Nigeria, Yearning for Economic Lobotomy

NIGERIA, YEARNING FOR ECONOMIC LOBOTOMY

      The last time I checked, ‘lobotomy’ remained a medical term that could be described as a surgical operation in which some of the nerves in the brain are cut to address a severe mental imbalance. It isn’t anymore news that the Nigeria’s economic status is currently undergoing a grievous mental disorder that requires such major operation as lobotomy.

      At the moment, the Nigeria’s economic countenance is characterized by low crude oil price, instability in the main oil-producing regions, lack of foreign currency and monetary strengthening. Recently, the naira has been weakening against the U.S. dollar (USD), precisely since June 2016 when the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) scrapped the currency peg that had kept it at an artificially-high value of about #198 per USD for over a year.

      After the peg was removed, the currency lost over 40% of its value against the USD and fell to #282 per USD. While the CBN had pledged to move to a free-floating exchange regime, it tactically intervened in the foreign exchange market some weeks after the devaluation to keep the ravaging naira between a narrow range of 282 to 285 NGN per USD. However, in mid-July, the apex bank withdrew its interventions, thereby causing the naira to depreciate further. On July 28, the currency fell to a record-low of #322 per USD, which marked a 14.2% depreciation within a month as well as 61.8% depreciation in annual terms. Since then, the naira has been fluctuating at low levels. Right now, it’s sold at about #314 per USD and about #422 at the parallel market.

      Notwithstanding, several analysts cum commentators were of the view that the removal of the currency peg was long overdue. The exchange rate flexibility awakened hopes that the shortage of hard currency and restrictions on imports, which were partly responsible for the country’s unwholesome economic performance in the first quarter of the fiscal year (Q1), would ease immensely. It’s noteworthy that the onward deterioration of the naira prompted the CBN to hike interest rates to a record high in July 2016, in an effort to tackle soaring inflation. In spite of the various perceived remedial approaches, the economic stagnation still lingers.

      Statistics show that Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate declined to 0.36% in Q1 of 2016 compared to 2.11% in Q4 of 2015. The GDP had earlier contracted to 3.86% and 2.35% in Q1 and Q2 of 2015 respectively, before rebounding to 2.84% in Q3 of 2015 and further shrunk to 2.11% in Q4 of same year. The current decline represents the first contraction since June 2004, signifying a twelve-year low. Similarly, the unemployment rate climbed to 12.1% in Q1 of 2016 compared to 10.4% and 9.9% in Q4 and Q3 of 2015 respectively. The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) equally stated that, as at May 2016, daily oil production reduced to 2.11 million barrels per day (mbpd), or 0.5mbpd lower from production of 2.61mbpd in Q4 of 2015, which is not unconnected with the lingering vandalism of the oil facilities by the Niger-Delta Avengers (NDA). This is a basic symptom of recession.

       Since Nigeria still depends on mono-economy, it’s apparent that she would continue to suffer from an epileptic economy till further notice. The bitter reality is that the oil price has dropped tremendously over the globe; it’s currently sold between $40-45 per barrel as against $145 its initial price as at Q1 of 2015. So, even if Nigeria can boast of up to several mbpd, it will yet not solve the ongoing economic quagmire. Needless to say that it’s high time we stopped thinking about oil toward concentrating on other revenue sources. It’s indeed appalling that, amidst the dwindling oil revenue, a state like Lagos still discusses discovery of more oil wells; this alone implies that we are yet to face reality.

       First; the CBN needs to revisit the drawing board. It’s apparent that most of the ongoing challenges in the money and capital markets are occasioned by the CBN’s miscalculation. Every policy introduced lately by the Godwin Emefiele-led CBN seems to have failed woefully; hence, it’s time to have a rethink. The overall policies must be reviewed for the country’s good. I’m of the view that single-digit interest rate is the only way out if we are truly concerned about diversification, particularly industrialization.

      Devaluation of the currency was never an option. Such policy would only end up enriching the rich while the poor get poorer. Any policy targeted to be one-sided, can only constitute more nuisance than good. A genuine policy must be neutral, strict and result-oriented. The naira deserves a currency peg or a fixed exchange rate, which guarantees accurate long-term predictability for business planning. In addition, the parallel market must be adequately checkmated by the apex bank toward curtailing lapses.

