Congratulations President Goodluck Jonathan on your re-election! There’s a big task ahead in steering Nigeria’s ship on all fronts, especially the economy – the engine of our nation, with incredible multiplier effects across all other sectors.
There are only three things I request from you if the country is to move forward. The first is power. In a country with so much potential, an erratic power supply (or rather, no power at all) is not tenable. Job creation? The price of goods? Manufactur-ing? Entrepreneurship? Quality of life? Hospitals? Schools? Public transport? All are affected by the supply of electricity.
President Jonathan, you need to break the mafia behind Nigeria’s dependence on – and sustenance of – other economies by importing power. You need a more pragmatic approach. We do not want to hear about the colossal amounts being spent on electrical supply. Effort is nothing – results are everything.
The second issue is accountability. Mr President, you need to demystify the state, the national assemblies, government ministers, commissioners and other public servants. We cannot continue to sustain these offices that most see as an avenue to wealth. All government agencies and parastatals must provide monthly scorecards, listing how much they received from the government, what projects they spent on, those who tendered for the projects, the related costs and so on. We need a record of where our money is going. We also need a freedom of information law that allows the press or legal bodies to request such information as needed.
The third point is attracting foreign direct investment. You must remove the barriers to doing business in Nigeria. If there’s one major advantage Nigeria has, it’s the population. We are one of the biggest consumer markets in the world! Foreign companies will come to invest if given the best opportunities.
The provision of electrical power aside, the entire system for attracting FDI needs a complete overhaul – from company registration and trademark registrations to state product approval, planning permission, tax clearance, infrastructure and security – the present situation is not helping investment and must be looked into.
Nigeria is blessed beyond imagination. We need to change the world’s poor perception of our country. We count on you, President Jonathan, to do just that.
I would also ask that every well-meaning Nigerian contributes to your success. True Nigerians don’t wait for what the country can do for them; they improvise, create and survive. But to do that, they need government provision of the basics, at least.
Wale Soyingbe is a Nigerian expatriate in Dublin.
