http://newtelegraphonline.com/row-over-performance-pdp-apc-flex-muscles-over-buhari/

WALE ELEGBEDE looks at the resurgence of banters between the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) over the achievements of President Muhammadu Buhari after 30 days in office


For many Nigerians, the ascension of office by President Muhammadu Buhari on May 29 was a salvaging point for the country which has hitherto been in the grip of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for 16 years until March 28 when Buhari trounced former President Goodluck Jonathan at the polls. With the euphoria of the swearing- in over, the enthusiasm and anticipation to see the president hit the ground running started mounting. On a daily basis after the well-attended presidential inauguration, many Nigerians were keeping tab on the activities of the president to know what he is up to in his daily itinerary.
Within a blink of an eye, it’s already 30 days and Nigerians are already divided on what constitutes their assessments of the take-off of President Buhari. While some see it as satisfactory, others clearly considered it as the same order in a different platform. No doubt, the burden of expectations from Nigerians on Buhari is huge especially with his pre-election promise to stamp out the twin vices of corruption and insecurity and to ensure the evolvement of a virile economy that would give a new lease of life to massive employment.
Although 30 days seem so short a period to judge an elected public official running a four-year term, the tradition of counting days in office for office holders have gradually become part of Nigeria’s democratic tradition, hence the reason why critics, stakeholders and commentators taking on the new government and faulting it over the failure of the president to unveil his ministers, Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Chief of Staff, replacement for the Service Chiefs, Special Advisers as well as a handful of critical appointments.
The tradition of performance assessment based on days spent in office was popularised by the 32nd president of the United States, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who was able to accomplish much within his first 100 days in office. Since Nigeria’s democracy is fashioned after the United States model, the first days in office have been used to predict how each administration, since President Olusegun Obsanjo was elected in 1999, has fared.
PDP fires the first salvo
Questioning the pace of the Buhari-led government, the PDP, which is the leading opposition party, rose from the ashes of ignominious defeat it suffered last March and described the president’s 30 days in office as all motion and no movement. In a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh, the party said the Buhari administration is finding it difficult to locate its bearing and even take off and face the challenges of governance at the centre resulting in 30 days of all motion and no movement, adding that such a scenario does not augur well for the polity.
“We urge Nigerians to join hands in prayers and offer useful suggestions to President Buhari and the APC because with what we have seen in the last 30 days, the present administration is finding it very difficult to get its bearings right while showing no inclination towards implementing its numerous campaign promises for which they were voted into office at the centre. “We are deeply worried that the president, who promised to unveil his cabinet two weeks after his inauguration, has not been able to decide on key appointments such as ministers, Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Chief of Staff and advisers in key sectors of the economy.
“This is more so as the delay has brought government business in ministries, departments and agencies to a dangerous standstill with coordination of important policies vested on ministers and the SGF now in tatters while the system drifts. This situation also creates loopholes through which overzealous persons around that president can connive with unscrupulous elements in the bureaucracy to siphon public resources in addition to possibly misleading the president to violate due process by spending beyond and outside his statutory limits.”
Linking its alleged inaction of the president to the parlous state of the economy, the PDP said: “The situation is taking its toll on the economy sector, which has in the 30 days witnessed unprecedented decline with a terrifying crippling of foreign and domestic investments including activities in the money and capital market sectors.
Under President Buhari, the stock market has lost over N238 billion while the All-Share Index fell by 849.87 basis points as at June 19. “While we remind the president and the APC that their campaign promises are bonds which must be fulfilled, we urge him to use the next 10 days to set up his government by naming his ministers, the SGF and advisers in critical sectors as Nigerians did not vote for a sole administrator but for a democratic government,” the PDP stated.
Presidency rates Buhari high
Rebuffing PDP’s tag on Buhari’s 30 days government as inertia, the Presidency said the Nigerian “Augean stable” left behind by the PDP government was being cleaned of filth, adding that such effort requires scrupulous and painstaking planning. Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina said the Buhari administration is naturally contemplative of its every move because all sectors of “national life was devalued” by the PDP government. Adesina said: “It is amusing to read what Metuh considers a 30- day appraisal of the Muhammadu Buhari administration.
“He wants Nigerians to join hands in prayers for the government, so that things would begin to move. What he does not know is that Nigerians had long formed such coalition. “The Buhari administration is naturally contemplative because there was absolutely no rhyme or reason to the way PDP ran the country, particularly in the immediate past dispensation.
“That is why the Augean Stable is being cleaned now, and it requires scrupulous and painstaking planning. “Across all sectors, our national life was devalued, and it takes meticulousness and sure-footedness to repair all the breaches. “This, the Buhari administration will deliver.
