BusinessDay 19 Oct 2017

Thursday 19 October 2017
10 BUSINESS DAY
C002D5556
COMMENT
CHRISTOPHER AKOR
Chris Akor, a First Class
graduate of Political Science, holds an
MSc in African Studies from the University
of Oxford and is BusinessDay’s
Op-Ed Editor
christopher.akor@businessdayonline.com
Last week, I talked about
government’s desperation
to retake control of
the commanding heights
of the economy by getting
the Central Bank of Nigeria to continue
to print money relentlessly for
it to spend while crowding out the
private sector to prevent run-away
inflation. But I feel there is a deep
and strategic political reason why
the government or the major political
power brokers in the country
will want the state to retake control
of the commanding heights of the
economy. It is, I strongly suspect, so
that private individuals with deep
pockets (aided of course, by the liberalisation
of the economy) do not
become so powerful as to neutralise
their powers to determine who gets
what, when and how in the country
and to consequently capture and
retain political power. This is no
mere wishful thinking. It is drawn
from the thesis of one of Africa’s foremost
political economist, Claude
Ake, who argued that power is the
established way to wealth in most
of Africa and those who win state
power can have all the wealth they
comment is free
Send 800word comments to comment@businessdayonline.com
Why is Buhari desperate for the state to command the controlling heights of the economy?
want even without working and
those who lose the struggle for state
power cannot have security even in
the wealth they have made even by
hard work.
The only way this works is when
the economy is under state control.
And that explains why most African
leaders desperately seek to control
their economies upon coming to
power. They seek to determine
who gets what, when and how; who
deserves to be helped to flourish
and who must be smothered and
crushed. That was the motivation
for the policies of economic
controls or what some scholars
refer to as the ‘control regimes’
practised all around Africa. These
basically include state control and
regulation of trade, state distorting
and manipulation of interest and
exchange rates and state industrial
regulation through creation of
monopolies or oligopolies. These
policies do not only reduce the
rate at which economies could
grow and distort key prices in the
macro economy, but they are also
economically very costly and could
lead – and indeed led - to many
state collapse in Africa.
But how do these leaders care?
Despite succeeding regimes knowing
of the disastrous consequences
of these ‘control regimes’, most of
them still choose to retain them
for, as Robert H. Bates, a Harvard
renowned political economist
argues, the policies generate huge
political benefits for African authoritarian
regimes, provide elites
with sources of income and furnished
means for transforming
even declining economies into
political organisations, enabling
politicians to recruit political dependents,
willing to fight – if neces-
He has resorted to the Idi-Amin
and Abacha style of economic
management – getting a pliant
and spineless CBN governor to
continue to print cash illegally to
fund government spending while
depriving the private sector of
funds to operate
sary – to keep them in power.
Like I argued on this page many
months ago, in Nigeria particularly,
this control regime, as against the
popular belief that discovery of oil
and the oil boom, was responsible for
the gradual decline of the agricultural
sector and the stoppage of cash crop
exports. This can be seen from a careful
study of the management and collapse
of the commodity marketing boards.
Like I mentioned earlier, the ‘control
regimes’ so dear to most African
leaders is particularly destructive to
African economies. Besides the terrible
inefficiencies it engenders, it
prevents the inflow of private capital
to develop the economies and provide
jobs even when it is clear that no
African government has the resources
to provide all the infrastructure, jobs
and social needs of its society.
The sharp economic declines
of the 1970s, 80s and 90s and the
insistence of multilateral Western
financial agencies on privatisation
and a private sector led economy has
resulted in the gradual weakening of
state control in Africa. But some authoritarian
and dictatorial regimes in
Africa, such as Museveni’s in Uganda
and some other smart leaders in East
and Central Africa have been able to
warm themselves to these multilater-
al institutions, allowing semblances
of reforms but devising ingenious
ways of maintaining tight control
over their economies. In Southern
and Western Africa, where some
leaders genuinely implemented the
structural adjustment programmes
prescribed for them, the reforms
unwittingly unleashed forces that
led to the toppling of longstanding
dictatorial regimes.
