Are Nigeria's Problems Impossible To Solve?

By  Perry Brimah
It will soon hit the one-year anniversary of the new "change" Buhari government. And while there is plenty to rejoice over and much to thank God for escaping from; it appears that as Nigeria takes two steps forwards it also takes two steps backwards. This is quite commendable, don't get it wrong. Zero advancement is a good deal better than where the nation is coming from. Nigeria used to be in reverse (-). The nation was even speeding in reverse. So zero acceleration calls for celebration.

It is also important to mention that considering the challenges inherited due to where we were and the state of the global economy, zero is further commendable. But the question is: can we every do better and actually solve our problems faster than they are created to advance beyond this status?

Corruption And Padding Tins
As Nigeria addressed corruption, arresting tons of suspects from the old gang, so also did the nation face one of the largest scandals in budgeting history. Borrowing the President's words, "all my life I have never heard of budget padding before." Nigeria's budget was ridiculously padded. Government officials hid largesses that were not only humongous but also wicked. The Presidency's offices got larger allocations than the entire collective schools of the country; it's clinic got larger lots than all public hospitals combined. Ministers put projects like a single borehole at the cost of building a thousand. It was corruption at its finest.

Over a month later, no one has been arrested for this corruption, a few were simply moved to other departments, one or two were fired and implicated ministers and other officials are still in office. Unlike neighboring Ghana where corrupt Ministers are immediately sacked, Nigeria embraced its continued corruption. In fact, the new budget that just got passed still had most of the padding in it. The Senate reportedly just allowed it pass in the desperate need to move the nation forward at the risk of contractors of the government officials helping them swallow millions of dollars hidden in the padded allocations. The borehole is still to be built by the Minister of Works and Housing at $750,000. A world record!

Politics
President Buhari admitted today that he had failed as far as politics goes. He confessed that he failed with the Kogi polls, the Bayelsa polls and the Rivers polls. That's all the polls there have been since he entered office. The Kogi polls had the ruling party fielding a dying candidate simply to grab the spot. It also witnessed a never before-heard-of gymnastics of replacing a governorship candidate mid-race with another person all together. I am sure the Tribunal is going to knock that one out; but so far it has been a sham. Kogi State lacks a deputy governor and you cannot blame Faleke for that.

In do or die politics, Bayelsa State witnessed the APC embracing the same corrupt men from the PDP; fighting an impossible battle and refusing to accept that they can never win the State, most especially when all they offer the people is the same 'ol corruption as alternative with no thought of giving the people a chance with someone of decency.

Rivers was one of the most shameful political episodes in recent global politics. Dozens died including serving Youth corps members and soldiers. What a shame. For unexplainable reasons, the results are yet to be released. So one way or the other, these people died in perfect vain!

Soldiers were sent to Rivers, but what their orders were is in question. This is because there is a pristine video that shows an alleged above-the-law APC candidate brazenly storm an INEC office and openly demand a refund of the bribe money he paid . While the candidate vandalized the office, the police and soldiers stationed simply watched! What orders Buratai gave them is in question. Was it the type of orders given to officers who took part in EkitiGate? If these officers were dispatched to uphold justice and maintain peace, then they would have immediately arrested the alleged APC candidate who was terrorizing the center. What happened to Chief of Army Staff Buratai that he and his men are the trigger-eager defenders of Nigeria's democracy? As Buhari said, it is a failure.