President Muhammadu Buhari is dangerously close to leaving Nigerians disillusioned.
Forget about his failure (as at this writing) to
announce his cabinet, bad as it is. For me, the
deeper disappointment lies in the near-
absence of the president’s voice from the
national conversation. Okey Ndibe Let’s begin, however, with the least
important element of Mr. Buhari’s so far
lack-luster Presidency. It’s approximately
three months since Nigerians voted for Mr.
Buhari, on his fourth try, to be their
president. By any objective measure, three months is more than enough time for a man
who sought power with a certain persistence
to figure out his cabinet. The president’s explanation for his
tardiness in unveiling a cabinet is two-fold.
One is that his predecessor, President
Goodluck Jonathan, had been less than fully
cooperative with his transition team. The
second: that he wants a thorough background check done on potential ministers to save
himself the chore of firing ministers shortly
after nominating them. There are, I suggest, two other—perhaps
even more important—factors that Mr.
Buhari chose not to name. One has to do with
Nigerians’ (unreasonably) high
expectations from the Buhari administration.
Aware that his cabinet will be the most closely scrutinized of any recent president,
perhaps Mr. Buhari has succumbed to a sort
of partial paralysis or suspended animation. Of equal significance is the impression that
President Buhari has yet to find an effective
formula for resolving the conflicting demands
and expectations of various factions within
the fractious family of his political party, the
All Progressives Congress (APC). In Nigeria and elsewhere, the disposition of ministerial
posts is an instrument for rewarding various
“stakeholders” who contributed, in one
way or another, to a political victory.
President Buhari’s unusual and bizarre
string of IOUs includes real or perceived debts to former President Olusegun Obasanjo,
former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, and
former Governors Bola Tinubu and Rotimi
Amaechi. Leadership involves a measure of
deliberation, prudent and pragmatism. Yet,
even when we allow for Mr. Buhari’s
official explanation, the grand scale of public
expectation, and the intractability of intra-
party squabbles, one insists that the president’s snail pace is troubling. It has
left some of his most fervent fans scratching
their heads, scrambling for answers. In the end, it should not matter whether Mr.
Jonathan cooperated with his successor’s
transition team or not. Candidate Buhari
presented himself as the answer, the
epitome of change, as a man capable of
addressing Nigeria’s perennial problems. Nigerians subsequently hired him, in a
veritably historic election, to be the chief
minder of their business of state. It behooves
the president to find ingenious ways of doing
his job without making excuses. He may well
take off in the near future, and soar as a leader. For now, however, one finds no
justification for his inordinate delay in
achieving a goal as basic as composing a
cabinet. The delinquency suggests a failure to
prepare for the task ahead. And I say this as somebody who was on
record as expecting little from a Buhari
Presidency. I always stipulated that the
singular gift that the man would bring to
office was a modest lifestyle and a legacy of
self-restraint in the department of material accumulation. I was certain that a country
like Nigeria, deeply deformed by its elite’s
greed, could use a man of Mr. Buhari’s
ascetic temperament. But I was just as
certain that the challenge of leading a
complex country demanded more, far more, than a man who would not lose his head in
the presence of lucre. That Mr. Buhari, a serial seeker of the
Nigerian presidency, has squandered three
months since his election, a month since his
inauguration, without naming his cabinet,
points, quite simply, to a level of
unpreparedness. And if our brand new president is unprepared in personnel
matters, how is he to tackle the weightier
issues of unemployment, infrastructural
dilapidation, terrorism, a shambolic
healthcare system, educational crisis, and
electric power woes? Which brings me to a more disquieting aspect
of the fledging Presidency. Mr. Buhari’s
handlers would wish to frame his
disappearance from public discourse as
evidence of a deliberative cast of mind. But
one must ask: Is there no aspect of Nigeria’s malaise that the president has
figured out a set of proposals? Is there no
area where he feels the need for urgency? It’s remarkable that, in one month as
president, Mr. Buhari has not laid out a single
policy proposal on any of the major national
issues that concern the millions who voted
for him. He has not specified even the outline
of what he intends to do about Nigeria’s educational system, which has been on life
support for some time. He has not defined a
pathway to a healthcare system worthy of
the name. With the price of crude oil still
relatively low, the theft of Nigerian crude at
an all-time high, and crude oil exports at wishy-washy levels, Nigerians must gird
themselves for a long spell of hard times.
Yet, our president has not made any
pronouncement about the shape of things to
come. He has not cared to remind Nigerians
that the days of dependable oil revenues are, possibly permanently, behind us. In the Nigerian imagination, President
Buhari’s antipathy to corruption was
supposed to strike fear in the hearts of past
plunderers and stay the hands of current
custodians of the public trust. Yet, Mr. Buhari
has not revealed any strategy for combating corruption, or recovering hundreds of billions
of dollars stolen by public officials, including
many of his APC cohorts. I daresay that his
silence on corruption is the biggest letdown,
so far, of the Buhari Presidency. If care is not
taken, the idea will soon gain ground that it’s business as usual, as far as corrupt
practices go. In a rare soul-baring moment, President
Buhari confessed that his age, 72, is an
impediment to his effectiveness. It was a
devastating confession, one that Nigerians
had better reckon with as we re-calibrate
our fantasies about the new president’s superhuman powers. Those who saw in
Buhari the answer to all questions having to
do with Nigeria must adjust their
expectations quotient. The question is, when did Mr. Buhari realize
that age would be a debilitation? If he felt
that age or infirmity would hamper him, why
did he present himself for office? Was he not
always aware that, even for those who view
the Presidency as a four-year ticket to endless jollification, the office poses arduous
challenges? One has the sneaking suspicion that age may
not be the sole issue here. As I proposed
before the elections—and now reiterate—
both the APC and the dismissed Peoples
Democratic Party (PDP) are ideologically
indistinguishable. The drama in the National Assembly, where the PDP essentially stole
the APC’s thunder in determining who and
who will shape Nigeria’s legislative
agenda, has demonstrated this essential fact.
Nigerians must hope that Mr. Buhari not been
hemmed in by forces he has little power to shake. Time will tell. But this much one can claim
with confidence: the first month of the Buhari
Presidency has been far, far from inspiring

