Very instructive piece. I hope we have more of this here.

babafirst:
Oya you don insult the man finish without making any academic point,we know say you sabi insult person now lets have your point countering his comment in a literate and academic manner.

No be insult na correction..this topic has become hackneyed to be honest..those western and European countries the op mentioned haven't always had it rosy. From the economic meltdown in the early 1940s to the one in the recent past between 2008/2009..they have one bargaining chip however, TECHNOLOGY.. Diversification is all good,but just diversifying won't cut it if we want to be reckoned with those world powers..let me make it simple, even if you sell a barrel of palm oil to an european at 200 $/brl you will still come up short eventually. Yes you might have more money in your pocket but the European will will get more finished products(like cosmetics, beverages, industrial paints etc) from that barrel and then sell them back to you at thrice the price of the barrel..and you end up giving him back the money you saved..as long as Nigeria's economy keeps threading on the consuming path,she will never have enough in her pocket and will not break that "third world" barrier..trying to defend the naira through superficial means is just delaying the inevitable.

babafirst:
[]

First Oil prices started dropping in june 2014 and couldnt have been up to $157. In fact never gotten to that amount (peaked $145.85). Secondly we shouldn't be talking about oil prices and GEJ's tenure. Google "global gdp and oil price", and you will realize that both graphs have exactly the same trend from point to point. This arbitrarily put means a babangida selling oil prices for $15/bbl would have purchased Mercedes benz cars at 100000naira compared to a GEJ selling oil at $100/bbl and buying same mercedes benz cars at 15million naira.

Obj started of on a budget of about billion and based on his benchmark price of crude which fottunately witnessed a price increase, could afford to save in the eca or increase reserves. GEJ had budgets of ober 4 trillion plus leakages that hadn't been plugged by successive administrations this oul was not even enough to fund his budget. Take a lool at minimum wages he paid, or corpers allowances plus crude theft then consider the budget of 2016 predicated on 38$/bbl.


If we do a rough maths, $38/bbl makes a contribution of 860billion to the 2016 budget. Scale up both figures by 3 and what do you have, a $114/bbl benchmark (unrealistic) would have contributed a value of 2.58trillion on a budget of over 4 trillion. So do you see that even using all the oil sales proceeds to fund his budget would have still left him with a huge deficit.
Ps: (this Illustration is just an overtly simplistic calculation).Relating your Mercedes Benz logic to the present day it means PMB is disadvantaged because the price of Mercedes has not reduced and oil price has fallen.So IBB could have had an advantage but PMB unfortunately can't enjoy that.

Yeah if you noticed I had said "arbitrarily put".

Topeakintola:



God bless you too

I agree that the over bloated nature of the civil service in Africa is a key problem , however I think the key word you used in"inefficient".

The majority of the civil service workforce in Nigeria lack the capacity to create any meaningful output. The causes range from lack of qualifications, experience and most especially, the systemic corruption embedded in the civil service.

Btw, The US, UK and France have very large civil service structures too but what they have been able to achieve is to reduce inefficiencies and improve their processes. The patronage you mentioned in your post is also very prevalent in the West- it is known as the "jobs for the boys". Where they have an advantage is that they have a culture based on continuos improvement.

For Nigeria, I think we have far too many MDAs. A lot of them duplicating responsibilities. A lot of those paratatals have to go and the government should restructure the entire civil service.

The problem we will have is the consequences from Labour Unions and even the general public. There will be public outcry and I dont think most governments will not want to risk it

Rightly put, especially your last statement.

sarutobie:

No be insult na correction..this topic has become hackneyed to be honest..those western and European countries the op mentioned haven't always had it rosy. From the economic meltdown in the early 1940s to the one in the recent past between 2008/2009..they have one bargaining chip however, TECHNOLOGY.. Diversification is all good,but just diversifying won't cut it if we want to be reckoned with those world powers..let me make it simple, even if you sell a barrel of palm oil to an european at 200 $/brl you will still come up short eventually. Yes you might have more money in your pocket but the European will will get more finished products(like cosmetics, beverages, industrial paints etc) from that barrel and then sell them back to you at thrice the price of the barrel..and you end up giving him back the money you saved..as long as Nigeria's economy keeps threading on the consuming path,she will never have enough in her pocket and will not break that "third world" barrier..trying to defend the naira through superficial means is just delaying the inevitable.

