NIGERIA @ 65: Who’s To Blame For ‘Giant Of Africa’ Long Slumber?

As Nigeria commemorates 65 years of independency from assemblage rule, immoderate civilian nine organisations and governmental scientists judge failed enactment is the cardinal origin of the country’s enduring underdevelopment, wide poverty, and systemic dysfunction.

For those who clasp this view, the country’s post-independence trajectory has been marred by unaccountable governance, entrenched corruption and a chronic lack of visionary leadership.

For them, this cardinal deficiency is astatine the bosom of Nigeria’s socioeconomic stagnation successful the midst of immense quality and earthy assets endowments.

This conception is not new, but has remained a puzzling world for decades, restricting a state often ascribed arsenic the elephantine of Africa, to the shadiness of its potential.

But others who spoke with LEADERSHIP Weekend successful the build-up to October 1 nevertheless argued that followers besides stock successful the blasted for the authorities of the country.

They reason that the prime of leaders is simply a reflection of the radical they look from. They see the inclination to hurriedly blasted leaders arsenic an unfair gesture.

When Nigeria hoisted its green-white-green emblem successful 1960, it did truthful alongside nations similar South Korea and Singapore. At the time, Nigeria was tipped arsenic a aboriginal planetary powerhouse. Yet, 65 years later, portion those countries person transformed into concern and technological giants, Nigeria remains trapped successful cycles of corruption, insecurity, poorness and infrastructural decay.

Coups, a civilian warfare and subject incursion into governmental enactment person often been blamed for distorting the country’s improvement and maturation betwixt the First and Third Republics.

However, since the Fourth Republic which began with the instrumentality to antiauthoritarian regularisation successful 1999, galore pundits reason that the state has fared immoderate better.

Despite having the longest spell of civilian regularisation since 1960 (26 years), the prime of socio-economic improvement has not matched the tremendous resources successful the country.

If anything, immoderate would reason that the state has been connected an astir dependable backward slide, contempt the summation successful yearly budgetary allocations and caller immense indebtedness profile.

From the powerfulness to the acquisition and wellness sectors, the tales person been appalling. The decade-long crises successful these captious sectors are compounded by the lingering drastic insecurity successful astir parts of the country. These person led to wide migration of young Nigerians to Europe and the United States, and successful caller times neighbouring African countries which betwixt the 70s and aboriginal 80s looked up to Nigeria for salvation.

Recently, a “Nigeria indispensable spell protest”, demanding the exit of Nigerians from Ghana, erupted. For immoderate years, Nigerians had been the taxable of carnal attacks successful South Africa.

On the governmental front, the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the erstwhile ruling party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) person presided implicit the state for the full of the 26 years. Interestingly, some parties, often described arsenic 2 sides of a coin, regularly exchanged members astatine the slightest provocation, hence the interest of a breached governmental system, which allegedly thrives connected corruption and maltreatment of power.

The harvest of Nigeria’s enactment has emerged from these 2 parties, which connected the aggregate person produced 90 percent of the existent governmental leaders successful the country.

Yes, leaders failed Nigeria  – Ex-IPAC Chairman, Ameh

Speaking with LEADERSHIP Weekend, erstwhile nationalist president of the Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC), Chief Peter Ameh, said the crux of Nigeria’s stagnation lies squarely with its leadership.

Ameh, who is the nationalist caput of the Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP), argued that contempt the abundant earthy and quality resources astatine Nigeria’s disposal, mediocre governance has squandered opportunities, leaving the state lagging acold down its potential.

“My constituent of statement is that the leaders, not the led, are the superior architects of Nigeria’s failures. Since independency successful 1960, successive administrations person treated the nation’s treasury arsenic a idiosyncratic piggy bank, diverting billions meant for nationalist payment into backstage coffers,” Ameh stated.

Leaders look from the radical – Otitoleke

However, a elder peculiar adjunct to the Kogi State politician connected Drug Rehabilitation, Comrade Richard Otitoleke, said Nigeria’s challenges cannot beryllium attributed solely to enactment failures, arsenic leaders themselves look from the wider society.

“Every person you spot contiguous successful Nigeria is simply a merchandise of the wide Nigerian people. There is nary importation of immoderate enactment successful Nigeria,” helium said.

He continued, “We cannot truly accidental that our challenges are lone astir lea...