by Eze Eluchie
As we
continually ponder over why Nigeria, as an entity, continues to barely exist in
the pitiable state (economically, politically, socially and otherwise) that we
find ourselves, despite the limitless opportunities and potentials for
greatness and meaningful contribution to humanity embedded in the country, it
is important that those elements that have contributed to societal debasement
and retrogression be identified, named and shamed with the dual hope that they
will, on the one hand, thereafter reflect on their role in our collective
sorrow and hopefully change their vile acts and mannerisms and on the other
hand, acquaint the population in Nigeria about those who have contributed
immensely to ‘why we are where we are whilst the rest of the world keeps on
forging ahead’ and allow the people to decide what to do with such precursors
of underdevelopment.
For this 3rd
Edition of the Worst of Nigeria Awards for Year 2016, there will, as in the previous
year’s, be in 4 categories, to wit: The Worst Corporate Entity, The Worst
Governor/State Agency, The Worst Federal Minister/Agency, and the grand prize, The
Worst Nigerian. And the winners, on account of the anguish they have caused
tthe Nigerian State and its citizens, they are actually sore losers, are as
follows:
The Worst
Corporate Entity:
When a
corporate body rakes in millions of dollars in profits from a hapless
population, manufacturing, distributing and disingenuously marketing a product
that when used exactly as the corporate giant intends it to be used, will
sicken, debilitate, destroy vital organs in the human body and ultimately kill not
only the user of the corporate giants products but also others who have the
misfortune of being around the users of such products, then such erring
corporate giant has sunk low enough to merit the Award been accorded it here.
Some may be
wondering whether such a company fitting the vile description above does
actually exist and which product does nothing than harm its users when used as
intended by the manufacturer.
Wonder no
further, the winner of the year 2016 Worst Corporate Entity is British America Tobacco Plc. The product in question is Cigarette!
The Worst
Governor/State Agency.
In a
contraption where most State Governors have unlawfully and criminally
appropriated funds meant for the tier of government closest to the people, the
Local Government Councils, to their personal use, in the process denying a vast
majority of the population any meaningful benefits in almost two decades of supposedly
democratic governance, it will take exceptional depravity, con and deviousness
for any particular Governor to sink below his peers in their quest to
dehumanize and vanquish the citizens over whom they administer.
By elevating
fraud, doublespeak and trickery as cardinal principles of governance; implementing
strident efforts at destroying the basic institutions (Town Development Unions)
which citizens of his State had applied to cushion the effect of abandonment by
government authorities; unconstitutionally and unlawfully deploying State
Legislators as ‘caretakers’ of Local Government Councils in the State; claiming
that the people of the State he is supposed to preside over are owing him a
stupendous sum of over US$80 Million (for spurious ‘security votes’ which he
claims to be entitled to); the Imo State Governor who has been christened ‘Ekwuo
ozor, eme ozor’ (He who says something and does something else) by the people
of Imo State, Mr. Rochas Okorocha, wins
the Award in the category of ‘The Worst Governor/State Agency’.
The Worst
Federal Minister/Federal Agency
Top contenders
for this award included the National Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC)
which is superintending over the notorious scamming of Nigerian electricity
consumers by power companies who shamelessly levy households and premises for
electricity not supplied; the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC)
which seems fixated with its role as a hound dog to target its investigative
and prosecutorial powers over corruption cases on only persons perceived to be
opposed to the regime in power to , and the Nigerian Military (particularly the
Nigeria Army under the headship of present Chief of Army Staff, General Buratai)
which seems unschooled on the role of the Military in quelling demonstration
and generally interacting with the civil populace in a democratic dispensations
– a situation that has led to the military killing several demonstrators
(pro-Biafra activists in Onitsha {Anambra State, South East Nigeria}, Shi’ia
demonstrators in Zaria {Kaduna State, North Central Nigeria}
In a polity
where State agencies meant to serve the people are notoriously self-serving,
nominations for this Award category are expectedly not lacking.
The Federal
Ministers, who were appointed belatedly have exhibited shocking blandness, colorlessness and lack of creativity in their respective Ministries as one would have
expected them to, in view of the lateness in their appointments, hit the ground
running. The fact that seven months into an administration, none of its principal
officers can be assessed tells the tale of where Nigeria is.
The Federal
Agency whose incompetence, mismanagement and mishandling of its duties has
caused more harm to Nigeria and Nigerians in year 2015 and which this wins the
award in this category is the Independent
National Electoral Commission (INEC) – an agency which somehow, despite its limitless finances,
always finds a way to botch any and all elections it has conducted over the
past one year, in the process short-changing the population and serving as a
conduit to impose misfits as rulers over the Nigerian state, rises above the
field of failed Federal Agencies.
The Worst
Nigerian
The role of
leadership in moving any society forward cannot be adequately quantified. With effective
leadership, a third rate economy (or 3rd world country – whatever you
construe this to mean)) can be transformed over a very short period into a leading
player in global affair. The converse is unfortunately, also true.
In Nigeria,
we have for virtually all of year 2015 being denied any signs of effective
leadership at the national level. For the first 4 months, the then President,
Goodluck Jonathan was embroiled in very distractive and strenuous efforts at
securing a re-elections, this was followed by a 5th month of wasteful transition
processes and since May 29th when the incumbent stepped into office,
the country has virtually run on auto-pilot and “body-language of the President”),
without any recognizable policy thrusts or directions of governance save for
the worn out recourse to sloganeering and blaming all ills on the immediate
past administration.
In other
climes desirous of progress, the Civil Society Organizations would have risen
up to the occasion to ensure that political leaders (in Nigeria it is actually
rulers in control) are held accountable and made to serve the people. From the
labour Unions, to the National Association of Nigerian Students, the ‘human
right organization’, good governance and pro-democracy organizations, entities
who should serve as the eyes, ears and minds of a largely illiterate and
population have sold out their constituents for lucre.
In Nigeria,
rather pitiably, the Civil Society sector has been sucked into the rot which permeates
the system. Objectivity has given way to parochialism; the intellect inherent
in Civil Society is pandered to the highest bidder for partisan and non-altruistic
ends, in the process denying our population, country and indeed the African
continent the benefits of a working Nigeria. Of particular mention here are the
Civil Society organizations which ‘monitor’ and issue ‘accolades’ or ‘condemnation’
(in keeping with the desires of their foreign funders) over the fiasco we refer
to as elections in our clime.
As a
collective, for failing the people, the Worst Nigerian Award for Year 2016 goes
to so-called “pro-democracy and good
governance” Civil Society organizations.
