The recent economic growth prediction by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) that put Ethiopia as the fastest growing economy in Africa is an attestation that the Ethiopian government is focusing on her economy. According to the IMF, Ghana, whose economy is expected to grow ahead of other African countries, is now third due to the reduction in its estimated growth to 6.3% from 8.9%. The Ethiopia economy was predicted to witness an increase of 8.5%, followed by Cote d’Ivoire with 7.4% in 2019.
The fact that countries like Ethiopia, Rwanda, and Tanzania that were once considered as weak and slow growing economies are now forces to be reckoned with confirmed the saying that what is focused on will be magnified if the focus is on the right thing. Recently, I wrote on how Rwanda has been tagged the “Africa’s biggest success story”, a country from the civil war to second in the ease of doing business with 100% enrolments into her primary schools. The same positive narratives have been noted for Tanzania, where the former president, Kiwete Jakaya, increased the budgetary education allocation to 20% and achieved 96% primary school enrolment. Ghana is another prosperous example from the days of the transformational Jerry Rawlings, who is still acting a common man directing traffic on the streets of Accra. Ghana is a country with consistent growth, moderate democracy and smooth transition of power without numerous court cases and deadly violence after elections.
The question is, what has been the focus of the Nigerian leaders in recent time, and where are the results to show for their efforts? The harvest of insecurity in the North East, the kidnapping, the yahoo boys, the cattle rustlers and the incessant killings by the herdsmen are the products of what our leaders focused on or failed to focus on. The level of peaceful cohabitation and religion tolerance in the South West of Nigeria and the level of the region’s development are traceable to Chief Obafemi Awolowo’s focus on education for all the residents of the region irrespective of their tribes or ethnicity. What has been the focus of all the other leaders after the leadership of the nationalists that struggled for our independence?
Nigeria, without a doubt, is blessed with resources and the uncontrolled population. However, it was the failure of our leaders to develop the human and material capacity of a potentially great nation. Unlike Lee Kuan Yew of Singapore, our leaders have been playing politics with our lives using the swords of religion and ethnic sentiments as the platform for the struggle for power and influence. They have focused on what divides people instead of harnessing the potential in our human capital. Our leaders have ruled a big country yet leave their primary constituencies in poverty with beggars flooding the streets of the country. They have focused on enriching themselves and sharing the wealth of the nation among a few political elites. The poor masses are not just victims but accomplices in the act that encourages focus on what is not in the best interest of all. We have danced, sang praises of elected politicians who used 10% of our money to build bridges with inflated prices and wasted others on themselves in the name of security votes, donations to the political parties, inefficient political structure and rewarding sycophants. We are reaping the reward of our leaders’ focus (pauperized citizens, insecurity, political nepotism, deteriorating public image, etc.) and the followers’ ineptitude for mediocrity instead of the demand for stewardship and accountability. I cannot agree less with Dr Remi Adekoya’s position that ‘Nigeria is a rich country’ is nothing but a myth given the value of the national budget to her population size. More pathetic is the fact that we are now a poor country amid abundant resources because of the poor focus of our leaders, political structure and the culture of mediocrity established and sustained by the ruling class.
To end the myth, we need to hold our leaders accountable for the mandate given to them. It is time our votes are not taken as open cheques to unexplained wealth and freedom to enslave others. Recently, I demonstrated how holding public institutions could help us to move Nigeria forward. I was in the training room when one of the participants asked me to tell the class my unique selling proposition as a coach. I promptly answered without knowing my answer will set me up. I replied, ‘I help individuals and organisations to focus on the right thing’. He further asked where I live. As I mentioned where I live, and he pointed out the obvious. The road along the expressway to my house was repaired by a top construction company in Nigeria but with a shoddy job done on one of the bridges. My unbearable participant became a pain in my neck when he demanded to know what I have done to make the company do the right thing. I was at first defensive. I told him companies and individuals need to be my clients before the opportunity to help them to focus on the right thing can become available to me. As uncomfortable as I was, I remember I had related with someone who’s an employee of the construction company when I was in the banking industry. I put a call to Victor in the presence of my audience and reported the bad work his company did on the bridge leading to my house. I demanded he ask the company’s technical team to drive and assess my complaint the next day. I stylishly follow my request with an unintended threat to write about the situation and his company’s poor execution of the contracted work if nothing is done within five days. Victor pleaded that I shouldn’t not write against his company. He said I dare not do that as his friend.
Two days after I was elated when my participant reported that road had been repaired. What he did was to hold me accountable to do the right thing as I equally held the company responsible for a poor job executed. It was the spirit of holding public officers responsible that led to the Arab unsprings ending oppressive regimes in Tunisia, Morocco, Syria, Libya, Egypt and Bahrain. I suspect Nigeria is witnessing unsprings with the increase in violence, kidnapping and armed robbery, especially in the North where political violence was the only trademark in the past.
In Nigeria, we need a non-violence unsprings against lack of accountability, oppression, poor resources management and leaders who are not adding values to our country. We are tired of reported growth that is a fluke and not sustainable. Nigeria has lost its place to Ghana, Ethiopia, Tanzania and Rwanda in education and economic growth not only because our leaders focused on themselves but because the followers have been blindfolded to sing praises for mediocrity and corruption. It is time we demand sustainable growth and development through policies and initiatives that are not for the psychological egoism of the elected public officers. It is time we all focus on the right thing that are sustainable in the interest of building a prosperous nation we can be proud of.
Babs Olugbemi FCCA, the Chief Responsibility Officer at Mentoras Leadership Limited and Founder, the Positive Growth Africa. He can be reached on [email protected] or 08025489396.
