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Friday, March 29, 2024

Edikan Uko: The Mystery of Mediocrity And A Failing Economy [MUST READ]

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[dropcap]B[/dropcap]y all standards, that was fast. Buhari’s government has plunged Nigeria into a recession. Unfortunately, we have a bunch of incompetent people spearheading the economy of the country.

Kemi Adeosun was appointed minister of finance in November 2015 and she oversees the Federal Ministry of Finance. This role has been officially dumbed down by this administration. In previous governments we had top economists, finance experts, titans with experience and expertise, but in Buhari’s administration we have Kemi Adeosun, a UK based professional who is a chartered accountant; and whose professional background is in accounting, auditing, and management. She is so out of her depth and in over her head. It is not surprising that Buhari’s government has sunk the Nigerian economy in such a short time.

In the previous government, the finance minister, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala was a Harvard and MIT trained economist who worked in the World Bank as a development economist for decades. She was the managing director of the World Bank before she was appointed as Nigeria’s finance minister by former President Goodluck Jonathan in 2011. It is no wonder she introduced reforms that promoted economic prosperity and helped grow the economy at a rate of 6% per annum. Nigeria has the required talent to advance the country’s interests, but when the government puts mediocrity, nepotism and cluelessness above all else, what we get is failure and lame excuses.

A few days ago, to explain away the recession President Muhammadu Buhari said he didn’t inherit anything from the previous governments, from the government of Olusegun Obasanjo till to the government of Goodluck Jonathan. You’ll be hard pressed to find a statement so disingenuous.

When you have to say that you have inherited nothing from all the governments in Nigeria since independence, then you know that you are either so removed from reality or living on another planet altogether.

Since the end of military regimes in Nigeria, the democratically elected governments have implemented reforms that has brought about economic prosperity and created opportunity for its citizens. They have also put in place the Independent Electoral Commission to conduct free and fair elections to ensure that Nigeria continues to have a free society. However, that doesn’t matter to Muhammadu Buhari because he doesn’t believe in democracy. In 1983, he violently overthrew a democratically elected government and took over as president. His mismanagement the country prompted other military officers to overthrow him.

Rational people should give credit to the infrastructural development, reforms, and programmes that have encouraged creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship which has in turn led to growth and economic prosperity. In a single swipe, Buhari has tried to erase all that and is making excuses for his failure to maintain and grow the economy he inherited.

Rather than go down this path trying to appeal to simpletons, President Buhari would achieve more by recruiting people with experience, skills and expertise and appointing them into the right positions to ensure that the engine of progress doesn’t break down. The government should also get to work and stop making excuses. Governing a country of 150 million citizens requires more than campaign slogans and weak excuses.

In addition, sacrificing the success of Nigeria on the altar of mediocrity and nepotism will make the Buhari government fail and take Nigerians down with it.

Nigeria and Nigerians deserve better.

Edikan Uko is a political activist, business strategist, and human capital management professional. She sits on the Editorial Board of The Trent. She tweets from @EdikanUko

The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author.

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