Nigeria At 59: My Good-Will Messages! By Hameed Ajibola Jimoh Esq.

Today the 1^st day of October, 2019,
marks another anniversary of the Nigeria’s Independence Day
Celebration across the Federation of Nigeria. I humbly wish all
Nigerians including the readers ‘a happy Independence
Day’ and Nigeria’s birth at 59! This paper is aimed
at giving my good-will messages to the Nigerian leaders and the
Nigerian citizens for a better and more prosperous Nigeria in her
years to come.

Since the creation of Nigeria in the year
1900 according to history and the independence of
Nigeria since 1960, Nigeria has so far
experienced several challenges (and progress in some ways).
Nevertheless, it seems as even more apparent that those challenges
are somehow consuming Nigeria than the successes at present (in my
humble view). Some of those challenges range from: insecurity,
economic hardship, unstable electricity supply to citizens by some
(if not all) electricity distributors, bribery and corruption,
criminality such as: armed robbery; kidnapping; rape of minors and
adults; alleged election rigging; bad health facilities; unimproved
educational sectors; poor services in the civil service of the
Federation/State; killings; jungle justice; inter-tribal wars;
terrorism; natural disasters such as: uncontrolled flood, etc.;
disobedience to courts’ orders; disrespect for rule of law;
ethnic/tribal discords, among others. By this paper, I aim at
encouraging Nigerian leaders and Nigerians across ethnics,
religions, education, locality, e.t.c., to bring out all their
energy and manpower towards developing Nigeria rather than bringing
her down than she has experienced in her past 59 years of age.

In my humble view, there are some areas that the Nigerian
government should be considering in this next stage as Nigeria
prepares for her 60^th Independence Anniversary next
year’s 1^st day of October, 2020. I shall itemize some of
them and the rest are not exhaustive.

One of these solutions to those challenges is
restructuring. Restructuring is required
at every level of government and in all government’s sectors. The
Nigerian Security Agencies for instance must be restructured in
such a way that the allegations of extra-judicial killings against
some of those security personnel or agencies would cease to occur,
such as those allegations of extra-judicial killings against some
Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad (FSARS) officers; some military
officers and those fighting terrorism and insurgencies. Furthermore
on this, the Nigerian civil service at all levels require
restructuring, so that the system will be checked and restructured
in order that those heads that have continued to constitute
nuisance, abuse their public office, maltreat other junior staff
unlawfully, engage in bribery and corruption, favouritism of public
employment opportunities, employment based on connections and
relationship without merit, etc. will be made to vacate their
office, and the better heads engaged to replace those bad heads.
Also, the Nigerian educational sectors at all levels require
restructuring. For instance, some of those bad heads heading some
of the educational institutions, such as: the primary education
boards; the secondary education boards; the university management
board; the Council of Legal Education and the Nigerian Law School,
the National Teachers’ Authority, etc, including those technical
schools should be checked to confirm their usefulness. Also, the
issue of educational facilities should also be improved upon.
Furthermore, the Nigerian health and medical facilities should also
be restructured in such a way that those health and medical staff
who refuse to work as a result of laziness or recklessness should
be substituted with those who are committed to the service to
humanity to give value to the national visions. Heads of hospitals
at all levels of health and medical sectors must be persons with
eagerness to duty. Also, the Heads of all government’s Ministries,
Agencies and Departments must be restructured to ensure improved
public services and national dignity. Also, the heads of the
National Electoral Commission should be restructured in line with
the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. This would
resolve cases of electoral fraud, rigging etc. Furthermore, the
Heads of the electricity/power sectors must be restructured in
order to bring back an uninterrupted electricity supply across the
nation. This will also improve the Nigeria’s economy. At present,
there are eleven (11) different electricity Distribution
Companies-herein referred to as DISCOs among which is the Abuja
Electricity Distribution Company-herein referred to as AEDC. They
are owned by private individuals and not government, even though
the government is also major shareholders of these companies. It is
only regulated by the established government’s body (ies).

The Government’s Regulatory Body in charge of electricity
regulation is the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission-herein
referred to as NERC. The Ministry of Powers, the
Nigerian Electricity Management Services
Authority (NEMSA)
established under the Nigerian Electricity Management
Services Authority (NEMSA) Act, 2015 are main electricity power
sectors. NERC is empowered by the Electricity Power
Sector Reform Act, 2004 to ensure an efficiently managed
electricity supply. The Act mandates the Commission to ensure that
electricity supply industry meets the yearnings of Nigerians for
stable, adequate and safe electricity supply. The Act also mandates
the Commission to ensure that electricity investors recover costs
on prudent investment and provide quality service to customers. The
Minister for Power is empowered under the EPSR to regulate and
supervise the Commission.

