19082019 - Nigeria to spend N2.53bn on 43 ministers

Vanguard, MONDAY AUGUST 19, 2019 — 43
INSECURITY: FG wrong on Ruga
— COL OGBEBOR
Continues on page 42
became <strong>Nigeria</strong>’s second
national goal.
Thereafter, we have not had
another national goal that all
<strong>Nigeria</strong>ns could be mobilised
<strong>to</strong>wards. What we have <strong>to</strong>day
is individual goals. <strong>Nigeria</strong>ns
are the hardest workers in the
world but <strong>to</strong>wards individual
goals. So, <strong>to</strong> be able <strong>to</strong> harness
the resources, the energy of
<strong>Nigeria</strong>ns, <strong>Nigeria</strong> should now
be thinking of having a third
national goal.
Many countries have done it.
I was in India in 1974 as
Deputy Military Attaché. You
will wake up and go <strong>to</strong> a
popular area like Tinubu
Square in Lagos; between 4
and 6 in the morning, you will
find them loading dead bodies,
people who died from cold and
hunger overnight. And I
asked: what can you do <strong>to</strong> save
these people who are dying?
They <strong>to</strong>ld me that if they put
all the resources of India
<strong>to</strong>wards saving these people,
they could only save 10 per
cent, so what they were doing
was putting the resources of
India <strong>to</strong>wards a national goal
so that that national goal
would be enhanced <strong>to</strong> save the
lives of the children of these
people dying.
And what national goal did
they go for? Technological
development and on this, you
don’t need <strong>to</strong> have natural
resources, all you need is
manpower development and
brain power. That is why the
Indians <strong>to</strong>day have come up <strong>to</strong>
the level they are. Instead of
being net importer, they are
now exporters. When I was
there, whenever <strong>Nigeria</strong>ns
come <strong>to</strong> recruit, you find them
coming in millions <strong>to</strong> be
teachers and whatever you can
think of here.
Three years ago, I went <strong>to</strong>
India <strong>to</strong> recruit, I couldn’t get
anybody <strong>to</strong> recruit because
their economy has surpassed
that of <strong>Nigeria</strong>. As at 1974, one
naira was an equivalent of 97
British pounds and was higher
than the Indian rupees but
<strong>to</strong>day, one naira is less than one
rupee so they have achieved a
national goal. I think we should
start building <strong>to</strong>wards a
national goal.
What is your opinion of
intervention agencies like the
NDDC that seem not <strong>to</strong> be
meeting its target in terms of
quality of their interventions?
Like I said before, one of
<strong>Nigeria</strong>’s biggest problem is
system failure, this is part of the
system failure.
The most pitiable situation in
<strong>Nigeria</strong> is that we are still using
foreigners for our development
and you ask questions they say
<strong>Nigeria</strong>ns don’t have the
competence yet you have
<strong>Nigeria</strong>ns as chairmen of local
government areas, governors
of states and president.
If you don’t break egg, will
you eat omelette? Why not
develop <strong>Nigeria</strong>ns?
In 1965, the <strong>Nigeria</strong>n Army
built Jos <strong>to</strong> Baro railway line
extension.
In 1974, I went <strong>to</strong> Tanzania
when they were building the
Tarzan railway line from
Tanzania <strong>to</strong> Zambia, they used
the military. As at <strong>to</strong>day, there
is no officer of the <strong>Nigeria</strong>
Armed Forces that is not
having a minimum of first
degree, 80 per cent have
Masters between 20 and 25
per cent have Ph.D, what are
they doing?
Our prisons are filled up,
what are they doing? Bring
these people out, mobilise
them <strong>to</strong> build railways and
other things. Railway is the
easiest transport infrastructure,
we don’t have self confidence
and that is why we are having
system failure. We don’t have
confidence in ourselves. We
have everything that is
required here. It was slaves that
built the underground tunnel,
the railways in America, in
Britain when technology was
minimal. Now we have so many
universities, we have our
children everywhere, we
should internalise these
things.
Look at Suez canal, how was
it built? The British government
refused, the then world powers
didn’t want <strong>to</strong> help Egypt build
the Suez canal. What did Egypt
do considering the economic
and security importance of the
canal? They got one of their
contrac<strong>to</strong>rs, enhanced it and
gave it the contract and that is
what Arab Contrac<strong>to</strong>rs is <strong>to</strong>day.
As at 1960, the Israelis found
that 80 per cent of their
construction was done by
foreigners, they s<strong>to</strong>pped it by
law and started their own and
they started exporting their
work. As at <strong>to</strong>day, we have over
200 Israeli companies in
<strong>Nigeria</strong> alone employing
There is a difference
between corruption
and stealing.