www.saharareporters.com/2015/06/24/buhari's-disappearing-presidency-okey-ndibe

Abeg Make Una Leave my Presido Alone For Me Oh!!

ds man don suffer
he don enta onechance

.

Acekidc4:
Abeg Make Una Leave my Presido Alone For Me Oh!!

mumu, they can deceive all but not me, buhari is a
thiefffffff. You will findout before the end of his
administration.

begod:
mumu, they can deceive all but not me, buhari is a
thiefffffff. You will findout before the end of his
administration.

Wetin Buhari steal for ya Papa house to warrant being called a Thief

You are just a Fooolish Ediot and a Stupiid Son to call an innocent man a Thief!!

It’s remarkable that, in one month as president, Mr. Buhari has not laid out a single policy proposal on any of the major national issues that concern the millions who voted for him. He has not specified even the outline of what he intends to do about Nigeria’s educational system, which has been on life support for some time. He has not defined a pathway to a healthcare system worthy of the name. With the price of crude oil still relatively low, the theft of Nigerian crude at an all-time high, and crude oil exports at wishy-washy levels, Nigerians must gird themselves for a long spell of hard times.

Buhari is only occupying office. He has no clue! Nigeria is on Auto-pilot

Acekidc4:


Wetin Buhari steal for ya Papa house to warrant being called a Thief

You are just a Fooolish Ediot and a Stupiid Son to call an innocent man a Thief!!

Did I hear u say innocent man? Hmmm even the Pope goes to confession at least once a week.
My point is, don't vouch for no one bros, all of them are kworupt

Isn't it a bit too early to be criticising Mr President? One month is simply insufficient time to draw a lot of the conclusions the writer has drawn.

Acekidc4:


Wetin Buhari steal for ya Papa house to warrant being called a Thief

You are just a Fooolish Ediot and a Stupiid Son to call an innocent man a Thief!!

hahahaha, what is all this your paranoid, ur heart fit catch fireoo, i said they can deceive all but not me, he is innocent abi, You will findout before the end of his
administration.

interesting point of view...