       It’s also time we start doing the ‘talking’. I’ve come to agree that Nigeria’s prime predicament remains, laying much emphasis on theory, thereby relegating practical approach to the background. In agriculture, farmers, or prospective ones, need to be conscientized to specialize on a particular farm produce; such measure would definitely boost productivity. And, no farmer should mix crop and livestock farming; mixed farming may come up in the long run after we must have actualized our primary motive. Thus, specialty must be upheld at all costs.

       Governments at all levels must equally be willing to subsidize the cost of tractors, so that, crude system of farming would become a thing of the past. Mechanized farming is the answer. More so, our young ones, especially the youth, ought to be integrated into agriculture, and should be encouraged to study various agricultural disciplines in higher institutions by showering them with innumerable incentives such as bursary and what have you.

      The ongoing tourism mantra ought to be decentralized, or liberalized, whereby it would become mainly a regional/zonal affair. Such measure needs to be extended to the security sector, so that, each geo-political zone would be answerable to their peculiar security challenges. Furthermore, it’s needless to intensify taxation in a growing and struggling economy like Nigeria; rather, we’re bound to concentrate on eradication of tax evasion and leakages.

      We must also revive various technical-oriented practices and institutions, that are moribund, to include the Students Industrial Work Experience Scheme (SIWES), Teaching Practice (TP), and technical colleges, among others. Millions of our young ones are deeply talented and experienced in numerous industrial fields such as ICT, thus they require an enabling environment in which they can commercialize the patents. By so doing, foreigners would be trouping into the country to purchase our trademarks.

      But, it’s pertinent to note that, all these would end up being a jamboree if we overlook the ongoing power instability. I suggest, the Power, Works and Housing Ministry ought to be disintegrated. Additionally, we must think beyond hydro-electric generation pattern, thus other power generation sources like biomass, solar, coal, that are abound in the country, need to be embraced; and there’s need to decentralize the transmission grid.

      Summarily, towards a successful lobotomy, every concerned authority must endeavour to extend hand of fellowship to the cognoscenti. Think about it!

 

 

 

Comr Fred Doc Nwaozor

(TheMediaAmbassador)
-Researcher, Blogger, Public Affairs analyst & Civil Rights activist-
Chief Executive Director, Centre for Counselling, Research
& Career Development - Owerri
_____________________________________
frednwaozor@gmail.com
Twitter: @mediambassador 

 

 

 

Strengthening National Unity Via Friendship

STRENGTHENING NATIONAL UNITY VIA FRIENDSHIP

      The last time I checked, the 2016 edition of the International day of Friendship was commemorated on Saturday July 30. The resolution concerning the annual International Day of Friendship was adopted unanimously by the United Nations (UN) General Assembly in May 2011 in recognition of the fact that friendship can contribute meaningfully to the efforts of the global community towards the promotion of dialogue among solidarity, civilization, mutual understanding as well as reconciliation.

      The resolution mandated the international community to recognize July 30 of every year as International Day of Friendship thereby inviting all the UN Member States, several arms of the UN system, as well as other international and regional bodies coupled with civil societies, to observe the day in accordance with the culture/customs and other appropriate circumstances of their respective local, national and/or regional communities through public awareness-raising activities.

      It’s often said that ‘two good heads are better than one’. It’s also widely noted that ‘a tree does not make a forest’. These and many more similar quotations, which signify the essence of partnership or amalgamation, have been adhered to by millions of personalities and schools of thought across the globe owing to their obvious inevitable role in human existence.

      The aforementioned philosophies are not unconnected with the fact that, no individual or group can do it all alone if efficiency or effectiveness remains his/its watchword. No doubt, this was the reason God ensured that a woman was formed having created a man. Needless to say; the creator Himself understood the unavoidable essence of companionship. This simply implies that everyone requires a friend in whom he/she is well pleased toward arriving at the anticipated success room.

