President Muhammadu Buhari, candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has been re-elected in the recently-held presidential election across the country. No doubt, the poll was highly competitive, considering the desire of the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to reclaim power that it lost to APC after an uninterrupted rule of 16 years. For now, PDP has rejected the outcome of the election and has instituted a legal action challenging Buhari’s victory.
For sure, the federal government can be said to have recorded remarkable success in some areas such as the war on corruption, fight against insurgency and insecurity, prudence in public sector finance and virile foreign relations. The Treasury Single Account (TSA) policy alone has been able to rake in N8.9 trillion into government coffers. However, a section of Nigerians are of the opinion that the Buhari administration has generally performed below expectations. It would suffice to say that as the federal government consolidates on its modest achievements, there is need to really work harder.
To begin with, the returning administration should put in place a functional cabinet made up of credible, experienced and committed persons to constitute the Federal Executive Council. This time around, Buhari should avoid a repeat of what happened in 2015, where it took him about six months to assemble members of his cabinet, which is dominated by recycled politicians. One of the main criticisms of the Buhari administration is the perceived lopsided nature of the appointments that appear to favour northerners at the detriment of other regions of the country. Filling of positions on ethnicity, religion and tribal sentiments should be jettisoned.
The president should communicate better in the new dispensation by rendering periodic stewardship.There is need for better engagement between the presidency and the people. This vacuum that featured in the last dispensation should be avoided this time around. Unnecessary keeping of the people in the dark about the health status of the president, who is a public officer, is an example. This singular act makes Nigeria a laughing stock among the comity of nations. The incessant killings, destruction of property and farms by herdsmen should be curtailed. President Buhari should prove critics wrong that he could be sympathetic to the cause of the deadly herdsmen. Our porous borders should be looked into.
The epileptic power supply across the country should be addressed. It is making production to be at its lowest ebb for many manufacturers while the cost of providing alternative sources of energy is expensive. More genuine and capable private sector operators should come on board through transparent process of power management. Government should get less involved in electricity generation, distribution and transmission. The present structure of fusing the ministry of power, works and housing should be unbundled because it is not making the desired impact.
In view of the declining global prices of oil, government should diversify the monolithic economy towards non-oil production and increased infrastructural development, to expedite the opening up of the ailing economy and further attract foreign investments. Under Buhari’s watch, the economy should have a clearer focus and direction. Agricultural production should be given a boost through highly-subsidised farming, access to cheap funds by farmers and small-scale investors, improved storage system and provision of attractive incentives to unemployed young people to go into agriculture. The high rate of unemployment in the land remains a source of worry.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) had recommended that at least 15 percent of the national budget should be set aside for health. Government should abide by this through improved health sector funding and expanding the scope of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) to accommodate a significant proportion of the populace from the current level of less than five percent access by mostly federal civil servants and scope covered by NHIS while access to expensive drugs by the common man should be increased. Education at all levels should be given its pride of place through enhanced funding and honouring all signed agreements with parties.
In the fight against graft, the government should record more successes by securing convictions. Anti-corrupt agencies such as the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) should be adequately funded to engage the services of sound prosecutors and reduce losses of high profile cases due to technical deficiencies. Prosecution of cases should not be seen as lopsided, Buhari should ensure that anti-corruption fight is impartial and unbiased; irrespective of political, ethnic or religious affiliations of those concerned.
Under the new dispensation, the federal government should also improve its human rights record by obeying all pending court decisions before it. In line with the intention of APC to pursue the restructuring of the country, which when carried out would be in the best interest of the country, the recommendations of the committee chaired by Governor Nasir el-Rufai of Kaduna state should be. Contending issues like the practice of the presidential system, state police and regionalism, among others, would be tackled once and for all. It is only hoped that the re-election of Buhari would make a big difference for the nation.
