A fortnight ago, one Alhaji Oloriegbe, a Public Policy Analyst, argued on
\nchannels TV that people have not felt an inch of the torrents of economic,
\nsocial, political and value change promised the hopelessly poor and
\nmindlessly rich Nigerians by the All Progressives Congress (APC) through
\nits man Friday, Muhamadu Buhari because Mr. President had yet to
\nconstitute his cabinet. Many social commentators have also attributed the
\nobvious lack of policy direction of the Buhari’s government to the absence
\nof a federal cabinet. However, after five months of twists and turns,
\nNigerians now have Federal Ministers whom according to the APC, will help
\nPresident Buhari implement the change Nigerians have been anxiously
\nawaiting.<\/p>\n
However, contrary to what President Buhari told Nigerians as per what
\nwould be the idiosyncrasy of his Ministers, the new cabinet members whom
\nMr. President had tagged “noisemakers” and declared expressly that not all
\noff them would have “portfolios”, unfortunately, are known to vast
\nmajority of Nigerians. Those appointed by Buhari, a character elected to
\ndistribute fruits of democratic governance to Nigerians based on his
\nbranded and much printed, advertised, televised and packaged integrity and
\nzero tolerance for sleaze, corruption and indiscipline, are the same
\nbougoersies, rulers and suspected looters of our patrimony and treasury.<\/p>\n
Today, Nigerians have a Minister whom while serving his people as
\ngovernor, spent N2.5billion on the beautification of his state capital,
\nyet, flowers reported to have been planted with the money are yet to
\ngerminate, 3 years after the contract was awarded.<\/p>\n
For five months, Nigerians waited to know the Ministers they thought most
\nof them would be technocrats as promised by President Buhari only to be
\ndangled with a fellow who served his state for eight years as the head of
\nparliamentary and another eight years as head of executive arms of
\ngovernment, yet, left his people poorer than he met them and according to
\nhis successor, sold all the investments and shares of his state in banks
\nand other financial institutions without remitting the proceeds made
\nthrough the sales to the state coffer. The furore and brouhaha that
\nerupted on the floor of the senate when confirming the nomination of this
\ncharacter is a story to tell for another day.<\/p>\n
Today, we have a Minister appointed by President Buhari whom while saddled
\nwith the management of the country’s Millennium Development Goals (MDGs),
\ncould not account for how she spent billions of taxpayers money.<\/p>\n
The most abysmally appalling and shocking name among Buhari’s ministers is
\nSenator Henekein Lokopri who had served his people in Bayelsa State for
\nsixteen years as Speaker of the state House of Assembly and Senator of the
\nFederal Republic on the platform of the PDP and until July this year, was
\na chieftain of the party. I am just curious and wondering the value
\nSenator Lokopri want to add to the Buhari’s government.<\/p>\n
Also, as I write, there are avalanche of petitions on the desk of the EFCC
\nagainst the confirmed Minister of Finance? Kemi Adesoun. Adesoun, when
\nserving as Finance Commissioner in Ogun state allegedly bought a grade B
\nten Armored Personnel Carrier for 500million, the highest in the world.<\/p>\n
Before and during the 2015 general elections and even till now, Nigerians
\nwere audaciously coaxed into believing that the deposed former ruling
\nparty, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) ruined Nigeria in all
\nramifications, however, today, we have Ministers whom surprisingly, 60% of
\nthem were former members of the same PDP that Buhari and his people
\nclaimed destroyed Nigeria<\/p>\n
Nonetheless, either counterfeit or genuine, the bitter reality we must
\nface is Nigeria now have Ministers that will provide the much-publicized
\npromised change. Consequently, I say without any prejudice that there
\nshould be no further excuse for failure of governance. I call on President
\nBuhari to terminate his honeymoon forthwith.<\/p>\n
With all due respect, now that we have Ministers, Nigerians want to see
\nthe policy direction of the Buhari led administration. Crestfallen and
\ndisconsolate Nigerians are seriously waiting for the change the APC