I agree we actually need to graduate from a consuming nation to a producing nation.But since we have refused to start early don't you think in the short term some superficial measures like the restrictions on Foreign currency could be helpful.I agree,we are in 'soup' no doubt ,though.

Topeakintola:


Good analysis, however, after you have identified the trend/problem, it will be nice for you to proffer solutions as well.

I think Nigeria's problem is based on the size of government which leads to high recurrent expenditure. (im not sure, I think it forms over half of total expenditure)= unsustainable

If these successive administrations streamlined size of the government, then maybe it would have freed more funds for capital projects . This would have been more beneficial in the long run

Fortunately, you are getting the point NavierStokes is making (Big Shoutout to NavierStokes).

Nigeria does not have one problem. It is impossible to pinpoint the root cause of our problem.

If you say the size of government is the problem, then you should know two things:
1. Reducing the size of the government will drive up the unemployment rate
2. There will be reduced government spending which should stimulate the economy. Recurrent expenditure stimulates Nigeria's economy even better than capital expenditure (because capital expenditure are bloated [OBJ paid $14m per km for a project that actually costs $4m per km], the bulk of the expenditure goes out of the country [Julius Berger, Chinese construction agencies], and some part of it is looted outside by those in charge [civil servants and politicians])

Nigeria has many problems and it is actually up to intellectuals to have a debate on which is the original problem.

To give you an idea, let's do a concise roundup of our current situation:

1. There is strong ethnic, religious, and regional divide in the country.
2. We have a culture that does not promote accountability (if you can do some projects in your tenure, no one cares about the amount spent, the loans taken, the repayment process of the loan, who performed the project [local versus international companies], if due process was followed...)
3. We have a short-sighted polity that are not willing to make the hard choice, they all want easy money in the short-term
4. The Nigerian people have chronic amnesia and do have heavily flawed conception of how a country is supposed to operate (for example, people just look at no savings under GEJ and assume only wastefulness caused it, even after protesting against subsidy removal that had us spending up to N1t annually, and even forgetting that college students stayed at home for several months because lecturers were demanding increase in pay of over 30%, or that consultants in our hospitals now earn about 50% of what the Inspector General of Police earns)

For me, the first step to resolving our problem is to change our style of governance. It has not worked in 16 years, it is not working in the 9 months since a change in government and from current outlook, it will never change. Adopt true federalism. It will greatly eliminate the huge religious, ethnic, and regional divide (people will be less concerned about the ethnicity of a federal appointee and more on the qualifications of the appointee aka death of federal charter). It will also make people hold the state and local governments more accountable and shift most of the work out of the federal government. The FG utilizes 55%, the state government get 45%. Even if the FG performs averagely, if the states perform well, the average Nigerian will have a relatively better standard of living. This will also take off more power from the center and ultimately lead to increased and sustainable diversification of the economy.

If we choose to continue in this our failed system of governance, we would not make any major headway. The infrastructural deficit in this country is more what the government can solve. Under PDP we invested around $20b in electricity to produce 4000 MW. Under the military, virtually same amount was invested for 1000 MW. Nigeria needs around 100,000 MW. Even with the privatization, it will take us over a decade to get uninterrupted power supply around the country if things go well. Anyone telling you otherwise is playing politics with your future and that of your children. We all know how critical electricity is to the economy of the country.

I've gone long enough. The fact is that it is futile to discuss how to make this country better, because the people who know how to make the country better and have the will to are not in positions of authority and will never be supported by the simpletons in the Nigerian populace.

-Lord

NavierStokes:


Yeah if you noticed I had said "arbitrarily put".

