By Dr Victor Olumekun
I took time to study Pius Adesanmi’s piece on Dr Akin Adesina’s initiative on the proposed supply of mobile phones to Nigerian farmers in the pursuit of the transformation agenda of the Federal Government. There are a number of issues raised which sounded fairly reasonable in his otherwise virulent thesis but the slant of the article betrayed the fact that his journey was the classic Nigerian approach of never building on a foundation, let alone a solid one. Lawyers often argue that you don’t build something on nothing; he ought to have investigated deeply before firing his scud missiles at an apparently sincere approach to solving a pertinent problem. I am not a government apologist neither am I averse to criticism for criticism becomes an effective tool when it is based on hard facts and not on dictum de dicto. A critic must obtain the whole picture, the whole hard facts, in order to make unimpeachable judgement.
Fuel for my own position has been provided by the rejoinder issued by the Hon. Minister’s office. On the basis of this information, many of the writer’s forays have been rendered ineffectual as his write-up was not based on “material facts”. However, there is no denying the fact, as he rightly posited, that funding for the initiative could have been sourced elsewhere other than from the Government purse. This, I believe, ought to be the fulcrum of his contribution. It would have been a wonderful piece if he dedicated much time in hammering on creative ideas which can generate funding for the project while proffering novel initiatives to increase our agricultural productivity. Instead, he delved into the field of abuse peddling even though he hinted that the prevailing unique and hostile Nigerian environment which does not lend itself to well-meant ideas has been responsible for the failure of initiatives that have been successfully tested elsewhere. A case-point is the existence of hard shoulders on major roads in civilised climes or the existence of dedicated bus routes which the Lagos Governor has imported. All over the world this is the norm but in our Nigeria where even those who are charged with implementing policies are the real culprits in their violation, it has been a sad story. Does this mean we must not try? Does it mean we must hold up our hands in despair and let the evil ones prevail? Thanks to the bravery of the Lagos Governor who has had occasions to accost highly placed individuals who abused his policy.
The failure of the Nigerian project has been due mainly to shoddy implementation rather than the shortage of ideas. We are rather enmeshed in looking for ways to circumvent or grossly plunder the system. Instead of playing the role of the symbionts or at worse the commensal, we embark on large scale parasitism and outright holophytism. This ideology of “the source must die” bodes no good for our system; it only ensures we are permanently undeveloped even when we often delude ourselves that we are underdeveloped.
It made sad reading therefore when a respected writer abandons real issues in the pursuit of the typically Nigerian “Pull Him Down” initiative. For me, it would seem that his attempt was more focused at rubbishing Dr Adesina’s credentials rather than a foray into intellectualism. People like him poured cold water on the cassava bread initiative but we now know better. I want to see writers and public commentators like him provide solutions to our myriads of problems rather than “sit in the seat of mockers”. He may, as he posited in his write-up have raised his bar of expectations from technocrats in government like Dr Adesina, there is however no need to raise his bar of insults directed at those who are sincerely being cerebral in looking for solutions to the Nigerian problem. If however he needs the real people who know how the Nigerian system works, he shouldn’t look too far away from the Area Boys, the Agbero’s, the Tokyos and the Adedibus of this world. Whether our beloved nation will get to the “Promised Land” with such garbage is another matter. I rest my case.
Dr. Victor Olumekun is the Dean of the Faculty of Science, Adekunle Ajasin University,
Akungba-Akoko, Ondo State.