Patience is one thing Nigerians need to have with the present administration. I watched a rebroadcast of a 2013 interview he had with DITV (in hausa) in kaduna before the formation of APC. Ardent supporters called in saying they would rather tear voters card than for baba not to be the flag bearer of the new party when it emerged and what he thought of the controversy trailing the merger talks (then in respect to APGA's). His answer was frustratingly simple; 'there is a committee with a 30 day mandate to look into the merger negotiations, lets wait for their recommendation and as for my running for presidency, if the party is formed what ever they decide is ok by me' [paraphrased].

So my take on this is that Buhari is just being Buhari. This 1984 article below will tell you Buhari hasn't changed one bit;

LAGOS, Nigeria, Jan. 18, 1984— Nigeria's new leader, Maj. Gen. Mohammed Buhari, swore in the members of his Cabinet today, warning them that the ruling Supreme Military Council ''will keep a keen and watchful eye on your performance, your style of life and general public conduct while in office.''

He said the new administration, which came to power after the overthrow of the civilian Government of President Shehu Shagari on Dec. 31, ''will not tolerate fraud, indiscipline, corruption, squandermania, misuse and abuse of public office for self or group aggrandizement and other vices which characterize the civilian administration of the past four years.''

Of the 18 ministers named, only 7 are career military men. The proportion surprised some Western diplomats here but essentially accorded with statements by Mr. Buhari in an interview on Tuesday in which he said ''only a small number'' of military officers would be named to top political posts.

Apparently responding to criticism in the Nigerian press over the pace of decision-making under the new military regime, Mr. Buhari said that ''the appointment of ministers has taken us some time because we had to undertake a deep search for competent Nigerians of proven integrity, a high sense of discipline, public probity and transparent honesty.'' According to some Nigerian and Western sources, several candidates for portfolios were reluctant to accept appointment until the stability and direction of the new Government became apparent.

A senior Western diplomatic source said most of the ministers named today ''are not particularly well known.'' Other sources added that they perceived no particular ideological bent among them. A diplomat said many appeared to be ''lesser lights with provincial rather than federal experience.''

Named to the key position of Minister of Finance was Dr. Onaolapo Soleye, who said that he had most recently been teaching industrial sociology at the University of Ibadan and that he had served in an earlier military government as a commissioner of industries and in the Ministry of Finance.

Dr. Soleye declined to comment on substantive policy matters, saying he had not had time to study the situation.

The new Minister of Petroleum and Energy is Prof. Tam David-West, a biologist by training and a former commissioner of education in Rivers State.

Asked about his prior experience in the oil industry, he said he was ''well versed in the issues.'' He, too, declined to discuss policies or plans.

A leading Nigerian businessman who has known Professor David-West said: ''He was probably picked because he is tough and something of a disciplinarian. A headmaster type, not easy to get along with.''

The new Minister of External Affairs is Dr. Ibrahim Gambari, who served most recently as director general of the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs, having been appointed by former President Shagari. Dr. Gambari, the 40-year-old son of an emir, received a Ph.D. in international relations from Columbia University in New York in 1974. The swearing-in ceremony took place in a wood-paneled conference room in a military compound in the Lagos suburb of Ikoyi.

Each appointee read an ''oath of allegiance'' followed by an ''oath of office.'' A section of the oath of office pledged that ''I will not allow my personal interests to influence my official conduct or my official decisions.''

Addressing the ministers after the ceremony, General Buhari said each would be expected to declare his assets within six weeks and to complete by the end of April a ''critical review'' of all projects and programs under way within their ministries.

He said the new administration must ''curb the monstrous effects of a grossly mismanaged economy, galloping inflation and insure that food and other essential commodities are readily available at the easy reach of the ordinary citizen.''

http://www.nytimes.com/1984/01/19/world/cabinet-in-nigeria-installed-with-a-warning.html

buhari's lessthan a month is already equating jonah's 1yr

importexpert:
buhari's lessthan a month is already equating jonah's 1yr

From which planet did you fall from plz

masterchi:
www.saharareporters.com/2015/06/24/buhari's-disappearing-presidency-okey-ndibe

Abeg learn to arrange your posts for ease of reading and aesthetics...Be Organized...