Yes I noticed the words,I only wanted to observe that particular point .

omolola15:
God bless you op for this wonderful piece. People keep blaming Buhari for naira downfall. But really it has been falling for a long time. But because of the oil boom we didn't really know. I use to say the past administrations could have done more for this country. Oil was selling at a record high. Instead of them to help this country with foreign reserve, they keep helping their pockets. Now Nigeria makes virtually nothing from oil. So I don't think anything can be done to redeem the naira this year. It's gonna be a gradual process, hence we need to be patient and hope we get over this trying times.

This country will be great only if we can defeat corruption.

God bless Nigeria.

happney65 oya come and say something. I know you'll see negativity in this lovely piece. Sebi na you.

Is this about negativity or saying the truth?Shey na today Naira dey fall?abi na today oil down Fall?Answer my question naa.But it wasn't as worse as this..345 to one Dollar?Habba..When GEJ was president,No be Fashola and Ameachi talk say make them share the Money?No be them abi u don forget?Answer naa..The rate did not go pass 200naira..But now with just a little difference in the rate oil was sold to now it has fallen to 345 and you don't see anything wrong in it and You think the stupid economic policies of Mr Bubu is okay..Abi no be so?

Obama meet a systematic failure coupled with stupid policies from Bush and cleaned it up..A Global Financial crises which some countries are still reeling from and cleaned the mess up..So Mr Bubu the ball is on he's table..he is making Nigeria worse than he meet it..How the Budget Palava,shey them don fix am?Bunch of Hypocrites..

stanleyazo:
Good post... it could help some wailers ..

nothing can help people whose minds are closed

LordAdam:


Fortunately, you are getting the point NavierStokes is making (Big Shoutout to NavierStokes).

Nigeria does not have one problem. It is impossible to pinpoint the root cause of our problem.

If you say the size of government is the problem, then you should know two things:
1. Reducing the size of the government will drive up the unemployment rate
2. There will be reduced government spending which should stimulate the economy. Recurrent expenditure stimulates Nigeria's economy even better than capital expenditure (because capital expenditure are bloated [OBJ paid $14m per km for a project that actually costs $4m per km], the bulk of the expenditure goes out of the country [Julius Berger, Chinese construction agencies], and some part of it is looted outside by those in charge [civil servants and politicians])

Nigeria has many problems and it is actually up to intellectuals to have a debate on which is the original problem.

To give you an idea, let's do a concise roundup of our current situation:

1. There is strong ethnic, religious, and regional divide in the country.
2. We have a culture that does not promote accountability (if you can do some projects in your tenure, no one cares about the amount spent, the loans taken, the repayment process of the loan, who performed the project [local versus international companies], if due process was followed...)
3. We have a short-sighted polity that are not willing to make the hard choice, they all want easy money in the short-term
4. The Nigerian people have chronic amnesia and do have heavily flawed conception of how a country is supposed to operate (for example, people just look at no savings under GEJ and assume only wastefulness caused it, even after protesting against subsidy removal that had us spending up to N1t annually, and even forgetting that college students stayed at home for several months because lecturers were demanding increase in pay of over 30%, or that consultants in our hospitals now earn about 50% of what the Inspector General of Police earns)

For me, the first step to resolving our problem is to change our style of governance. It has not worked in 16 years, it is not working in the 9 months since a change in government and from current outlook, it will never change. Adopt true federalism. It will greatly eliminate the huge religious, ethnic, and regional divide (people will be less concerned about the ethnicity of a federal appointee and more on the qualifications of the appointee aka death of federal charter). It will also make people hold the state and local governments more accountable and shift most of the work out of the federal government. The FG utilizes 55%, the state government get 45%. Even if the FG performs averagely, if the states perform well, the average Nigerian will have a relatively better standard of living. This will also take off more power from the center and ultimately lead to increased and sustainable diversification of the economy.

