By Ikechukwu Amaechi
Saturday,
September 5, was exactly 100 days since Muhammadu Buhari took the oath of
office as President. His four-year term has 1,461 days and 100 days are only
6.8 per cent of it.
Though it has almost
become a global convention to assess the achievements of an administration,
particularly in a democracy, in its first 100 days, nobody really expects any
fundamental accomplishment in so short a time.
What is
indisputable, however, is that 100 days is long enough to lay the foundation of
an administration and sketch policy.
So, while it may
be ‘morning yet on creation day’, there are certain milestones that ought to be
achieved. These milestones say a lot about the preparedness of a new regime to face
the challenges of governance.
For instance, in
an interview in Sunday Vanguard on August 30, Professor ABC Nwosu, former
Minister of Health, used former President Olusegun Obasanjo to buttress what it
means to be prepared for governance.
He recalled that
when “Obasanjo appointed me on May 29, 1999 [and] I went to see him that
evening after his having been sworn in, he gave me two draft bills – one on the
NDDC and the other on the ICPC. He had them ready before day one.
“Both
institutions were new concepts but they have endured till today. This is the
difference between success and failure in governance.”
It is interesting
to note that rather than telling us which direction the government is headed,
chieftains of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) are disclaiming the
promises they made in the heat of electioneering just because of the threshold
of 100 days.