Nigeria, on its part, due to the oil
boom in the 1970s – at a period when
most African economies were a rapid
decline – refused to join the trend
and even went further to take control
of most private enterprises and positioned
itself as the sole economic
player in the country. That was the
period when a former president said
Nigeria’s problem was not money but
how to spend the money.
Being one of the staunchest proponents
of state control of the “commanding
heights of the economy”,
Obasanjo attempted to continue
with that trend on coming back to
power in 1999. However, it soon
dawned on him that Nigeria did
not just have the resources to go on
such grand ambitions. He was wise
and flexible enough to liberalise the
economy and his 8 year rule coincided
with the blossoming of the private
sector in Nigeria. While oil and
gas exports accounted for more than
98 percent of export earnings and
about 83% of government revenues
in 1999, the oil and gas sector now
accounts for just about 14 percent
of Nigeria’s GDP. The private sector
has clearly taken over and ensuring
prosperity for Nigeria.
Enter Buhari in 2015 and he attempted
to bring in the era of state
control of the economy that is now
clearly outdated and impracticable.
Mr Buhari has never hidden his
residents of the Lagos West District,
where the first Town Hall meeting was
held, the Governor, in response to the
proposal made by the Alimosho people
pledged to provide more schools
within the area, improve better traffic
control to reduce travel time on roads
and construct a fly over bridge around
Abule Egba junction among other
promises. Most of these he has done
with attendant positive impacts on
the life of the people. Today, the Abule
Egba axis has one of the two Golden
Jubilee Bridges.
The main issue that took the
centre stage at the second Town Hall
meeting was security, especially as it
concerns the increasing number of
street urchins within the area. The
issue was addressed spontaneously
and today, the ‘Area Boys’ menace
has been systematically dealt with in
the State. This trend continued at Ojo,
Badagry, and Ikorodu among others.
At the 8th Quarterly Town Hall
meeting held at the Badore Ferry
Terminal, Lagos State, Governor
Ambode announced that the reconstruction
of the Oshodi-International
Airport Road would commence in
earnest. Characteristically, the 10-
lane Oshodi-Int’l airport road was recently
flagged off with the assurance
that the project would be completed
in record time.
While reporting about this at the
latest 9th Quarterly meeting, the
Governor promised construction of
Pen Cinema flyover and rehabilitation
of 43 major link roads affected by
rain before the end of the year. On the
Pen Cinema Bridge, work is currently
on going. In same manner, the Govdislike
for the private sector despite
the marvellous job done by his
campaign handlers to hide that fact
during the campaigns. Last year, Mr
Buhari said matter-of-factly that he
was averse to the inclusion of members
of the private sector in his administration’s
economic management
team because such persons
frequently steer government policy
to suit their own narrow interests.
He came to power therefore with
a vengeance; to reverse what he
may have likely considered as the
mortgaging of Nigeria’s patrimony
to private and selfish individuals by
previous administration.
Although most key watchers of
Nigeria’s economic affairs thought
that the president’s earlier plans
have failed mainly due to the decline
in the prices of crude oil and decline
in federally distributable revenue
and that the government will be
forced to turn to the private sector
to provide jobs for the millions of
jobless Nigeria and to partner the
state in building and maintaining
the huge infrastructure needed
for the economic takeoff of the
country, Mr Buhari isn’t giving up
on his dream. He has resorted to
the Idi-Amin and Abacha style of
economic management – getting a
pliant and spineless CBN governor
to continue to print cash illegally to
fund government spending while
depriving the private sector of funds
to operate. If history is anything to go
by, we already know the end result
of such actions. I just hope by the
end of Buhari’s four or eight years,
the damages wrought would not be
permanent or irredeemable.
Send reactions to:
comment@businessdayonline.com
RASAK MUSBAU
Musbau is of Features Unit, Lagos
State Ministry of Information and
Strategy, Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos
A
New York Times bestselling
author, Richard Paul Evans,
once said”: “Broken vows
are like broken mirrors. They
leave those who held to them bleeding
and staring at fractured images of
themselves.”
Making promises and keeping
them is definitely a good virtue that
people must embrace in all walks of
life. In the Nigerian political scene it
is, however, obvious that promising a
bright future in convincing manners
works better than actually delivering
on it! It is rampant among the political
class to make promise without actually
thinking about how to fulfil them.