      A friend, in a nutshell, is a person that one likes and knows well. It could also be described as a supporter of a cause or a staunch fan of a certain organization. A true friend is the first person you wish to call whenever you receive good news; he/she is equally the person you wish to share your pains with; he is that person or fellow that would like to accompany you on the most boring errands or trips and make them seem fun; he is that fellow that is invariably willing to tell you what you need to hear, not what you want to hear.   

      In the same vein, friendship is a kind of relationship between two or more people who care about each other. Since friendship has to do with people who truly care about each other, there’s no gain saying that sometimes it requires that people put someone other than themselves first. Indeed, true friendship signifies that some occasions might warrant you sacrificing your happiness for that of others. Hence, life is all about sacrifice, which is usually a product of compassion. What’s the essence of life if you can’t cough up a reasonable time to think about others?    

      Notwithstanding, a friendship is meant to be a symbiotic relationship rather than a parasitic one. Hence, many qualities are required or necessary for a good friendship to hold, including honesty, transparency, trustworthiness, loyalty, tolerance and unconditional acceptance. These, among other factors, have the tendency to yield an unconditional love between the parties involved. For any friendship to be reliable as well as successful or hitch-free, either or both parties, as the case might be, must possess all of the above at all times.

      In Nigeria, for instance, which is an amalgamation of various friendships or relationships, for the union to remain in peace and progress, the leaders must be willing to be transparent and honest to the teeming followers, thus they must always exercise the political will towards leading transparently. The electorate, on their part, must equally reciprocate the gesture by being loyal and submissive. Any union is anchored on reciprocity among its overall members, and Nigeria isn’t an exception. We must take into cognizance that national unity would continue to suffer from epilepsy if trust is nowhere to be found; and there will never be trust if honesty and transparency is missing.

      Happiness ought to be seen as a keyword by the people or groups who constitute a certain friendship or union, irrespective of the circumstance. Of course, we aren’t unaware that human beings can clash very easily, which is why it’s hard for some persons to maintain many friendships at a time or simultaneously. In view of this assertion, members of a particular friendship are expected to uphold absolute honesty at all cost with the sole aim of sustaining the relationship in question.

      Another pertinent factor to acknowledge towards sustaining national unity is unconditional acceptance. The various ethnic groups across the federation must be prepared to accept each other unconditionally since they are bound to be one indivisible body. We found ourselves together, or as one nation, thus we must strive to sustain the oneness regardless of our respective distinct cultures and backgrounds. No doubt, this is the only way we can boast of unconditional love, which is the only factor that can yield the awaited societal uplift. Unalloyed love produces absolute peace and unity that are required for both human and capital developments. The Ministry of Information and Culture under the watch of Alhaji Lai Mohammed, in collaboration with various relevant bodies, can help in making the general public comprehend this fact via awareness cum thorough sensitization campaigns.

      During penultimate year’s commemoration of the International Day of Friendship, precisely on 30^th July 2015, the United Nations Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon urged the global community to use the potential of friendship to strengthen common bonds and inspire efforts for peace and sustainable development. The UN boss further stated that “The day is an important opportunity to confront the misunderstanding and distrust that underlie so many of the tensions and conflicts in today’s world.” He went further to say that the event is a reminder that human solidarity is essential to promoting lasting peace and fostering sustainable growth among mankind, therefore enjoined the international communities to cultivate warm ties that would strengthen our common humanity and promote the well-being of the human race.

      Hence, I call on Nigerians both home and abroad to strive towards achieving national unity through the effort of undiluted friendship. It was Lucius Seneca that said “One of the most beautiful qualities of true friendship is to understand and to be understood.” In her words, Helen Keller stated that “Walking with a friend in the dark is better than walking alone in the light.” Similarly, Hubert Humphrey succinctly disclosed that “The greatest gift of life is friendship, and I have received it.” To this end, I appeal to us to receive friendship in our various endeavours since it has been proven beyond doubts to be the pathway to man’s eternal gladness.

     Acknowledging that two good heads are truly better than one, it’s therefore not needful to state that all hands are expected to be on deck toward ensuring that friendship is created as well as sustained at all cost for the sake of national unity and harmony, which definitely would yield the long awaited national development. Think about it!

