I know politics can be intoxicating, especially in this period of serious politicking and with some major, unusually too close to call contests on the cards, the palate salivates at the prospect of an enthralling exchange of fireworks on the political space.
But, barely forty days to the elections, at a juncture you expect a robust debate on the direction the major parties are taking the country in terms of economic and infrastructural development, measurable parameters in improving education, healthcare delivery, agriculture, job creation, blueprints on arresting our declining manufacturing capabilities and sundry issues that would differentiate, at least on paper, the policy thrust of the two major parties.
Unfortunately, six weeks to the first set of elections, we are still stuck in the middle of the irritating banality of puerile negativity. We are still attacking personalities and playing the blame game.
We are in serious trouble.
The price of oil has fallen below fifty dollars per barrel, the lowest in nine years. The Naira is hovering around the Two hundred Naira to the dollar, governments at all levels are owing salaries, our weak industrial base means there would be job losses as the cost of doing business in Nigeria has just gone up by over 40 percent.
Direct Foreign Investments have taken a nosedive as investors are moving in another direction, and despite all the posturing, we are still net importers of petroleum, food and luxury goods.
By now the focus should be on asking the hard questions.
Government has belatedly increased taxes on some luxury items, would that make any difference? The cost of running government is astronomical, are we cutting salaries and entitlements of political office holders? What would be the effect of reduced revenue on capital projects? What are the alternatives? Is there any hope for improvement in power supply in the nearest future?
What is the accepted level of unemployment? What are the implications of our rising debt profile? How come the pump price has not gone down despite the drop in price?
I expect that by now, given Mr.Jonathan's track record, for the opposition to present their own blueprint on addressing these issues.I expect the government to show, with figures, what it would do to protect Nigerians from the looming recession.
Let us move away from the irrelevant fixation with caps in churches, adopted children, ethnic baiting, pastoral and political grandstanding and unproductive religious and regional muscle flexing.
We have serious problems, and we need serious people to solve them. We can always return to our favorite pastime of debating ethnic and religious superiority later.
As we say in Ibadan, let us chase the fox away first, before descending on the hen.
My ten kobo.
The price of oil has fallen below fifty dollars per barrel, the lowest in nine years. The Naira is hovering around the Two hundred Naira to the dollar, governments at all levels are owing salaries, our weak industrial base means there would be job losses as the cost of doing business in Nigeria has just gone up by over 40 percent.
Direct Foreign Investments have taken a nosedive as investors are moving in another direction, and despite all the posturing, we are still net importers of petroleum, food and luxury goods.
By now the focus should be on asking the hard questions.
Government has belatedly increased taxes on some luxury items, would that make any difference? The cost of running government is astronomical, are we cutting salaries and entitlements of political office holders? What would be the effect of reduced revenue on capital projects? What are the alternatives? Is there any hope for improvement in power supply in the nearest future?
What is the accepted level of unemployment? What are the implications of our rising debt profile? How come the pump price has not gone down despite the drop in price?
I expect that by now, given Mr.Jonathan's track record, for the opposition to present their own blueprint on addressing these issues.I expect the government to show, with figures, what it would do to protect Nigerians from the looming recession.
Let us move away from the irrelevant fixation with caps in churches, adopted children, ethnic baiting, pastoral and political grandstanding and unproductive religious and regional muscle flexing.
We have serious problems, and we need serious people to solve them. We can always return to our favorite pastime of debating ethnic and religious superiority later.
As we say in Ibadan, let us chase the fox away first, before descending on the hen.
My ten kobo.
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