Stealing is if I take
your thing, I have
deprived you as an
individual but
corruption is:
something you gave
<strong>to</strong> me <strong>to</strong> enhance this
area that I live in, I
will collect and put it
in my pocket
Israelis and bringing things
manufactured there. <strong>Nigeria</strong>ns
are highly educated, they are
highly exposed, government
should trust them, believe in
them, let us s<strong>to</strong>p bringing
foreigners <strong>to</strong> bring
development. Why build
houses that you cannot live in,
why drive on roads that you
cannot build? Let <strong>Nigeria</strong>ns do
it so that they can generate
employment, and foreign
exchange.
What is your opinion on
Fulani herdsmen/farmers
clashes and the controversial
Ruga policy?
We have been having Fulani
in this country, I grew up <strong>to</strong>
meet them, I was in the North
for many years as a cadet. We
never thought of who is a
Fulani, who is Hausa or a
Christian or Muslim, we all
saw ourselves as <strong>Nigeria</strong>ns. I
think it is just politics. We are
<strong>to</strong>ld that the people you call
herdsmen <strong>to</strong>day, they cover the
whole of West Africa, if they are
criminals; deal with them as
criminals don’t call them big
names. Whether they are
Muslims, religious fanatics or
herdsmen, deal with them as
criminals, don’t politicise it.
As for Ruga, I think the
Federal Government is making
a mistake. It is the fault of the
Federal Government. When I
was young, there were
railways, cows were being
brought by train, dropped in
Osogbo and from there they are
marched <strong>to</strong> different places.
Can you imagine that <strong>to</strong>day,
Lagos alone consumes 6,000
cows everyday and 20,000
goats and rams, do you know
the logistics that will cost?
Government is supposed <strong>to</strong>
provide the enabling logistics
these are big time businesses.
Many countries live by selling
dairy products. These things
we are politicising are
economic issues. How many
cows are we consuming in
Benin, in Enugu, Kaduna and
elsewhere? It should be
organised. We used <strong>to</strong> have
native cows, encourage people
<strong>to</strong> rare cows wherever they are
so that we spare the Fulanis the
stress of matching cows across
the country.
What we are having now is
because the Federal
Government did not plan ahead
for our development. How do
we move cows, goats other
animals <strong>to</strong> the stables?
The problem we have is that
there is no nationalism. In my
book, I recommended that
<strong>Nigeria</strong>n girls should go for
compulsory two years national
service in military training once
they are 16 and boys once they
are 18 years. The aim is <strong>to</strong> get
everybody and give orientation
<strong>to</strong>wards a national goal. All
countries that are called
industrilaised <strong>to</strong>day started
with regimentation; national
service. General Yakubu Gowon
did very well by starting the
NYSC; we should now make it
national service for everybody
and not only for graduates.
How do you view the call for
revolution by Omoyele
Sowore?
First of all, Omoyele Sowore
shot himself on the foot. If he
had such things in his mind,
he shouldn’t have contested
for the presidential elections.
He failed through the ballot; he
wants <strong>to</strong> come in through the
window.
Secondly, what is the
revolution about? We have
heard of Mo Tse Tong, we have
heard of other revolutionaries
but what is the objective of this
one, what is the goal? I
watched some people on
television the other day who
said they wanted revolution but
Sowore did not reach out <strong>to</strong>
them so what is the revolution
about? Is revolution the only
means of making a change? We
don’t need revolution; we have
patterns that we can emulate.
We can emulate India; we can
emulate the Asian countries by
educating our youths. When I
was in elementary school in
Benin here, we were thought
how <strong>to</strong> make stamps, tell
s<strong>to</strong>ries, different hand works,
but those things are not here
<strong>to</strong>day. There is a saying that:
teach the child what you want
and he will grow up <strong>to</strong> become
that.
How will you assess
Governor Godwin Obaseki of
Edo State and the crisis he has
been having with his
predecessor, Comrade Adams
Oshiomhole?
Obaseki looks highly exposed
maybe because of his
background. His grandfather
was a very rich man, Gaius
Obaseki. He was one of the
most educated Benin men and
he was in business. He was an
exporter and importer, he was
also the Iyase of Benin, his own
father was also highly read. His
mother was a confidential
secretary in the presidency for
many years until she retired.
So, the parental background is
very strong. He schooled here
before he travelled out so he
must have imbibed the culture
of development. I think he is a
man who is developmen<strong>to</strong>riented
and also knows how
<strong>to</strong> use money properly.
He is a thinker and a doer so
I think he should be supported
<strong>to</strong> finish his first four years and
then maybe given another four
years <strong>to</strong> solidify whatever he
has started.
I don’t see why there should
be any quarrel between them.
When Oshiomhole was going
he said Edo State does not
have money and wanted
somebody that is prudent, he
wanted somebody who will use
whatever is there <strong>to</strong> develop the
state and I think that is what
Obaseki is doing.
Maybe Oshiomhole wanted
whoever is here <strong>to</strong> be a
surrogate but in the his<strong>to</strong>ry of
the world, those who impose
surrogates have problems
because the man they want <strong>to</strong>
be answering their name, a
time will come when the man
will say no.