ROSSIKE:
Isn't it a bit too early to be criticising Mr President? One month is simply insufficient time to draw a lot of the conclusions the writer has drawn.

u don't understand, i said all i saying now even before (he was voted to power?)because i m an astrologer, i forsee what will happen in this administration as soon as i see a SAGGITARIUS going for presidency( buhari is a saggitarius, he born on 17th December, on the ninth house of ZODIAC )

importexpert:
buhari's lessthan a month is already equating jonah's 1yr

i m an astrologer, jonathan is a scopio and buhari is a saggitarius, i foresee unspeakable error in leadership because he will not give thought to his actions,

Is there no
area where he feels the need for urgency?

Good question.

Buhari will regret his second coming. Already he is a calamity to nigerians. Kidnapping on the rise, boko haram fortifying more n more, oil bin price as if its okirika clothes,. So many things are going wrong

barcanista:
Buhari is only occupying office. He has no clue! Nigeria is on Auto-pilot

wa gbayi Barcanista! (You will be crowned with honour). That man just enjoys been president that is all I see in his conduct, he is yet to catch up with the concept of a modern Nigeria. His APC family member have been engaging themselves in a free for all and he has not deemed it fit to interfere, he pretends he doesn't want to interfere but it seems the truth is that, he doesn't know what to do as he has not played politics in a while.

dealslip:


wa gbayi Barcanista! (You will be crowned with honour). That man just enjoys been president that is all I see in his conduct, he is yet to catch up with the concept of a modern Nigeria. His APC family member have been engaging themselves in a free for all and he has not deemed it fit to interfere, he pretends he doesn't want to interfere but it seems the truth is that, he doesn't know what to do as he has not played politics in a while.

hahaha@Dealslip thanks for your prayers and more to you. Baba is enjoying a perfect retirement in Aso rock. He isn't concerned with the APC troubles or even Nigeria troubles.

SR serving PMB what they served GEJ during his regime, the writer indeed hit the nail on the head...

PMB vied for the position for 12years so in all those years of campaigning and politicking he couldn't get the so called competent and honest nigerians he his searching for now Or how hard is it to get 19 competent and honest nigerians to man the 19 ministerial slots

I guess PMB was never ready for the task ahead with his action and inactions as stated by the writer...IMHO

Buhari one chance we in a big almighty mess. The dullard is failing...

dealslip:


wa gbayi Barcanista! (You will be crowned with honour). That man just enjoys been president that is all I see in his conduct, he is yet to catch up with the concept of a modern Nigeria. His APC family member have been engaging themselves in a free for all and he has not deemed it fit to interfere, he pretends he doesn't want to interfere but it seems the truth is that, he doesn't know what to do as he has not played politics in a while.

Chai!!!
This dude is mouthed

vivalavida:


Chai!!!
This dude is mouthed

she's a lady

Of a truth, going by this article, PMB and his style have not changed a bit since 1984 and this is worrisome.
Really worrisome because he of all people should always remember how things ended up for him in 1984.

Bearing in mind all that is at stake, my prayer is that if he is going to fail, he should fail so spectacularly in his
1st 100 days, that way, we will all be forced back to the drawing table to chart a proper course for this country. It is kinder
for this to happen than for him to use the next 4yrs to fail as that will be too hefty a punishment for us all.

Buhari is a big fraud who squeeked thru to Aso Rock by false misrepresentation,outright lies and exploiting the gullibility of northerners.

Nigeria will live to regret big time.

They are here commenting on an article from SR and none so far has called the newspaper the usual names they call them because the publication suits their bigoted minds. Sheer hypocrites I hear someone say.

One was even naïve enough to quote a portion of the article highlighting some part that states the comatose nature of the educational system "for sometime now", not knowing the statement is a direct indictment on the immediate past president he so viciously defends as the best thing that ever happened to this country. Well, one of those things Jonathan bequeathed on the nation apparently is a collapsed educational sector.

As for Ndibe, most of his articles make a lot of sense, but on this one, I think it's a tad bit too early to draw daggers. Dude is barely a month in office.

Regardless, Jonathan was NEVER an option. That is a FACT.