Nigeria’s Insecurity: Is Jonathan the Problem?

Written by Tonnie Iredia Sunday, 11 September 2011 00:00


Last week, the topical issue was the perceived weakness of President Goodluck Jonathan to which many critics attributed the high level of insecurity in the nation. It was against the backdrop that people assessed the performance of the President after 100 days in office and scored him exceedingly low. Many faulted his appointment of an acting President of the Court of Appeal as well as Nigeria’s recognition of the Libyan ‘rebels’ ahead of a regional position by the African Union (AU). Some of us wondered aloud too that it was annoying to have a President in a nation made up of communities that have no water, light, roads, food or shelter. In short, most critics found nothing good about the Jonathan administration. The impression was also created that the current problems in our society are new. We are unable to agree with the out-right condemnation

In the case of our ending public power problem for example, we appear to have forgotten how we all castigated the government of President Obasanjo for allegedly wasting billions of naira on the power project. The criticism was so intense that the National Assembly set up a panel to probe it. Rather than unearth the problem, the probe panel itself got a worse image as its members got entangled in accusations of corruption. Who takes that blame? Again the Yar’Adua administration promised to give Nigerians thousands of electricity megawatts at the end of its first year in office. Officials of that government later articulated many points to justify a premeditated failure. It is therefore not fair to hit Jonathan below the belt on the issue of power; so is the case with water, food, road and shelter. But if the goal is to list our unending problems it is obvious that we can no longer add fuel shortage. We should therefore praise President Jonathan for that and other achievements such as the signing into law of the Freedom of Information Bill which showed his commitment to unveil governance and strengthen participatory democracy. We should also praise him for not neglecting the youth, having doubled the allowance paid to members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC). The new minimum wage is also a plus and so is the handling of women affairs following the inclusion of many of them in the cabinet.

As for the nation’s insecurity, not many people know that the situation has not substantially changed. What appears to have changed is the group of perpetrators, the nature of their grievances and the part of the country from which they operate. For example, while the bombing of the Abuja office of the United Nations is condemnable especially as it exposes Nigeria to international ridicule, the fate of many foreign nationals in the Niger Delta had for years produced the same effect. At that time, we blamed those causing the mayhem, their sponsors and their kith and kin and not the President; we accused leaders of the area like Chief Edwin Clark of doing nothing to call their people to order. This time, it appears it is time to similarly blame our northern leaders. It is indeed more persuasive to do so now that the Department of State Security (SSS) has uncovered a building located at a popular area known as Chechnya, Hayin-Uku village in Tafa Local Government Area of Niger State where bombs are being manufactured and assembled

Rather than blame the President in the case of Justice Ayo Salami it is better to recognize it as a period when the Nigerian Judiciary behaved like a child born drunk and to hope that the body would introspect, accept its failing and quickly purge itself of the mess. First, if it was the President that influenced our top judges to act as they did, then they need to be reminded of the African adage that when you send a man the message of a slave, he has a duty to deliver it as a free born. . Second, because it does not presently suit us, some of us are unhappy that the President did not over-rule the NJC. Can we in all honesty wish for a convention whereby the NJC‘s opinions are not respected by another arm of government? The truth is that we now know that even the apex of our judiciary cannot be excluded from Nigerian institutions that are unwholesome. Many of our institutions are like that. We recall that recently, some candidates who sat for the May/June Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination (SSSCE) had two conflicting results of the same exam released to them, within two weeks, by the West African Examinations Council (WAEC). Some of the affected candidates told the media that the examination body graded them on subjects for which they did not register and which they did not sit.

One of the points critics have against Jonathan is that he is too slow. It is said that he took too long to form a cabinet. Interestingly, the record shows that, after the inauguration of President Yar’Adua, his cabinet took off on July 26, 2007. In 2011, Jonathan inaugurated his cabinet on July 2nd - meaning that he was three clear weeks faster. Indeed, he did not wait for his entire team to be ready; whoever was cleared got immediately mobilized to perform. The composition of a cabinet as a charge to Jonathan being too slow thus misses the point. In any case, if the man is too slow, why are the same critics unhappy that he moved too fast in recognizing Libya’s National Transitional Council (NTC)? Should anyone really be angry that Nigeria which seeks to lead Africa takes the lead in a matter? If we do, we will be contradicting our endorsement of the glorious days of Nigeria’s foreign policy when the Murtala/Obasanjo military administration took the lead in African affairs. Whereas many are aware that Gaddafi is perhaps the most notorious of Africa’s sit-tight rulers, having been in power for 42 years, not many know that Libya has had no constitution. Gaddafi merely exploited his people and ran a government based on some principles in his personal record known as “the green book”. It seems uncharitable to criticize Jonathan for recognizing victorious freedom fighters against a despot who also openly canvassed the dismemberment of Nigeria

The purpose of this article is to draw attention to the fact that criticism for its own sake can be dysfunctional and that it is ill-advisable in a society like ours where public cynicism is at its height. In other words, it is expedient to dissuade critics from uninformed charges. President Jonathan as a human being may have his failings which we are free to criticize. We are also at liberty as a people to expect much from his government because it is probably the first to come to office through a proper election, but we need to credit the President with his achievements no matter how few they may be. That is the best starting point to challenge and encourage him to do more.

http://www.sunday.dailytrust.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=7780:nigerias-insecurity-is-jonathan-the-problem&catid=63:point-blank&Itemid=115

My wife just left me - it must be jonathan