If we choose to continue in this our failed system of governance, we would not make any major headway. The infrastructural deficit in this country is more what the government can solve. Under PDP we invested around $20b in electricity to produce 4000 MW. Under the military, virtually same amount was invested for 1000 MW. Nigeria needs around 100,000 MW. Even with the privatization, it will take us over a decade to get uninterrupted power supply around the country if things go well. Anyone telling you otherwise is playing politics with your future and that of your children. We all know how critical electricity is to the economy of the country.

I've gone long enough. The fact is that it is futile to discuss how to make this country better, because the people who know how to make the country better and have the will to are not in positions of authority and will never be supported by the simpletons in the Nigerian populace.

-Lord

A perfect expose Lord, Nigeria's problem as you rightly put is hydra-headed and only the herculean idea of federalism can put it it death. Your last sentence is one that calls for concern, everybody wants true change but most would not recognise it if it stares them in the face.

Even the holy book says its an anomaly when princes walk on foot and servants ride on horses.
Imagine a kachikwu from harvard sucking up to a Buhari from Daura.

babafirst:
I agree we actually need to graduate from a consuming nation to a producing nation.But since we have refused to start early don't you think in the short term some superficial measures like the restrictions on Foreign currency could be helpful.I agree,we are in 'soup' no doubt ,though.

I won't say it entirely bad..it has it's pros and cons..but like I said, the pros are only superficial if the government doesn't formulate and embark on policies that resuscitate the economy.. The government wants investors to come and invest and also partner in various PPP.. But investors want to bring in dollars and maximize their spending powers in the economy (who will blame them?) But since it is not possible, they keep their monies and watch..at least until the government shows a viable roadmap for all to see..right now the government is still battling with it's budget..so the investors are still in 'siddon dey look' mode...we all are!

LordAdam:

The fact is that it is futile to discuss how to make this country better, because the people who know how to make the country better and have the will to are not in positions of authority and will never be supported by the simpletons in the Nigerian populace.

-Lord

Bottom line

We will be back here in 20 years with the same issues, we will talk about diversification like we did under SAP, we will talk of buy Nigeria and earning forex like we did under sap, but these are structural changes that take decades to materialise, before that happens Oil prices will recover, we will forget about diversification, we will have another boom, and we will squander it again because we are Nigerians.

When I tell people that, Abacha could not have looted even if he wanted to; they find it difficult to see past the malicious lies told about Abacha by enemies of Nigeria, who subsequently proceeded to loot Nigeria dry.

What they call returned Abacha loot has no links to Abacha in reality, in fact nobody has ever confirmed that any so called loot was ever returned to our treasury.

European , American authorities including neo-colonialist World Bank are part of the conspiracy to discredit and demonise the great Sani Abacha.

lookandlaff:


Bottom line

We will be back here in 20 years with the same issues, we will talk about diversification like we did under SAP, we will talk of buy Nigeria and earning forex like we did under sap, but these are structural changes that take decades to materialise, before that happens Oil prices will recover, we will forget about diversification, we will have another boom, and we will squander it again because we are Nigerians.

Sadly true. It can not be better put.

NavierStokes:


A perfect expose Lord, Nigeria's problem as you rightly put is hydra-headed and only the herculean idea of federalism can put it it death. Your last sentence is one that calls for concern, everybody wants true change but most would not recognise it if it stares them in the face.

Even the holy book says its an anomaly when princes walk on foot and servants ride on horses.
Imagine a kachikwu from harvard sucking up to a Buhari from Daura.

The word "ANOMALY" is elevated to a different level of meaning in Nigeria. In Nigeria black is white and white is blaxk. Up is down and front is back.lies are taken for truth and the truth is a punishable offence..

LordAdam:


Fortunately, you are getting the point NavierStokes is making (Big Shoutout to NavierStokes).

Nigeria does not have one problem. It is impossible to pinpoint the root cause of our problem.

