Governor Chukwuma Soludo, has sparked off an animated pan-Nigerian discussion following his authoritative lecture entitled “Towards Sustainable Democracy and Free Market Economy in Nigeria” at The Platform, the facility for national dialogue convened by Senior Pastor Poju Oyemade. It was the second coming of Professor Soludo at the Platform in five years, and his resounding message addressed the many issues afflicting the nation. It is not in the constitution of Soludo to evade providing solutions to Nigeria’s multi-dimensional problems.
It needs to be recalled that back in 2005 Soludo had delivered the National Democracy Day Lecture organized by the Federal Government on the topic: “The Political Economy of Sustainable Democracy in Nigeria”. As Nigeria marks sixty-four years as an independent country and twenty-five consecutive years of democratic experiment in the fourth Republic, it is fitting that Soludo is the mastermind to undertake an evaluation of the country’s practice of democracy and a free market economy.
Even as he is a serving state governor, Soludo insists on speaking as a citizen because nation-building ought not to be left to politicians and governments alone. In the words of Soludo, “It needs to be emphasized that whatever intrinsic values bestowed by democracy, they mean little to the woman who has no food to eat or place to sleep”.
Citing informed sources, Soludo argues that “with Nigeria’s current per capita income of about one thousand, two hundred dollars, the sustainability of democracy in Nigeria will require an extraordinary effort”.
For him, Nigeria’s case can be likened to making progress while standing still. With Nigeria dropping from being the “largest economy in Africa” to fourth, the budget ranks amongst the lowest in the world.
Soludo avers that it is incumbent on President Bola Tinubu to declare a State of Emergency on every sector. Going back to the negotiated competitive federalism forged by the country’s founding fathers may not be a bad idea after all. Devolving a great deal of the responsibilities under the Exclusive List to the States and allocating a significant portion of revenues to the States could be beneficial for the country’s development.
Soludo points out that the idea of autonomy for local governments goes against the principles of true federalism. He stresses that this will take Nigeria back many decades on the road to a true federal structure.
In his understanding, the concept of a single term for elected office-holders is gaining momentum and may be a viable option for the country to make progress. Also, consolidating the National Assembly into one with no more than five representatives per state could be a cost-effective solution.
A key issue in Nigeria is the struggle for improved minimum wages for workers as being demanded by the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) which has already elicited a strike all over the country. Soludo makes the argument that unsustainable minimum wages could lead to job losses and economic challenges in Nigeria.
The Governor stressed that the country across board must drastically cut the cost of governance. The slogan in Anambra State is “Doing More with Less.” In the words of the Governor, “Extreme prudence is the reason we are delivering historic results on infrastructure and all other sectors and still refused to borrow a kobo in over two years . Currently, Anambra is ranked among the top five states with fiscal sustainability. ”
Soludo opts for the re-invention of a new charge of national re-orientation not unlike Mass Mobilization for Self-Reliance, Social Justice and Economic Recovery (MAMSER) which will this time assure proper public accountability, patriotism and nationalism. In Soludo’s final words “Let’s build the greatest black nation on earth, together!”
Written by SIR PAUL NWOSU
Comments are closed for this post.