Guardian

AS usual, I was eager to watch ceremonies of last Wednesday’s Democracy Day on screen, particularly the aspect that had to do with the president’s speech. That had been the ritual, but my neighbourhood hadn’t had electricity supply for weeks, so I had to pray that those in charge would release some energy to enable citizens watch the proceedings at Abuja from their homes. Without any request from the Presidency, I prayed fervently, that PHCN or whatever they are now called would not disgrace Mr. Presidents’ scorecard in the power sector, which I suspected would feature prominently on his list of accomplishments.

Unfortunately for the Presidency and myself, there was no supply of electricity on May 29. As a newshound, I was still eager to hook on to an alternative source of energy, to power the screen. But I managed to shrug it off. That was not a day for me to subsidise this government, not on a Democracy Day, when government should, at least, pretend that it manages to do a few things.  In other words, I was protesting, but I didn’t have the courage to miss out totally on the events holding at the International Conference Centre, Abuja. So, I decided to listen from the transistor radio.

A few minutes into the ceremonies, which commenced at 10 am, after dignitaries, including Vice President Namadi Sambio had taken their seats and every body was waiting for Mr. President’s arrival, the Metro Station, which relayed the events lost touch with Abuja. No more signals! That was less than 15 minutes into the programme. I knew I had been conspired against. But I didn’t feel depressed because that had been the pattern for many years now. Millions of citizens have learnt to live without the State, hoping that one day, God would send real transformers.

When it was 11 minutes to top of the hour, that is 10.49, signals were restored and I went back to the radio. I heard a few of Sambo’s opening remarks. Then the minister of national planning, Shamsudeen Usman took the stage and he had no kind words for a particular journalist whom he alleged misrepresented him recently.

I happen to know a bit about that matter. The minister was quoted, he would say misquoted, as saying that Vision 2020:20 had lost steam and had to be replaced without another Vision, something in the neighbourhood of 2020:25. The reasons given for the shift in vision, according to the report was primarily because previous governments had failed to plan and invest in critical infrastructure.

I recall that, miffed at what had become government’s recurrent pastime, to trade blame and look for excuses where vision becomes myopic and impossible to deliver, newsmen decided to dig into why national planning has become something like medieval weather forecast, more of guesswork. The subsequent reportage was explosive, and perhaps got minister Shamsudeen angrier. He probably felt some people were after his job.

So, he waited for May 29, to deliver a well-rehearsed lecture on how ignorant critics of government’s micro-economic figures are. He needed to score a few points and perhaps, convince Mr. President that he remains the best visionary in town. He did not stop there. He praised Jonathan’s government to high heavens, for being the first president to package a mid-term policy report of electoral promises and deliverables. Then he scored the government very high in eight out of 14 indicators. President Jonathan became ecstatic, and he too gave Shamsudeen a pass mark.

The next minister who took the podium was the coordinating minister of the economy and finance minister, Okonjo Iweala. She too was upbeat, doing almost a reckless over-speed, in her bid to reel out all that this government had achieved in just two years. From her point of view, it was an endless list and one would think she was talking about another Nigeria in some other planet.

It seemed the outing was not designed to impress citizens, but to tell the President what they want him to hear, not for the purpose of bridging the widening gap between the Presidency and citizens, but to manipulate Jonathan and gain a stronghold on his thoughts. A discerning citizenry was likely to get worried, that their President had been hijacked by a cabal and might not listen to them anymore. Everything coming outside government, no matter how truthful and factual is seen as a salvo from the opposition camp. Then we see a combative government on a Democracy Day, well prepared to take on anybody. The event did not look like a mind-robbing session between a government and the people, but an attempt to deny the truth and mesmerize the people.

A few facts. Electricity supply is still very bad and it seems handlers of Mr. President feed him with half- truths. From the figures government reels out, what is probable is that bureaucrats use averages from highbrow areas, like Asokoro and government reservation areas to assume what is happening all over the country. That is not true.

It is true, perhaps, that this government, more than previously, is investing heavily in the power sector; building the NIPPs, reorganising transmission lines and expanding pipelines to supply gas to turbines. That has not brought about any remarkable increase in generation and transmission. There is immense work in progress, no doubt, and citizens are not blind; and I’m sure they are kind enough to wait for all the efforts to mature. But to tell a lie against citizens, that they now enjoy endless supply of electricity is most unkind.

Let Mr. President find out what is happening at the Papalanto gas power station in Ogun State, which was commissioned by former President Olusegun Obasanjo way back in 2007, but which does not supply power to residents in the Ewekoro axis. Let middlemen in the bureaucracy not confuse Mr. President with lies.

There is a works minister who loves to grandstand, sounding very urbane, but does not know what citizens are going through along the Lagos/Ibadan and Lagos/Abeokuta expressways. When Bicourtney was chased out of Lagos/Ibadan Expressway, Mike Onolemenme gave the impression that a new contract had been signed with two firms. Today, that expressway is just the way it had been; choked with traffic, highly dangerous at night because it is unlit, with the surface completely chopped off, leaving a grinding bottom that is unfit for decent driving.

It was the same thing along Lagos/Abeokuta expressway, where Julius Berger had been driven out to pave way for an ill-equipped FERMA, which happens to be the infrastructure wing of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Mr. President, your citizens are groaning at Ota and Owode, where the state government that collects taxes along the route is very quick to remind hapless citizens that it is a federal highway. There are portholes and gullies all over the place and if you care, Mr. President, these are traps that are set for you and your party, come 2015. You will need to explain why your party loves punishing the people. Why would 14 years of PDP administration be such a pain in the neck; why would the contract to fix this Ota road drag for eight years, and then the works minister is signing new contracts all over the place? And how much of due process does government apply in all of these contracts, in terms of transparency and accountability? That’s another matter.

Mr. President’s finance minister said more than 60 percent of citizens have access to public water supply? That cannot be true because this government does not have the good conscience and capacity to supply portable water. That era seems gone for good, when governments, state and federal did not shy from real investments that would make life easy and better for the people.

I remember that remote villages were connected with public water some thirty years ago, but gradually, that infrastructure has collapsed, because democratic governments do not seem to connect democracy with development. Is it the federal government that supplies water to citizens in Lagos and Kano, the two largest cities in the country?

It was good news to hear that Nigeria now exports cement. To where if may ask? But that is not even the point. If we have become self-sufficient in cement production, to the point that we now sell to others, why is it that prices cannot come down? Why is it that an industry that enjoys government protection does not give back to the people, in terms of reduced prices?  These people enjoy waivers on behalf of citizens, but they take undue advantage of it to now export. Is that not criminal?

Shamsudeen Usman said this is the first government to present a mid-term report of what it promised to do and how it has fared. Big deal! What is the excitement of a report, whether mid or full if it does not connect directly to the people? How much of private sector input went into that report for it to enjoy popular appeal and credibility?

The journey from 2011 to 2013 is not an easy one. Citizens know, but you do not need to force anything down the public throat. I score this administration 39 percent, not good enough!