If you say the size of government is the problem, then you should know two things:
1. Reducing the size of the government will drive up the unemployment rate
2. There will be reduced government spending which should stimulate the economy. Recurrent expenditure stimulates Nigeria's economy even better than capital expenditure (because capital expenditure are bloated [OBJ paid $14m per km for a project that actually costs $4m per km], the bulk of the expenditure goes out of the country [Julius Berger, Chinese construction agencies], and some part of it is looted outside by those in charge [civil servants and politicians])

Nigeria has many problems and it is actually up to intellectuals to have a debate on which is the original problem.

To give you an idea, let's do a concise roundup of our current situation:

1. There is strong ethnic, religious, and regional divide in the country.
2. We have a culture that does not promote accountability (if you can do some projects in your tenure, no one cares about the amount spent, the loans taken, the repayment process of the loan, who performed the project [local versus international companies], if due process was followed...)
3. We have a short-sighted polity that are not willing to make the hard choice, they all want easy money in the short-term
4. The Nigerian people have chronic amnesia and do have heavily flawed conception of how a country is supposed to operate (for example, people just look at no savings under GEJ and assume only wastefulness caused it, even after protesting against subsidy removal that had us spending up to N1t annually, and even forgetting that college students stayed at home for several months because lecturers were demanding increase in pay of over 30%, or that consultants in our hospitals now earn about 50% of what the Inspector General of Police earns)

For me, the first step to resolving our problem is to change our style of governance. It has not worked in 16 years, it is not working in the 9 months since a change in government and from current outlook, it will never change. Adopt true federalism. It will greatly eliminate the huge religious, ethnic, and regional divide (people will be less concerned about the ethnicity of a federal appointee and more on the qualifications of the appointee aka death of federal charter). It will also make people hold the state and local governments more accountable and shift most of the work out of the federal government. The FG utilizes 55%, the state government get 45%. Even if the FG performs averagely, if the states perform well, the average Nigerian will have a relatively better standard of living. This will also take off more power from the center and ultimately lead to increased and sustainable diversification of the economy.

If we choose to continue in this our failed system of governance, we would not make any major headway. The infrastructural deficit in this country is more what the government can solve. Under PDP we invested around $20b in electricity to produce 4000 MW. Under the military, virtually same amount was invested for 1000 MW. Nigeria needs around 100,000 MW. Even with the privatization, it will take us over a decade to get uninterrupted power supply around the country if things go well. Anyone telling you otherwise is playing politics with your future and that of your children. We all know how critical electricity is to the economy of the country.

I've gone long enough. The fact is that it is futile to discuss how to make this country better, because the people who know how to make the country better and have the will to are not in positions of authority and will never be supported by the simpletons in the Nigerian populace.

-Lord

Excellent points

I dont agree with your view on recurrent vs capital expenditure but good points

Restructuring the civil service may lead to unemployment in the short term but in the long run, it will be better for the country. Once the govt embarks on more capital projects, there will be need for sub-contractors and different layers of suppliers. If the govt institutes a local content strategy, then it will benefit the local economy.

Your point about federalism is valid but no one has explained how it will work i.e. sharing formular etc, will there be a need to change the current structure of the country? i.e. States vs Regions?

And as long as we still have corrupt politicians, they will steal and under-deliver even in the system you are advocating for.

Your last point is quite interesting Lord.

The fact is that it is futile to discuss how to make this country better, because the people who know how to make the country better and have the will to are not in positions of authority and will never be supported by the simpletons in the Nigerian populace.

Can you give us example of these people? Me never see one ooo

NavierStokes:


Godbless you brother, now we are in sync. I had spent the past few weeks reading the book by Martin Meredith: The state of Africa: a history of the continent since independence. There you will find out why virtually ever african country failed, the root cause i did identify was the overbloated and inefficient civil service. These were overbloated because the governments or ruling parties saw it as a means of patronage, where they compensate their followers and subjects with apoointments to score political points. Imagine cases of offices with several employed typists but only one functional typewriter etc.

Lets be honest If the government is a privately owned organization, will we have the type and quality of workforce we see today, or will service delivery and output be as seen today? Hell no.