\npromised to bring to Nigeria in all ramifications.<\/p>\n
Nigerians are unwearyingly waiting for the Minister of Finance to work
\nassiduously to ensure that the fallen value of naira in the international
\nfinancial market is stabilized. Our frightening GDP must be improved. The
\ndangerously disquieting state of Nigeria capital market deserve the urgent
\nattention of our new finance minister. The massive retrenchment in the
\nbanking industry must be curtailed by all means necessary.<\/p>\n
Let me explicitly put it to the education Minister that Nigerians await
\ndeclaration of a free and qualitative education from primary to tertiary
\nlevel as promised by Buhari. I want to believe that one of our
\nuniversities will be ranked among the best 500 in the world on or before
\nMay 2019. The new education Minister should please pursue with
\nsanctimonious attention, the comprehensive feeding of school children
\npromised by Buhari.<\/p>\n
The Minister of Land and Housing Development should remember that poverty
\nridden Nigerians are sleeplessly awaiting the 1million housing units
\npromised them by the APC during the electioneering campaign.<\/p>\n
And to the Minister of Power, Sir, Nigerians want an end to presidential
\nbody movement which has failed to revolutionize the power sector. We want
\nto see policy direction that will end the generational rout in the power
\nsector. I want to believe that Nigeria under Buhari Would have generated
\n40,000 tons of electricity megawatt by May 2019 as promised. We say no to
\nhike in electricity tariff. We reject the epileptic power supply that is
\nnow booming like wave of pacific ocean in our country.<\/p>\n
The new Minister of Works should ensure that Julius Berger and RCC returns
\nto site as they have disappeared from Lagos-Ibadan expressway which they
\nare being reconstructed before the new administration came on board.<\/p>\n
Now that President Buhari has saddled himself with petroleum Ministry,
\nNigerians are waiting for a liter of petrol to be slashed to forty five
\nnaira. I stated thus because with\u00a0 the crash of oil price from $96 to $40
\nper barrel, Nigerians have no reason to be buying fuel @87 per a liter.
\nN87 per a liter is fraudulent. Also, I call on Buhari to ensure that the
\ncountry\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s moldy refineries are repaired with new ones built.<\/p>\n
The Ministers of Youths Development, Labour and Productivity, Finance and
\nNational Planning should ensure that the 850, 000 jobs promised the
\nunemployed Nigerians per quater is religiously pursued. The minister of
\nYouths Development should also recall that twenty five million unemployed
\nYouths were promised payment of N5, 000 monthly by their party, the APC if
\nvoted into power. The NYSC corps members are also waiting for their
\nmonthly allowance to be increased to N45, 000 as promised.<\/p>\n
For Nigeria to be transformed from a periphery to a core sovereign nation,
\ncorruption must be well tackled. Hence, the new Attorney General and
\nMinister of Justice should pursue a war against corruption and not a war
\nagainst opposition. Those who had heartlessly and viciously governed
\nNigeria from 1999 till date either in APC or PDP must be made to account
\nfor their evil deeds against the masses.<\/p>\n
I also wish to remind the new Justice Minister that we are now in a
\ndemocratic regime where rights to speech, expression, religion,
\nassociation and peaceful assembly are constitutionally protected.
\nNigerians will not accept any attempt to intimidate, oppress and harass
\nthem unduly for exercising their Fundamental Human Rights.<\/p>\n
Nigerians are waiting for the reform that will ensure that Corruption in
\nthe civil service is drastically reduced if not totally abolished. The
\njudiciary must be totally independent and sanitized. The Independent
\nNational Electoral Commission (INEC) must continue to enjoy her freedom as
\nentrenched by the previous administration.<\/p>\n
Nigerians are waiting for an end to insurgencies in the Northern Nigeria.
\nI want peace and tranquillity returned to Nigeria. Nigerians are anxiously
\nawaiting the return of the missing Chibok girls.<\/p>\n
I wish all the new Ministers of the nation of Nigeria the wisdom of
\nSolomon to govern their people. Amen.<\/p>\n