brought our great country to such local and international
disrepute as the PDP, with sobriquet by Prof. Wole Soyinka as a “Nest
of Killers”.
Nigerians are yet to reap from the myriads of budgets presented by the
PDP-led national government since 1999 to date. There has never been
any dividend or gains from these unrealistic estimates compressed
without sufficient analysis: A reoccurring decimal that has been
applied for a period of ten years now. It is time for the PDP-led
national government to take a queue from the best example we have in
our dear country, the Action Congress government of Lagos state. In
Lagos, governance has been re-defined for the interest of the people
and proper democratic culture institutionalized right from the Asiwaju
Bola Tinubu's era. Lagos State at the moment can effectively boast of
independent sectors/agencies that are self sustaining.
Such agencies are the Lagos State Waste Management Authority, Lagos
State Water Corporation and others. These agencies, according to the
governor, have truly enhanced their capacity to run on their own
strength. Lagos is also placing greater emphasis in the 2010 budget in
improving the quality of life in the rural areas, particularly through
Agriculture based micro-finance funding under the existing framework
of the Lagos State Micro Finance Initiative: A scheme that will boost
the rural economy, create rural based employment and encourage more
people to stay within their environment. This without much emphasis
will open up robust economic activities and accelerated urban
development.
We need action, and that action is what Nigerians are seeing in the
Action Congress-led government of Lagos State, which has brought
Governor Fashola to the international community as a governor with a
background in Law who has applied it effectively and appropriately for
the enhancement of democratic dividends, a song that is sung in all
the nooks and crannies of the state. The Edo State Governor, Comrade
Adams Oshiomhole is also playing his own shots with unprecedented
developments being implemented in Edo
State.
Because the PDP is worried of the feats that have been achieved so far
in less time since our pacesetters and action governors of the Action
Congress came to the saddle, PDP in their usual retrogressive posture
are looking for all possible ways to discredit our heroes in Lagos and
Edo States, respectively. But the giant strides and landmarks have
made their possible thoughts, an impossibility. It is indeed a tall
dream. Fashola, ride on.
Suage Badey, Chairman, Rivers State Action Congress. Email:
Development / Accra / Ghana / Africa / Modernghana.com