Reduce the size of the recurrent expenditure, create an enabling environment so the bulk of those people can be on the private sector, focus on building infrastructure and watch the entrepreneurial spirit spring up among the citizens.

This also translates into increased output and ultimately a stronger value of the currency.

From a basic standpoint, the overbloated and inefficient civil service is a problem. However, it is not the root cause, especially when you extrapolate from a specific country to the whole continent. It is only a symptom of the problem. The root cause of the failures in Africa, in my opinion, is the fact that the people are simpletons. It is the people not those in power.

If we want to succeed, we have to change how we think, how we do things, and thoroughly evaluate what we want and how to get there.

The success of the pan-African movement championed by Zik, Nkrumah, Kaunda et al was that they had a different thought-process from the average African, possibly because they had western schooling. I'm not ass-licking now, but western education expanded their intellect. Why their pet projects failed was because they had vision but lacked the requisite supportive hands to bring that vision to reality. This is because the people they had to use still had the depressive, retrogressive African thought process.

Today the pan-African movement is dead and disgraceful because the original thought process behind it has been corrupted by the retrogressive basic African thought process.

Even if you streamline the work force, what about the crippling violent ethnic tensions and massive corruption tendencies? What about the accountability deficit? How about the irrepressible drive to celebrate mediocrity? What about the absolute lack of good governance and respect for rule of law? Look at the supposed African leaders at the AU? The current AU chairman is the president of Chad who has been in seat for 26 years.

Reducing the civil service will not magically erode these problems. In fact, the reason why we cannot reinvigorate the civil service is because of these problems.

-Lord

sarutobie:

The word "ANOMALY" is elevated to a different level of meaning in Nigeria. In Nigeria black is white and white is blaxk. Up is down and front is back.lies are taken for truth and the truth is a punishable offence..

If private institutions would want the best of the best to run their systems, why can't a country like ours go for the very best of them all.

Its almost time a first rate degree in law or economics from Harvard/Oxford becomes a criteria for aspiring into the top administrative offices in our country.

lookandlaff:


Bottom line

We will be back here in 20 years with the same issues, we will talk about diversification like we did under SAP, we will talk of buy Nigeria and earning forex like we did under sap, but these are structural changes that take decades to materialise, before that happens Oil prices will recover, we will forget about diversification, we will have another boom, and we will squander it again because we are Nigerians.

You've summed it all up..that was why I said that this topic has become hackneyed. Diversification is a word used by the government as far back as the 60s..all talks and no action..

NavierStokes:


If private institutions would want the best of the best to run their systems, why can't a country like ours go for the very best of them all.

Its almost time a first rate degreen in law or econimics from Harvard/Oxford becomes a criteria for aspiring into the top administrative offices in our country.

He he he he he he he he don't make me laugh bro! I told you that Nigeria is a country birthed in anomalies and you want a Harvard degree holder to do what? Isn't it the same Nigeria were the said educated and professors trouped behind one with a "NEPA certificate"(whatever that means)..

kenonze:
The problem with Nigeria is that Nigerians dont believe in the project called Nigeria thus we arent patrotic

You're very very right bro.
A banker friend after hearing about the exchange rate was very happy and he was shopping for a way to get Naira at the bank and make "sharp" money at the black-market. With the dwindling economy, many of those guys want only to make more money. That's the nadir of Nigeria development! We are mostly unpatriotic (even from the budget, you'll discover that it seems even the president and his cohort are very unpatriotic and lets mention GEJ and his goons, they're worse off).
I want the naira to fall to $1=N2,000 so that Nigeria can address the challenges of its terrible structure and so that the progress of the country can be left to economists and not politicians who only seek for political patronage.

sarutobie:

He he he he he he he he don't make me laugh bro! I told you that Nigeria is a country birthed in anomalies and you want a Harvard degree holder to do what? Isn't it the same Nigeria were the said educated and professors trouped behind one with a "NEPA certificate"(whatever that means)..

