Dr. Wunmi Akintide
I think the change of mindset I recommend for all Nigerians must begin with President Tinubu and his VP, his Cabinet Ministers, the Legislature and the Judiciary.
It was for the same reason that I challenged President Tinubu to emulate the new President of Malawi or vacate Aso Rock for Peter Obi the candidate who has crafted the statement below which I am lifting verbatim and sharing with all of my contacts on the Facebook because it is a fundamentally true statement reflecting the reality of Nigeria today.
If Tinubu cannot prove to us that he shares some of the mindset and priorities that drove Peter Obi to make the statement shared below, Nigerians have made a horrendous mistake by electing him on February 25, 2023.
But since less than 11 percent of registered voters in Nigeria have voted in that election and since he had received roughly 23 percent of the total number of registered voters to become the President of Nigeria, he cannot claim to have received the People’s mandate
He is therefore leading a minority Government today and he must realize that the great majority of Nigerians did not vote for him and that is why he must strive to meet the aspirations of that majority to keep his job beyond his first term of 4 years.
I was alarmed when he went to the National Assembly to deliver his annual Budget Speech to see the National Assembly presided over by unwise Senator Akpabio allow the Joint Session of the National Assembly to start singing
“On your mandate we stand, Bola” rather that playing the National Anthem. That to me was the beginning of a one- party system and “Godfatherism” that Nigerians by acclamation and consensus must condemn and reject.
He, President Tinubu should have cut down on the number of the Nigerian Delegation attending the Summit in Dubai, if as an Accountant his focus is on the reduction of the cost of governance which is astronomically and disproportionately high in Nigeria. What kind of an Accountant or Auditor does that? I lie to you if I tell you I am not embarrassed for him as his fellow Yoruba man.
I reproduce for you below the statement made by Peter Obi for you to read and digest and to form your own opinion about his readiness for office which is a million times worse than that of President Tinubu who came third in the Election.
I am yet to see any move to convince me that Tinubu is ready for prime time. What I am expecting may still come tomorrow or day after but right now, he has done little to nothing to earn my respect. I don’t know about you.
All I am saying with this article is that Nigerians are yet to see anything positive from him. If I were in his shoes, one of the first things I would have done upon my inauguration, was an announcement of a drastic reduction in my salary and allowances to serve as a role model for all of my Cabinet Ministers and Advisers and also for the Legislative arm of Government.
I would not have allowed the purchase of any 180 million Bullet- proof car for my First Lady or for any of the Legislators or for several billions of Naira set aside in my Budget to paint and refurbish the Vice President’s
Lodge.
I certainly would not have allowed the size of the Nigerian Delegation to the Dubai Summit to match that of China as correctly observed by Peter Obi.
It made no sense that Tinubu has continued to maintain the Status Quo Ante Bellum” in Nigeria.
I apologize for the digression. Now to the statement of Peter Obi shared below:
“In a twist of sad irony, let me congratulate the giant of Africa, Nigeria, for matching the great China, with the same number of contingents at the ongoing COP28 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Nigeria’s contingent to COP28 totaled 1411, the same number as the Chinese contingents. While China’s budget for 2024 is about $4 trillion, about $2,860 per head; Nigeria’s budget is about $33 billion, about $165 per head. China has a high Human Development Index, HDI, with a ranking of 79 out of 191 countries measured, and Nigeria has a low HDI, with a ranking of 163 out of 191 countries measured.
Nigeria has more people living in ‘Multi-Dimensional’ poverty than China, despite China having seven times our population. Most importantly, the vast majority of those in the Nigerian delegation to COP28 are either non relevant civil servants or relations, friends and hangers-on of high government officials. Most of them hardly understand or have anything to do with Climate Change.
This huge contingent is out at public expense at a time when most Nigerians can hardly afford food and basic needs as a result of economic hardship. I pray earnestly that a day will come soon enough when we can focus on competing with China on productivity and the miracle of migrating the highest number of its citizens out of poverty over a relatively short time. As we have kept emphasizing, we must stop waste as a a tradition of our government and nation.
We urgently need to cut the cost of governance and invest in production.
We need to de-emphasize unnecessary ceremony and showmanship as a mode of government behaviour.
We need to tie spending to necessity and national Priority. A New Nigeria is possible. We only need to do the reasonable and the necessary.
I rest my case.
We claim Nigeria is broke but we have given over 1 billion in our public funds to Dubai in less than 2 days, all for a Jamboreeee!
Dr. Mayowa Adeleye
Alberta, Canada.
Click To Join MA WhatsApp Community
SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER NOW
Support MATAZ ARISING’ journalism of integrity and credibility.
Good journalism ensure the possibility of a good society, an accountable democracy, and a transparent government.
We ask you to consider making a modest support to this noble endeavour.
TEXT AD: To advertise here – Email ad@matazarising.com
Nigeria, “a zoo” – Betty Akeredolu, Nigerians react
MaTaZ ArIsInGDallas, Texas Netizens blast Betty Akeredolu for referring to Nigeria as zoo Former Ondo First Lady Betty Anyanwu-Akeredolu has come under attack for referring to Nigeria as “a zoo country that is beyond redemption”. Akeredolu on Wednesday made comparisons between Nigeria’s presidential election and that of the United States via her X account. She…
Patients protest power shortage at UCH Ibadan (video)
MaTaZ ArIsInGDallas, Texas Power shortage unsettles patients at UCH as FG keeps mum on humongous bills The management of University College Hospital, UCH, has accused Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company, IBEDC, of forcing the hospital into Band A, stating that despite paying N60 million in the past month, the power company two weeks ago disconnected the…
Petrol Prices May drop soon – IPMAN gives reasons
MaTaZ ArIsInGDallas, Texas The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) has announced a new agreement with Dangote Petroleum Refinery that could reduce petrol prices nationwide. IPMAN’s National President, Abubakar Garima, revealed the agreement during a press briefing in Abuja, following a meeting of the association’s National Working Committee. Under the new arrangement, IPMAN will…