First 30 dry days of Buhari

Someone asked me the question: what has President Muhammadu Buhari been doing since he was sworn in over 30 days ago? I don’t know. Who knows? That was my own question, this time to my self. But come to think of it this way; if he had spent the past 30 days trekking from Daura to Abuja and back to Daura again, he would have more to show for the work than he does now. Let us not be patronizing about this: his attention has been arrested by the carnival of nonsense that is currently playing out within his party. His interest is no longer ‘corruption’ but politics. His interest is no longer on fixing the broken economy. His immediate interest is defending gaffs and barricading attack dogs baying for full action on the economy.

At least this fact has not washed over the public who voted for change. None of the things he has done in the past 30 days has achieved any significant interest home and abroad. I can’t recall the things he has done so far, but I can recall the things he has not done and the things he should have done in his first 30 days.

That ‘fired up’ speech at his inauguration seems to pale into irrelevance now. What seems to have set in is that typical inertia that is associated with the governance in the country and appointments that reeks of impartiality and cronyism-all very controversial-study his appointments to date and see what I mean and that is besides the fact that he has no ministerial list yet. You might say that is ok.

Perhaps he was not really prepared for it! I guess he is clearly seeing the numerous surprises being the president of Nigeria holds for anyone who aspires to that office. All his publicly announced promises have large gaps now and exposed to ridicule and I haven’t seen signs of back tracking and rethinking yet. One surprise for me is his inability to avoid simple political traps, be it in his side appointments or taking political position on issues of his party. I guess he has put off taking decision on how to find the Chibok girls gone missing now for over 400 days. His administration has not initiated a new conversation on the issue yet.

Buhari needs to understand the policy and political implication of assuring Nigerian’s, and the world, that he is the new president who has come to change the approach to Aso Rock. In his first week he forced the relocation of army headquarters to Maiduguri to hunt down the Boko Haram terrorists. That is how you do that, through a series of executive acts that says you want a very transparent slate to build your own legacy on.

What about how to truly diversify the economy. Are we going to hear how you will make that happen? Or should I ask; do you have a clue on how to make it happen?

We hear talk about jobs and how you will create them and how you have created them. How do you intend to create a sustainable labour market?

What about reducing the pressure on the economy and state finances? Reducing recurrent spending –refocusing talks on more spending on education, roads and the likes to improve the economy on the long run. What about public sector reforms, the declining level of trust in public institutions including churches and the overall size of government and cost of governance? What place does diplomacy have in your administration?

Will you push for a new land laws? This has been one of the thorniest challenges or issues industrialists faced. What exist now makes acquiring land for industry virtually impossible.

You don’t need a 100 days to start your engine. There are a staggering number of challenges. So start your engine now!

Charles Ike-Okoh