Caleb-Nicholas Echoga THE NIGERIAN LEADERSHIP : A CONGLOMERATE OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC IGNORAMUSES Everyday I listen to news on Nigeria, I get more convinced that the government is getting better at devising ways of insulting our intelligence. The geniuses behind the decision to share Abacha's loot to the poor must be commended for their unparalleled incompetence on matters of governance. The Nigerian people are poor because the government has failed completely in providing the enabling environment for businesses to thrive whilst also failing to provide jobs. For God sake, what can 5,000 naira a month do for families in Nigeria bedevilled with untold hardship and lack? What ever happened to putting in place genuine socio-economic programmes for skill acquisition, trade learning, education and self empowerment. And by empowerment I do not mean the the farce stages by our 'legislathieves' and 'executhieves' where cutlasses, hoes and wheelbarrows are distributed to graduates, I mean genuine poverty alleviation programmes. A Japanese proverb comes to mind. " Give a man fish and you feed him for a day; teach him how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime". But you know, I'm not concerned about the disbursement of the monies to the poor. I'm only fixated on one question. What is the criteria for determining who the poor amongst us are? A program which superficially is intended to aid the poor is one I see as another avenue for the plundering and looting of our collective wealth. In no distant future I wont be surprised of reports of individuals in government having registered several of their family members or certain persons receiving stipends for several others. But I'm not only concerned about how these funds will reach those who truly deserve it. I'm very concerned about the states benefiting from the Abacha's Loot. Which is miles away from a disbursement formula hinged on equity. The National Cash Transfer Office has listed the beneficiary states as : Niger, Kogi, Ekiti, Osun,Oyo,Kwara, Cross River, Bauchi, Gombe,Jigawa, Benue, Taraba, Adamawa, Kano, Katsina, Kaduna, Plateau, Nasarrawa, Anambra and Internally Displaced Persons Camps (IDPs) in Borno. Whilst disbursement to the middle belt states ravaged by herdsmen attack is conscionable, I do not understand the justification for the inclusion of states as Gombe, Jigawa, Oyo and Osun sates amongst others. Anambra is the only state in the entire southeast included in the list and Crossriver the only oil producing state. Oil for decades has been the mainstay of the Nigeria economy. it is therefore difficult to understand why communities ravaged by the effect of oil exploration are not included as beneficiaries. Are the only poor people in Nigeria found in the North? A responsible government, sincere about fighting corruption in its various forms including nepotism must reduce all fora for it to survive. Our long history of looting should be a guide for the government to ensure that the recovered loot is used in the best possible way for Nigerians whilst reducing channels of waste. Whatever happened to using the funds to make JAMB and WAEC forms for every Nigerian free for 2 years? Why can't the funds be dedicated to ending the never ending rift between ASUU and the federal government to address the infrastructural mess within our public universities? Unless the government is willing to show an acceptable criteria for determining the poorest Nigerians, whilst ensuring national representation , it should put these monies into genuine national programmes as suggested, which every Nigeria can benefit from. # getyourpvctoday !!