POLITICS AND THE STATE(2)

From my first statement and write up on the concept of governance today, especially as it has to do with Politics, Government and the State it was established that the essence of having Government is offering service to the people and creating an enabling environment for Human and Physical Development. This means that the major priority of governance is service to the people, and anything outside service is an alteration.

So the growing challenges we see in the globe today which include the issues of National debt crisis in some parts of Europe, increased level of unemployment across the World , brazen corruption and looting of National treasuries in Africa and Third world countries, Insurrection and Uprising in some parts of the Middle-east and North Africa are a manifestation of the fallout of Governments not taking up their role and responsibility when it matters most.

There is a growing fear of more revolutions to come in Nations across the World, all because of the dissatisfaction, frustration, discontent, and economic hardship of citizens as a result of the austerity measures, increase budget cuts affecting public sector, increased taxation, poor infrastructure, inflation, and economic reforms that are being implemented by Governments that have become more business-minded than people-oriented.

Former President of the United States Mr Woodrow Wilson has this quote “The government which was designed for the people has gotten into the hands of the bosses and their employers, the special interests. An invisible empire has been set up above the forms of democracy”. This explains the distortion in true governance which is a by-product of Democracy.

In understanding the concept of democracy, it is clear that the art of governance revolves round the 'people' and whenever it moves away from the people it becomes a 'Power Clique' that implements policies that favor a few people and create a continuous and terrible gap between the rich and the poor, even wiping off the middle working class if possible.

Today the Proponents of Democracy like the United States of America and United Kingdom have a Government with Cliques of people who tend to evolve policies daily that protect only the special interests of the rich, eroding the true values and tenets of democracy fought for and instituted by the Founding Fathers of Both Democracies.

So here is the Big question, Is Government a business or service? The ideal concept is that it is Service-driven because real and effective leadership is delivered through selfless service and dedication to the populace. That means if government must get a loan from aid agencies, it must be scrutinized in the category of offering service to the State, the present predicament in some Leading capitalist economies and emerging ones is that loans are being taken to promote businesses transaction and empires of the rich power brokers who love the status quo.

Now it is not just being idealistic as some would think on the concept of governance being 'Service Driven', but the reality facing Nations today is that the insensitivity of several governments in giving service to the citizens as their top priority has trivialized the essence of governance and is posing threats to economic sustainability in the globe.

At the recent International Labour Organization (ILO) Conference in Geneva, Switzerland Former Nigerian President Chief Olusegun Obasanjo amazingly warned that if African Leaders treat the issue of unemployment with kids gloves, it could spark up another round of revolutions in the continent.

Recently President Obama of the United States of America has been engaging the U.S.Presidential Committee on Jobs and Competitiveness pushing for the American corporations to open up more channels of unemployment for the jobless people, while committing over $1billion to training, development and capacity building of the youth in the country, with a view to ensuring that they gain the requisite skills to be employed in the top corporations.

This is an example of governance driven by service, because a government that is driven by a commitment to providing services to the state, will be relieved of more challenges and levels of economic crisis as the days unfold than the ones that are concerned with only making profit for themselves as against the interest and welfare of the state.

For Nigeria there are great expectations that in this dispensation that Government would work for the people, by inference I am not saying government should baby-sit Nigerians but rather provide an enabling environment for the citizens to harness and develop their skills, potentials and ideas contributing to National Development.

I believe that the Economic team led by Dr Ngozi Okonjo Iweala will redefine the Government perspective in redirecting expenditure and allocation patterns that will have great impact on the economy engaging the citizens, tackling unemployment, curbing excesses, and investing in the youth.

Ottoabasi Abasiekong
Public Affairs Analyst
[email protected]

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Articles by Ottoabasi Abasiekong