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‘Lack of positive political leadership bane of Nigeria’

By Niyi Bello (Politics Editor)
21 June 2018   |   3:07 am
For Nigeria to develop like other advanced democracies of the world, a change of leadership to one that is prepared to harness all human and material resources of the country for growth with enough commitment to deliver is required at this stage of the nation’s history. A presidential aspirant on the platform of the ruling…

APC Chairman, John Odigie-Oyegun

For Nigeria to develop like other advanced democracies of the world, a change of leadership to one that is prepared to harness all human and material resources of the country for growth with enough commitment to deliver is required at this stage of the nation’s history.

A presidential aspirant on the platform of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. SKC Ogbonnia, who stated this in an interactive session with The Guardian yesterday said he was prepared to bridge the gap between policy formulation and implementation, the presence of which he also added was mostly responsible for persistent failure of governance in the country.

The politician who hails from Enugu and who, for years, have been an active player in the energy and banking sectors in Nigeria and the United States, expressed optimism that he would emerge as the presidential candidate of the APC for next year’s elections.

He said, “God willing; I will be the next president of Nigeria.

I have what it takes to make Nigeria the envy of the free world.

Specifically, I know the Nigerian problem as well as the solution.

“It is no longer news that the Nigerian problem is not lack of human or material resources. The problem is also not lack of the policies to harness the resources to make Nigeria great.

The problem is squarely the lack of the political will, the political leadership, to implement the various good policies to the admiration of the Nigerian people.

“This failure has continued because there appears to be no consequences for bad behavior in our country.

When there are no consequences for bad behavior, such behavior usually worsens.

It goes without saying that any system where anything goes; goes nowhere. That is a huge problem.”

Ogbonnia who was a member of several committees that drove the campaigns of President Muhammadu Buhari as the candidate of the APC in 2015, said he was prepared for opposition from some elements within the presidency and the country’s political class who he said would try to dissuade Nigerians from accepting him as an alternative to the status quo.

According to him, “The ruling cabal will tell us that now is not the time.

They will tell us that it is not the Igbo turn, because I happen to be Igbo.

Or they will tell you it is not Yoruba turn or Hausa time or any ethnic group in focus.

They will cling on region and religion to divide us so that they can continue to loot our country dry for selfish interests.

“But we have some bad news for them. The Nigerian masses, particularly the youths, have become wiser, far wiser. They have come to realize that we do not talk about region or religion when they think of three square meals.

They do not think of region or religion when they lose their loved ones, when they encounter bad roads, epileptic power or fuel supply, poor health facilities, school fees, high unemployment, etc. What these masses want is the solution, a better country for all.”

The presidential hopeful said he had prepared a robust manifesto that will provide quality education for Nigerian youths, start a power revolution that will harness several areas of electricity power generation which in turn will bring massive youth employment “through diversification of the economy, and sustained local and foreign investment.”

He also supported those calling for the restructuring of the Nigerian federation but stated that his model of restructuring “will help reduce cost of governance by scraping the Nigerian Senate towards a unicameral legislature.

Besides serving as an added conduit to siphon money for selfish interests; there is nothing, practically nothing, the Nigerian Senate can do that the House of Representatives, a more representative body, cannot do.”

Speaking on how to tackle the menace of corruption, he said the beast way to wage the war is to lead by example saying his government would demonstrate serious consequences for bad behaviour.

His words; “Be consistent and transparent. That is why people like me had followed and supported Buhari leading to the dramatic victory in 2015.

But, upon gaining power, the president was confused with legal jargons and meandering nuances of separation of power.

Nigeria is not more corrupt than USA. The difference is that there are serious and immediate consequences for bad behavior in the American country.”

And as the election year draws near, Ogbonnia admonished all stakeholders in the electoral contest to “abide by extant campaign finance laws, including limits.

Candidates must make available detailed accounts of funds and their sources to INEC in line with the campaign laws, starting with the forthcoming Ekiti governorship election.

If we cannot enforce or implement the laws, what is then the need of wasting time and resources crafting these laws and the policies?”

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