It has always been an excuse for failure of electricity supply
or electricity power disruption that for instance, that DISCOs do
not generate electricity rather they only distribute electricity
purchased from the Transmission Company so, could not be blamed for
the consistent electricity supply interruption to electricity
customers. This must stop! Perhaps this is responsible for why
majority of Nigerians still think NEPA is still in charge and not
private companies so that whenever there is electricity power
disruption, they shout ‘NEPA!!!’ and when
the power is reinstalled, they shout ‘UP
NEPA!!!’, the slogans which have continued to be
passed to generations even those yet to come, which is just a
symptom of a failed electricity power sector, which the government
must revive. Recently, I was discussing with a good brother of mine
who is on his doctorate degree programme in Malaysia on the
electric power system in Malaysia compared with the situation in
Nigeria and he had this to say ‘The issue of
electrifying the entire country is very important. If this is
achieved, over 50% of other issues would be fixed. This is based on
my experience with Malaysia and other developed countries I have
visited. Because of stable power, so many industries, both local
and foreign are present in these countries which eventually create
employment and increase the value of the currency. In addition,
housing issues can be solved because very tall buildings (between
20 and 100 stories) can be built with elevators installed. On
corruption, when power is stable, modern technology can be used to
monitor processes and transactions reducing it drastically.
Examination malpractices can be tackled using same
technology’. And he also recommended that
‘Buhari should make it his most important agenda before
leaving office because even the insecurity is borne out of the
harsh economic situation. Another benefit of stable electricity
will be to our Universities by enhancing science and technology
research’. I in my humble view, also view that ‘electricity is the
main solution to majority of Nigeria’s problems and or challenges
and so must be taken seriously by the government. Furthermore,
Nigeria’s government should encourage a lot of intertribal and
interethnic marriages across the nation. It should
not be that a Hausa lady cannot marry a Yoruba man! Or An Igbo
(Ibo) man to refuse to marry a lady because of her ethnic or tribal
background! This also has positive effect on the national progress
and security.

Furthermore, the independence of the judiciary must be ensured
by all the arms of government. Therefore, it is my humble view that
those guaranteed rights will better be achieved where the
judiciary’s independence to decide disputes and or cases
independent of any political affiliations or influence, fear or
favour is guaranteed, else, anything short of trust of the public
in the judiciary will have a direct impact on the national progress
of Nigeria. Therefore, all rights activists must guide and protect
the independence of the judiciary! And a situation where
individuals do things in their own ways will definitely encourage
chaos and disunity very soon as everyone will have to take the laws
into his own hand and be the judge of his own cause, leading to
‘jungle justice’ that is
‘fake justice’ or ‘injustice to an innocent person or
victim’ or ‘justice misplaced’ ‘or justice without substantial
evidence’, so to say.
Therefore, all and sundry must wake up to ensure that the Nigeria’s
Judiciary remains independent and committed to its constitutional
tasks of dispensing justice with confidence and without fear or
favour. Also, the government especially in this case, the
executive, must not use its powers of possessing the State’s
ammunition to harass or intimidate or distract the attention of the
judiciary even where a court’s order or judgment is against it or
any of its agencies. Court’s orders must be obeyed at all times by
all persons and the other two arms of government, so as to lay a
good example for the members of the public. Also, the judiciary
should not be used as a political football that is played the way
the player or the ruling party in power desires. It must be
separated from politics, as the judiciary is even there to save
politics where the need arises. Every citizen of Nigeria having
realised the need and importance of the judiciary towards
actualizing his guaranteed human rights must rise up and champion
the cause of the independence of the judiciary.

Also, government should be all inclusive and
open-government-partnership with Nigerian citizens and all
traditional leaders.

Finally, I believe that, though all the above recommendations
are not exhaustive, where they are implemented, they will go a long
way in Nigeria’s development! It is my view too that Nigerian
citizens’ prayers, hopes and optimism go a long way in the
betterment of Nigeria!

God bless Nigeria! God bless Nigeria’s leadership! God bless
Nigeria’s citizens!

Email: [email protected]^[1]