I often wonder whether the poor Nigerians are also part of the renewed hope agenda of President Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu. With the recent turn of events, I frequently feel tempted to ponder whether what Jagaban really meant by his campaign slogan was Renewed Hopelessness.
The hopeless common man that renewed hope agenda promised revival has turned out to be an endangered species under the watch of the self-professed government of hope. Practically, the three subsidies that directly benefit the lower class from 1970s are all gone in less than one year of this administration. It was first fuel, then education, and now electricity with no convincing rollout plans for cushioning its effect on the masses apart from the palliative that few are feeding fat from at the detriment of the masses.
In what way has the subsidy removal benefits the poor? Could we see it as a positive development when the money generated from it practically goes to subsidizing food in the name of palliative? Nigerian businesses solely depend on fuel and electricity and when there is hike in price of fuel and increase in electricity tariff, prices of goods and services naturally increases. The untold hardship and hunger in Nigeria are tight around increase in fuel and electricity tariff that our government removed subsidy on.
I am finding it hard to believe that the government that came to power on the petals of hope and claim to be government of the hope and for the hope has undoubtedly descend on the verge of taking away the small hope that common Nigerian is breathing from. No nation has ever trod on this dangerous and slippery path in a quest to build a better nation and succeeded in having nation of its dream with languishing citizens. For reference purposes, any national policy that inflicts pains and increases hunger among the citizens is an error even if it means well for the wellbeing of the nation.
Often time, people argue that economic restructuring of subsidy removal comes with pains at the onset but on the long run it dispenses hope, I beg to differ on the economic restructuring strategy of this government. The best way to free up funds for national development is through cutting cost of governance at the centre and not implementing policies and programmes that project the nation as a hell hole for the citizens and a heaven for the political class.
It is indeed absurd that the three subsidies that directly impinges on the Nigerian citizens are quashed in the name of freeing up funds for national development while politicians at the centre are going home with money bags and members of the National Assembly receiving prayers through their mails to enjoy their recess. This is more attestation to the fact that in this clime, politics and wealth is synonymous.
The government that grasped mic, jumped to the podium and pronounced subsidy removal without entering office in the name of economic restructuring has the largest cabinet since the return of civil rule in 1999. The subsidy removal government of Jagaban has 48 ministers which is unprecedented in the history of Nigeria. In the midst of loud clamour for slim government, Jagaban budgeted the whopping sum of N16 billion for the purchase of the official vehicles of Ministers which comprises of Landcruiser valued around N170m, Prado Jeep valued at around N75m and two Hilux trucks at around N90m.
Amid mass hunger and poverty occasioned by the subsidy removal, N57.6 billion of our national budget went for purchasing SUVs for NASS members, making each federal legislator entitled to N160 million SUV. Our self-acclaimed slim government budgeted N1.5 billion for vehicles of the office of First lady, N2.9 billion went for the purchase of SUVs for the presidential villa and another N2.9 billion for replacement of operational vehicles in the villa. As if that was enough, another whopping sum of N13.5 billion was budgeted for the renovation of the President and Vice President’s official quarters, N7.5 billion for foreign trips of the President and the Vice President while N20.52 billion is earmarked for the Presidential fleet. This is a huge mockery to the citizen who is subjected to pains in the name of freeing up funds for national development.
Despite all this national treasury wrecking budget by the political class when hunger is biting Nigerians, Tinubu and APC want Nigerians to swallow the renewed hope fallacy of its government and smiled that the government is working for the good of the masses. Anywhere they asked you to give an example of selfish government, never hesitate to point out the renewed hope government of Jagaban as classical example. The government want the common man to swallow the bitter pill of the subsidy removal in patience and make sacrifice for better Nigeria but the government and the political class are unwilling to adjust and make the sacrifice they are preaching for the project of better Nigeria.
Before you stamp the effort of Jagaban using subsidy removal to free up funds to build better Nigeria, did you ever asked yourself why he only tilted his focus on removing subsidy than cutting the bogus cost of governance to free up funds? Till date we have ghost MDAs and offices that only exist on paper with ghost staff being paid from our tax payers money.
According to the Oronsaye report, Nigeria has 541 government parastatals, commissions and agencies and it recommended the reduction of statutory agencies from 263 to 161 as well as the abolition of 38 agencies, the merger of 52 and the reversion of 14 to departments in ministries. Instead of removing subsidy that subjected common man to an abject poverty, Mr President would have used his inauguration speech to issue a white paper on the report to slash redundant MDAs to free up funds. This would have help take down the staggering N4.79 trillion budgeted for MDAs personnel, whopping N14 billion to buy computers and another N28 billion to install software in the computers for the MDAs.
At the moment, bag of rice and even guinea corn is almost double of the minimum wage. Almost all schools from the university down to the kindergarten have increased their fees almost double of the initial. A father collecting thirty thousand salary is expected to pay eighty-thousand-naira school fees for one child, while rent and feeding the family is lurking in the corner waiting to be met.
Our renewed hope leadership has forced its citizens to normalized grief and suffering. People go to the market with smiling faces but deep down they are languishing in frustration and pains. There is nothing in Nigerian markets that has not increased price by double from June to date. At certain level, we have morning, afternoon and evening price in our markets. Even as the value of Naira appreciate in global market as dollars crashed to 1,020 naira, the government lacks mechanisms for price control as prices of food items in Nigerian markets still responsible for extreme. It seems like renewed hope agenda has renewed the hope of the political class more than the hope of the common man!
Emme Emma Gwanah
Writes from Guyuk LGA, Adamawa State
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