Hence, promises are often broken
with tenable and untenable excuses.
The consequence of broken promises
accounted for one of the reasons why
many display apathy towards certain
basic civic duties, especially tax payment
and the electoral process.
In Lagos State, however, the leadership
seems to place high premium
on the sanctity of promise in every
sphere of life. To the State Government,
a promise made should always
be a promise kept. In other words,
the process of a promise made isn’t
completed until it is fulfilled. This is,
perhaps, why the State is relatively
doing better on the index of economic
growth and development. The State
Ambode: Promise as a virtue
Government’s virtue of delivering
on promises is a practical lesson for
others to emulate.
Creating an atmosphere in which
citizens and investors have no option
but to stand by his government,
the Akinwunmi Ambode administration
has continually been proving
that fulfilling of promises is possible,
and that it is a virtue a responsible
government should not toy with.
The administration has injected
new hope and energy into a broken
morale, scattered systems and
altered old mindsets that Nigeria’s
ruling class is full of liars.
In an inaugural speech he delivered
after performing the sacred
duty of oath-taking as the Governor
of Lagos State on May 29, 2015,
Governor Ambode promised to run
an open government of inclusion
that will not leave anyone behind.
This was promised based on sincere
belief that the essence of a representative
democracy is continual engagement
of all stakeholders in the
society. His administration wasted
no time in creating various channels
of engagement with government.
The administration created the
Office of Civic Engagement for the
purpose of listening to the people
and ensures their concerns are adequately
addressed.
The Office has been engaging
communities and various stakeholders
in the State to rub minds
on several issues, especially as it
pertains to the overall development
of the State. Many of the issues raised
at such engagements were referred
to the appropriate Government
MDAs and action promptly taken. The
result of this is the various giant strides
being recorded at the various sectors
of the State.
The Office of Civic Engagement has
positively resolved a host of conflicts
that could have degenerated into crisis.
This include peaceful resolution
of the dispute between the Motor
Cycle Operators Association of Lagos
State (MOALS) and the Motor Cycle
Transport Union of Nigeria (MTUN),
the rift among Students’ Joint Campus
Committee of the Lagos State Tertiary
Institutions, the thorny issue between
NURTW and RTEAN and the Nagari
Nakowa Motorcycle Owners and the
Riders Association of Lagos (NNAMO-
RAL), Ojodu Community Development
Association and the NURTW
among others.
Also, one cannot but commend the
tenacity with which the Ambode administration
is employing Stakeholders
Engagement, Quarterly Town Hall
Meetings, People’s Perception survey
and social and conventional media
to deepen the process of inclusive
governance. Through the Governor’s
addresses and reports of promise made
and kept at the series of the Town Hall
meeting, the Ambode administration
has, no doubt, brought the common
man closer to its social responsibilities.
From the first Town Hall meeting at
Abesan mini stadium, Alimosho, to the
latest edition held at SUBEB proposed
permanent site in Kosofe, one thing is
vital. The government is not just listening
to the people but actually demonstrating
that it is a government that
truly believes in working for the people.
For instance, while interacting with
ernor reported another promise kept
which is the newly commissioned
DNA Centre, the first of its kind in
West Africa.
The truth is that the Ambode
administration is able to share and
discuss its plans and programmes
with the people because it is actually
fulfilling campaign promises by
making Lagos work for everybody
in consonance with the administration’s
mantra of “Itesiwaju Ilu Eko
loje wa logun”.
Whether it was a promise made in
the heat of the 2015 campaign or in
the process of engagement with the
people, the government is proving its
authenticity credential. Authenticity
is indeed everything. Authentic leaders
are self-aware and genuine who
are self-actualized individuals that
are aware of their strengths, limitations
and emotions. They are also not
pretenders.
The Akinwunmi Ambode administration
has so far able to manage the
Lagos economy through prudent and
stringent management of available
resources to the satisfaction of the Lagos
people he is reporting to. This has
qualified him as an authentic leader
and has put him in good stead. According
to German writer and statesman,
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe,
‘not the maker of plans and promises,
but rather the one who offers faithful
service in small matters is the person
who is most likely to achieve what is
good and lasting’.
Send reactions to:
comment@businessdayonline.com