Hope in Nigeria
Hail the useful chief

To thrive, Nigerians need strong medicine. They may at last be about to get it
May 26th 2011 | from the print edition


BACKHANDERS are so common in Nigeria that they feature in the country’s unofficial anthem, “International Thief Thief”. Its author, Fela Kuti, the late father of the Afrobeat genre, sang in 1980, To become of high position here / Him go bribe some thousand naira bread / To become one useless chief. When a Broadway musical based on Kuti’s life premiered in Lagos recently, fans shouted out the names of today’s leaders over the first few bars. Little has changed since the song was written.

When The Economist requested an interview with the president, we were asked whether we would contribute to his election campaign—or whether the president should pay us.


Politicians in all parts of the world want bungs(bribe, tips) But Nigerian leaders are so greedy that they have subverted the entire machinery of state to serve their needs. Every policy is a scam, every regulation a source of rent (see article).

Freed from kleptocrats, Nigeria could be an African giant. It has the people, resources and entrepreneurial metabolism to make it one of the world’s 20 leading economies, reckons PwC, a consultancy.[/b]Today it ranks 132nd by GDP per head.

[b]More than two-thirds of its people live on under $2 a day. Despite its many resources, the amount of electricity that is delivered to each Nigerian is a thirtieth of the level in South Africa.

Most of the reforms Nigeria needs have been desperately obvious for years. They include: privatising state-run companies, publishing credible accounts, entrusting the fight against corruption to independent investigators and, most of all, scrapping the regulations abused by rent-seeking officials.

The argument against this, usually advanced by those who gain most from the current system, is that Nigeria cannot take such strong medicine. The excuse is that a tense country with 250 ethnic groups needs a system of patronage to buy peace.

Nigeria is indeed fragile. At least 800 died during a four-day surge of violence last month and thousands perish in clashes every year. The country is divided between the Muslim north and the Christian and animist south. As southern boomtowns like Lagos emulate Bangalore, northern Nigeria risks becoming another Pakistan, home to hordes of impoverished extremists.

But this is all the more reason to press on with reform. Violence is fed by economic misery, not al-Qaeda. The non-oil part of the economy makes up just 4% of the private sector. Only unshackled private enterprise and a fairer distribution of oil revenues can halt the slide towards all-out conflict.

Nigeria’s chance

Few politicians do more than pay lip service to reforms. That could now change. On May 29th Goodluck Jonathan will be inaugurated as president. Mr Jonathan, a former vice-president, is relatively untainted by corruption and has the instincts of a reformer. As interim president, after his predecessor’s early death, he started to privatise the power sector and gave the election commission its first independent head.

Under him Nigeria last month held the fairest poll in its history. International observers confirmed the outcome, giving Mr Jonathan a strong enough mandate to undertake reform. He strengthened his position by pledging not to run again, lessening the need to buy support from cronies.

Whether Mr Jonathan has the will to tackle the establishment remains to be seen. He may only muddle through. But the door is open. This is Nigeria’s best chance in a generation to shed its reputation as Africa’s wasted opportunity.

http://www.economist.com/node/18744065?story_id=18744065

Under him Nigeria last month held the fairest poll in its history. International observers confirmed the outcome, giving Mr Jonathan a strong enough mandate to undertake reform. He strengthened his position by pledging not to run again, lessening the need to buy support from cronies.

Whether Mr Jonathan has the will to tackle the establishment remains to be seen. He may only muddle through. But the door is open. This is Nigeria’s best chance in a generation to shed its reputation as Africa’s wasted opportunity.

We shall see.

Well, at-least, he was tactful this time around.

Obviously, it was his attempt at bribing The Economist for favorable write-up

BullCRAP!!!

I refuse to be optimistic about Nigeria anymore. I'm tired of having my heart broken. I expect GEJ to be the same or worse than he has been in the last year and am planning accordingly. Just the latest of a long series of selfish, useless leaders.

If you know how many of these "If only <New President> would just <stop stealing/reform government> then Nigeria will be great" articles I've read in the foriegn press over the past 15 years. The problem is that the new presidents never stop stealing. Given past experience, it will be foolish to expect GEJ to be any different.

