Common Errors about Nigeria (II) SIMONKOLAWOLELIVE! SIMON KOLAWOLE May I seize this opportunity to send my deepest sympathies in advance to whoever succeeds President Muhammadu Buhar
SIMONKOLAWOLELIVE! SIMON KOLAWOLE
Today, I intend to dispel the notion that the president is solely responsible for the progress of Nigeria and if things are not going well, all the blame should be placed at his doorstep. I guess it is this perception that makes us savage every president, especially since the return to democracy in 1999.
During Obasanjo’s first term in office, I was told he held a meeting with the governors and told them agriculture and food security were key to his development agenda. One of the governors reportedly reminded him that agriculture was not the sole business of the federal government and that, in fact, the only land the federal government owns is the Federal Capital Territory . The states are in charge of the lands by virtue of the Land Use Act.
On bad roads, the notion is that the president should take the blame. I have told this story a million times: in 2013, an uncle came visiting and we got into a mild argument over Jonathan’s performance as president. I said Jonathan was not doing badly, insecurity aside. I listed some physical projects he had executed across the country, in addition to the non-tangible feats.
Have you noticed that yearly, newspapers report how much Aso Rock has budgeted for food? Nobody talks about the budgets for food and spoons in the 36 state government houses. We focus only on the president — because we unconsciously think that is where things start and end. We complain about budget padding only at the federal level. You would think it doesn’t exist in states. We report how much a federal lawmaker earns per month and pay little or no attention to state lawmakers.
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