The fact is that Nigeria has never has never had a well educated leader

And a Harvard/Cambridge qualification does not automatically mean they will be good leaders or administrators

sarutobie:

He he he he he he he he don't make me laugh bro! I told you that Nigeria is a country birthed in anomalies and you want a Harvard degree holder to do what? Isn't it the same Nigeria were the said educated and professors trouped behind one with a "NEPA certificate"(whatever that means)..

Lol thing is we all know the right things to move our nation forward, but sadly mediocrity always fears a fair competition, watch how if an idea such as this ever comes up, those lazy secondary school "classless elites" will vehemently kick against it.

NavierStokes:
Following a discussion from last night, I had planned doing a research today on the subject and coming up with an article, then I came across this beautiful piece, may still put up a chart later revealing the nexus between global oil prices and the value of the naira.




Source: http://qz.com/564513/a-not-so-brief-history-of-the-fall-and-fall-of-the-nigerian-naira/

Brief? It has been falling since the 70's. It wasn't obvious because of oil.

@LordAdam, God bless you 4 dat comprehensive wonderful write-up

Topeakintola:


The fact is that Nigeria has never has never had a well educated leader

And a Harvard/Cambridge qualification does not automatically mean they will be good leaders or administrators

Doesn't automatically mean, but the odds are skewed in their favour. Think probability, and the chances are higher for a harvard graduate to succeed in administration than the man who forges and brandishes an unverified certificate. (No offence to our present administrator)

banmee:


Brief? It has been falling since the 70's. It wasn't obvious because of oil.

True bro, but a plot of these trends over time reveals spiked responses that coincides with falling oil prices.

LordAdam:


From a basic standpoint, the overbloated and inefficient civil service is a problem. However, it is not the root cause, especially when you extrapolate from a specific country to the whole continent. It is only a symptom of the problem. The root cause of the failures in Africa, in my opinion, is the fact that the people are simpletons. It is the people not those in power.

If we want to succeed, we have to change how we think, how we do things, and thoroughly evaluate what we want and how to get there.

The success of the pan-African movement championed by Zik, Nkrumah, Kaunda et al was that they had a different thought-process from the average African, possibly because they had western schooling. I'm not ass-licking now, but western education expanded their intellect. Why their pet projects failed was because they had vision but lacked the requisite supportive hands to bring that vision to reality. This is because the people they had to use still had the depressive, retrogressive African thought process.

Today the pan-African movement is dead and disgraceful because the original thought process behind it has been corrupted by the retrogressive basic African thought process.

Even if you streamline the work force, what about the crippling violent ethnic tensions and massive corruption tendencies? What about the accountability deficit? How about the irrepressible drive to celebrate mediocrity? What about the absolute lack of good governance and respect for rule of law? Look at the supposed African leaders at the AU? The current AU chairman is the president of Chad who has been in seat for 26 years.

Reducing the civil service will not magically erode these problems. In fact, the reason why we cannot reinvigorate the civil service is because of these problems.

-Lord

Wow! God bless you for this piece.

NavierStokes:


Doesn't automatically mean, but the odds are skewed in their favour. Think probability, and the chances are higher for a harvard graduate to succeed in administration than the man who forges and brandishes an unverified certificate. (No offence to our present administrator)

Agreed but dont politicize your own thread. I dont know the administrator that forged and presented an unverified certificate. Can you mention him or her pls?

A woman with a degree from Harvard/MIT, arguably the best universities in the world was in charge of the country's public finances for around 7-8 years. What was the outcome?

Leadership is about vision, commitment and personal integrity. The leaders that transformed China never went to conventional educational institutions. Good leadership is driven by ideology and focus

Olabestonic001:



I want the naira to fall to $1=N2,000 so that Nigeria can address the challenges of its terrible structure and so that the progress of the country can be left to economists and not politicians who only seek for political patronage.

similar happened under Babanginda, naira fell from N1:$1 to N17:$1, that is the equivalent of the naira today going from $1:N145 to $1:N2465. It made no difference then infact things only got worse, why do you think it will make any difference now with the same actors?