Metuh talks of people round the President conniving with bureaucrats to syphon money from the treasury. “This must be deja vu, as it was the pastime of the immediate past administration, and the enormity of the sleaze will be evident when stolen money, to the tune of billions of dollars, is recovered, and returned to the national treasury soon. “Metuh and his masters can only rue the missed opportunities to make salutary impact on the lives of Nigerians. They have a long road of regrets to travel.”
Buhari’s performance index
Speaking with newsmen in Lagos last week on Buhari’s first month performance rating, the APC National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said the president has eight achievements to his name in the first 30 days of assuming office. According to Mohammed, the APC government has both motion and movement, adding that the performance of Buhari in tackling insecurity under one month far outweighs what former President Jonathan did throughout his five years in office. “The Buhari administration got the handover notes from the former government just four days before the inauguration, hampering its efforts to have a clear understanding of the situation on the ground before taking the necessary measures to address it. “The Buhari administration has hit the ground running in the area of security.
The president had hardly been sworn into office than he embarked on a shuttle diplomacy to rally Nigeria’s neighbours to act as a common front against the terror group Boko Haram,” Mohammed noted. The APC publicity secretary said the Buhari administration has recorded major gains in certain sectors, including security and terrorism war; the fight against corruption; and restoration of Nigeria’s pride in the comity of nations. “Since President Buhari’s election on March 28, Nigeria has been moving fast to regain its deserved place in the comity of respected nations. Leaders who once shunned Nigeria have been inviting, in droves, President Buhari to visit their countries. The latest is United States President Barack Obama, who will play host to our President at the White House on July 20th.
“The election of the immediate past Minister of Agriculture, Akinwunmi Adeshina, as the President of African Development Bank (AfDB) is yet another indication that Nigeria is regaining its lost glory under Mr. Buhari,” he said. Speaking at another platform over the weekend, Muhammad said the description of Buhari as being slow is a perception, adding that, “this is the first time there will be a transition. He is not slow. I can assure you that in the next few weeks, very soon, there’ll be a rash of appointments.”
Mohammed said part of the progress the government had made was the directive given to some agencies to pay monies directly into the federation account and close other illegal accounts. He listed the agencies as Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and Nigeria Customs Service (NCS).
Distracted by APC’s crisis?
For some analysts, the inac-tion of the president cannot be divorced from the internal bickering rocking his party, the APC. For those in this line of thought, Buhari is trying to tread cautiously with his decisions and deeds because he knew that Nigerians saw him as the emblem of change in the party and would not want to squander the goodwill he commands from all parts of the country. The APC has been embroiled in the National Assembly leadership crisis and this has led to formation of caucuses and groups within the party.
Though there are series of efforts to resolve the crisis, the body languages of the gladiators, however, depicts that the wrangling is far from being over. Those who have signpost the president’s first month in office with the internal strife in his party believed that the National Assembly leadership crisis if not quickly doused, may even escalate by the time the president reel out his list of ministers. To them, this dysfunction is one of the reasons why Buhari is still keeping the cabinet list close to his chest.
In a statement credited to the former interim National Chairman of APC, Chief Bisi Akande, the president and APC governors should commence a joint damage control effort to salvage the party from the internal crisis so that the change the APC promised Nigerians will come to fruition.
Jonathan’s 30 days rating
The scenario of the first 30 days in office between former President Jonathan and the incumbent, President Buhari, is not the same. While the former had been in an acting capacity prior to his formal ascension as elected president in 2011, the latter came into Aso Rock as a fresh face, although he was once a military Head of State.
Two common denominators between Buhari and Jonathan are that they both ascended power in May 29, 2011 and no sooner had both of them took over power that they embarked on foreign trips to solicit and engage the support of the international community for Nigeria.
In his speech after he was sworn in on May 29, Jonathan promised to transform the economy and fight for an improved quality of life for all Nigerians through a six-point agenda. On June 27, 2011, Jonathan forwarded 34 ministerial nominees to the Senate for approval and he was able to constitute his cabinet four weeks after, though in batches.
Appointments so far
The president has made nine appointments namely: Director- General of the Department of State Services (DSS), Lawal Daura; Acting Chairman, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Mrs. Amina Bala Zakari; Director, the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), Mr. Mordecai Danteni Baba Ladan and Accountant-General of the Federation, Alhaji Ahmed Idris. Others are: Chief Security Officer, Bashir Abubakar; State Chief of Protocol, Mallam Lawal Abdullahi Kazaure; Aide De Camp, Lt.- Col. Muhammed Lawal Abubakar; Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina and Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu.
The 2019 race
Though the race for the next general elections is still early, the underground tone for the fireworks between the different parties and gladiators are centred on the race for the 2019 election. While the APC is seeking to consolidate and cement its pedigree among Nigerians as the party of choice, the PDP which is gradually coming out of his mourning mood is tactically warming its way back into the political glare which it once controlled. In days to come, the toxic relationship between both parties will come with interesting nuances but as it is now, Nigerians are still the deciding factor in the whole equation.