RE: THE CRISIS OF YORUBA’S FUTURE
My friend, Mr. Lasisi Olagunju, strenuously sought to merge disjointed points to vilify the present administrations in the South-west Nigeria, vide his article in page 20 of the Tribune Newspaper on Monday 24th March, 2014.
It is laughable to compare the governance style of Mr. Peter Obi with that of the South-West governors. While not attempting to discredit Mr. Obi’s governance style, it is absurd for an informed commentator to use balance in bank as the hallmark of a successful administration. Under the constitution of Nigeria, security and welfare of the people is the paramount purpose of government. Thus, the yardstick for Mr. Olagunju’s analysis was certainly suspect, if not outrightly dubious. I know he served in the past administration in Osun and I can ask him what was the state of Osun treasury when the administration he served left government?
The question that was deliberately glossed over by my friend is whether it is not the case that every developed economy runs on debt instrument issuance for development of specific infrastructure. Because of the time value of money, the logic is to embark on specified projects immediately while paying over a long period. Bonds and loans benefit society by providing amenities like roads, schools, water, healthcare etc for the people today and the future rather than working snail speed and depriving the citizens of immediate and future needs.
The Osun Bonds programme is a case in point on how to creatively harness debt instruments for the good of the people. The Special Purpose Vehicle (Osun Sukuk Company Plc) raised over 10 billion naira to fund the construction of Schools across various local governments in the State. These schools will be fitted with state-of-the-art infrastructures like spacious classrooms, well-equipped laboratories, resourceful libraries, access roads and electricity among others. Some of the state of the art schools are now being utilized by students. By the time the bond is liquidated, hundreds of thousand students would have benefitted from world-class education, their background notwithstanding. Their destiny cannot wait for the future, they must eat today’s good yam for tomorrows strength thereby reduce substantially if not completely the menace the lack of good education may cause in future.
I find it ludicrous that issue is being made of South-West being indebted to investors from whatever clime or tongue. According to my friend – none of the founding fathers of Western Nigeria would ever imagine that a day would come when Yorubaland would owe Iboland. That is an insult on the historical co-habitation of the brother-nations. The author’s parochial opinion has the seed of undue tribal egotism and short-sightedness.
The South-west today is recognized as the most progressive of all the geo-political zones not merely because of its proud history but for the unusual managerial capabilities of its present crop of administrators. If a state borrows to educate its children, it is because it is wants to reduce to the barest minimum, the gulf between the ‘haves’ and the ‘have nots.’ It wants to reduce the number of boys and girls slaving away in the markets and increase their chances of modest living and capacity to contribute to society.
In conclusion, we submit that the current southwest governments just like the avatar, Obafemi Awolowo has a strategic goal of using today’s available cheap resource to develop the potentials of its people to become globally competitive, secure and capable of self-sustenance. That is the way statesmen think, they don’t think in terms of profit and loss, but in terms of human and social security and development. Awo, put it beyond doubt when he said in his speech Nigeria Cannot Be Rebuilt With Bricks Of Hatred- 7th October, 1978- it is an unjust government that leaves you to train yourself by any means you can find only to turn around, when that training is completed or half-completed to compel you to contribute to a so-called national cake for everyone else to eat. But it would be a stupid government that would educate you to the limit of your ability, and then leave you to roam the streets, or to even turn around and cheat the system that gave you your education.
Ajibola Basiru Esq
Hon. Commissioner,
Ministry of Regional Integration and Special Duties,
State of Osun,
Federal Republic of Nigeria.