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A Still-Born Transformation By Sonala Olumhense

There is speculation that the federal cabinet will soon be reshuffled.  This article is about one Minister who should not wait to be fired. 

There is speculation that the federal cabinet will soon be reshuffled.  This article is about one Minister who should not wait to be fired. 

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That is the Minister of National Planning, Dr. Shamsudeen Usman, who doubles as Deputy Chairman of the National Planning Commission. 

Usman is a vastly-experienced man, and one of the most qualified people in the administration.  He studied at the Ahmadu Bello University and the London School of Economics and Political Science.  He is respected in both the private and public sectors, and has served in many capacities, including stints as Minister of Finance and as President of the Nigeria Economic Society. 

I do not doubt in my heart that Mr. Usman knows what is wrong with Nigeria, and with the administration of which he is a part.  That was evident in October 2011 when the Minister said President Goodluck Jonathan was getting ready to provide substance and structure for his “transformation agenda.”

The Minister, who spoke at a news conference, said the agenda would address our country’s notorious ethical vacuum in which looters do not fear repercussions.

“We have to emphasize the rule of law, judicial system and the policing system,” he said of the forthcoming agenda.  “When you know that there is a 99 percent chance you would be caught when you steal and 100 percent chance that you would go to jail, you won’t steal.”

I was thrilled that Mr. Jonathan could possibly be thinking in that direction, but it was not the first time an official of his administration had provided such a tease. 

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Three months earlier, on July 2, the Secretary to the Government, Mr. Anyim Pius Anyim, had also declared that the “transformation agenda,” when Mr. Jonathan unveiled it, would occasion major institutional changes aimed at plugging loopholes and opportunities for corruption.

Mr. Anyim’s comments were made as a special guest at the residence of the United States ambassador, Terence McCulley, during a celebration of the 235th anniversary of American independence.  Mr. Anyim spoke with a straight face about curbing corruption and dishonesty in Nigeria, stressing that his administration had embraced good governance.

He said the “comprehensive economic transformation” of Nigeria would be youth-focused and private sector-driven, “and the government will limit itself to only provide the enabling environment for businesses to thrive.”

Nearly one year after Mr. Jonathan took a new oath of office, and nearly two years after he first became President, the so-called “transformational agenda” has not been defined.  This is in spite of the fact that the government is giving the impression it has commenced its implementation, as part of which the cabinet re-jiggling is being expected. 

Of that exercise, I do not think Mr. Usman should be a part.  He should simply resign his appointment. 

The Ministry of Planning which he heads is a fundamental one, and it would normally be expected to play a lead role in the government’s efforts, if any, to move Nigeria forward.  It is curious, therefore, that nearly one year after the administration took office and its senior officials began to broadcast the imminence of the “transformation agenda,” it is yet to be published. 

This is reminiscent of the chaos in the power sector, in which promises are routinely made and broken.  It is specifically reminiscent of the emergency in that sector that Umaru Yar’Adua promised during his election campaign but failed to implement in two years.  If it is taking one year to plot a “transformation agenda” that should have been put into play on the first day, how long will it take to implement it?

It will not surprise some of us if Mr. Jonathan decides he wants a second term or a third in office in order to do Nigeria the favour of implementing his programmes.  We have seen it all before, and he has already thrown away an entire year.  Unless the plan is to plan about the plan, it seems to me that the Minister of Planning has no job; he would serve the nation best by announcing such futility and getting out. 

With or without Mr. Usman, let it be remembered that President Jonathan’s broader plans and timelines include:  a five-year plan to revolutionize agriculture and establish industries; a four-year development plan, incorporating a blueprint for coastal roads and railway to open up the South-South geo-political zone; a five-year development plan to accelerate development in the country;  a four-year roads and other basic infrastructure plan; and a holistic review of the nation’s our education policy.  

Perhaps they were just vote-getting ploys, but my understanding of what Mr. Jonathan was trying to say is that his “transformation” scenario, to be formalized in an implementation plan, would include these and the more specific promises he made to individual voters and States last year.  If such an implementation plan has been abandoned in favour of the haphazard and the convenient, Mr. Usman should be the first to get out, well ahead of a diversionary cabinet reshuffle. 

To quote the Minister again, the challenge in front of his government is as simple as this: “When you know that there is a 99 percent chance you would be caught when you steal and 100 percent chances that you would go to jail, you won’t steal.”  

There is something the Minister did not say, but it was implied.  “If you have stolen in the past and you are found out, you will go to jail and you will be relieved of whatever you stole.”

Since you cannot have one without the other, it follows that if there were to be a “transformation agenda” founded on this premise, Mr. Jonathan would emerge as the transformation champion of our country.  In fact, I would go so far as to forecast that he would reinvent the place of the black man in history, because there in many ways, it can be argued that the Nigerian is holding the black man back. 

That is why this transformation thing must be called what it really is: perhaps a campaign slogan that grew its own wings.  To talk about transforming a country makes a good sound bite, but it is a monumental challenge which admits of no excuses.  Most historical figures selflessly undertake the arduous task; it is

Time which pronounces their achievements as transformational.

The speculation, therefore, that the federal cabinet will be transformed…I mean, reshuffled, is itself an admission of the ugly truth that Nigeria is in sadder straits than it has ever been.  It can achieve no more than give the impression of motion, and deflect blame.

It must be a terrible room to be in when everyone knows what the real problem is, and also that nobody has the commitment to do anything about it. 

That room is hell, not purgatory. 
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