Maybe we'll be pleasantly surprised , but I doubt it.

we can see where all the so called endorsements of gej are coming from

lets se those gej thugs/apologists call for a ban of the economist

ibb did the same in his day he bannd the economist from nigeria, they featured this in one of their ads - get the economist - if u can

a bizarre mixture of chicanery, stupidity and naivete

do they think the economist is like those brown envelope rags we call news media?

lmao

So did they pay the bribe or not?

ekt_bear:

lmao

So did they pay the bribe or not? 

Maybe for the second half of the article 

Don't understand how the topic fits what I think is a very brilliant article from The Economist.

When The Economist requested an interview with the president, we were asked whether we would contribute to his election campaign—or whether the president should pay us.

Funnily, the person that pays the most money to foreign media is our Super Performing Governor- Fashola himself. The Economist, CNN, CNBC, Bloomberg et al have all at one time or the other benefited from the largesse of the Lagos Taxpayer. Its normal to use the media as a PR tool especially to attract investments. Just not for political campaign.

I sincere think whoever the writer spoke to was trying to make a point that the most important thing at that moment was a campaign for re-election and the interview he is requesting for would not be necessary except it would contribute to the success of his campaign. The writer simply didn't understand.

Albeit, the article is an excellent piece that potrays the hope Jonathan's presidency has inspired amongst the international community and investors alike which by any count is great news.

Nigeria’s chance

Few politicians do more than pay lip service to reforms. That could now change. On May 29th Goodluck Jonathan will be inaugurated as president. Mr Jonathan, a former vice-president, is relatively untainted by corruption and has the instincts of a reformer. As interim president, after his predecessor’s early death, he started to privatise the power sector and gave the election commission its first independent head.

Under him Nigeria last month held the fairest poll in its history. International observers confirmed the outcome, giving Mr Jonathan a strong enough mandate to undertake reform. He strengthened his position by pledging not to run again, lessening the need to buy support from cronies.

Whether Mr Jonathan has the will to tackle the establishment remains to be seen. He may only muddle through. But the door is open. This is Nigeria’s best chance in a generation to shed its reputation as Africa’s wasted opportunity.

PapaBrowne:

Don't understand how the topic fits what I think is a very brilliant article from The Economist.

Funnily, the person that pays the most money to foreign media is our Super Performing Governor- Fashola himself. The Economist, CNN, CNBC, Bloomberg et al have all at one time or the other benefited from the largesse of the Lagos Taxpayer. Its normal to use the media as a PR tool especially to attract investments. Just not for political campaign.

I sincere think whoever the writer spoke to was trying to make a point that the most important thing at that moment was a campaign for re-election and the interview he is requesting for would not be necessary except it would contribute to the success of his campaign. The writer simply didn't understand.

Albeit, the article is an excellent piece that potrays the hope Jonathan's presidency has inspired amongst the international community and investors alike which by any count is great news.

Of course you understand, but you chose to focus on one part of the article while glossing over the main point the writer made about public corruption and graft which obviously necessitated his reference to campaign "contribution". You obviously understood.

Also, The writer knew what he was talking about. It does us no good to accept his positive words about GEJ's chances and efforts while dismissing his "negative" comments as oh, "he simply didn't understand"

GEJ is not a devil, fact. But some of us are not in the business of making politicians comfortable and happy too.

I'm convinced you want the best for Nigeria as I do. But we have different ways of making our politicans do the right thing, different ways of making them accountable

For me, I'll rather my leaders constantly feel the prying uncomfortable eyes of demanding and questioning followers, than bask in the praise and adulation of sycophants.


IMO we need to work more on making corruption difficult for these people and that is the point hidden in plain sight within that article, that is the point I'll rather focus on.




Please permit me to take some creative liberties with your last statement:

Albeit, the article is an excellent piece that potrays the rot and misery that unchecked corruption has brought to our people. Jonathan's presidency will do well to tackle this monster, restructure this country and inspire our people to greatness in the international community.

^^^^^
That is the great news I want to hear about Goodluck Jonathan.