 

Comr Fred Doc Nwaozor

(TheMediaAmbassador)
-Researcher, Blogger, Public Affairs analyst & Civil Rights activist-
Executive Director, Centre for Counselling, Research
& Career Development - Owerri
_____________________________________
frednwaozor@gmail.com
Twitter: @mediambassador 

 

 

 

Nigeria and The Just Concluded Rio Olympics

NIGERIA AND THE JUST CONCLUDED RIO OLYMPICS

      The last time I checked, the 2016 Summer Olympic Games that took place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil graciously ended on Sunday August 21, 2016 as planned. It would be recalled that the last edition of the tournament, hosted in London United Kingdom (UK), took place four years ago, in 2012 to be precise; suffice it to say that the widely celebrated global multi-sporting event is a quadrennial.

     It’s worth noting that, Nigeria participated in eight sporting events only, in line with the earlier disclosure made by the Minister of Youths and Sports Mr. Solomon Dalung. The games in question included men’s football, basketball, canoeing, table tennis, wrestling, high jump, long jump, as well as track and field events. Prior to the commencement of the event, the minister equally promised that the contingents would be well treated financially and otherwise toward ensuring better participation throughout the tournament.

     It’s no doubt mind-boggling and disheartening that among the total of three-hundred and six (306) games played at the tournament, or in a competition that yielded 161 medals for men, 136 for women and 9 mixed medals, Nigeria the acclaimed ‘giant of Africa’ could only boast of participants in just eight of the available games. Such level of apathy isn’t unconnected with the fact that the nature of preparation employed prior to the outing wasn’t in any way encouraging, or was nothing to write home about.

     In his speech two months ago, precisely on Wednesday 15^th June 2016, the Nigerian international and Africa’s most decorated table tennis player, Segun Toriola described preparations for the Rio Olympic Games as the ‘worst ever’ in the Nigeria’s sports history. The 42-year-old Toriola who just made history in Brazil as the first African athlete to feature in seven Olympic Games tournaments, stated that he had never seen such poor preparation since his debut at the 1992 Barcelona Games in Spain.

     The statement, made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos State, frowned at the level of lack of interest on the part of the government officials responsible for the said preparation. The aggrieved athlete who unequivocally urged Nigerians not to expect ‘much’ from the participating athletes further lamented that it was more painful and pathetic that nobody was even telling them (the athletes) what the next line of action entailed.

     Aside the various lapses that surrounded the preparation, barely three weeks to the tournament, the Nigerian Olympic team was reportedly still uncertain if it would make it to Brazil for the Olympics. The revelation, which triggered the anger of series of sports commentators cum analysts alongside well-meaning Nigerians, was greeted with enormous criticisms and counter-reactions. Many described the experience as ‘untold’ considering that it occurred when the country’s unity was being threatened; according to them, it was only sports that could adequately unite Nigerians.

     However, amidst the uproar and confusion, on Tuesday July 19, about two weeks to the event, President Mohammadu Buhari ordered the immediate release of funds budgeted for Nigeria’s successful participation in the Rio Olympics. The President announced the approval during the official handover of Team Nigeria to the Nigerian Olympic Committee (NOC) at the State House, Abuja.

     During the tournament, the drumbeat never changed; the Nigeria’s notable pattern of treating her sports’ representatives remained the highlights of the event. We kept on hearing series of criticisms, allegations, as well as counter-allegations among the country’s sports officials and the leadership of the men’s football team, particularly between Skipper John Obi Michel, Coach Samson Siasia and Minister Solomon Dalung, as if they were sent to wash the country’s dirty lilies in Rio. It’s not anymore news that some of the athletes such as weightlifter Mariam Usman have vowed that they won’t represent Nigeria again. 

     After the tournament, the story remained unchangeable. Earlier, a Japanese plastic surgeon and football enthusiast, Mr. Katsuya Takasu promised the Dream Team players who were reportedly down by financial inadequacies, that he would donate some cash to boost their morale. Having defeated Honduras on Saturday 20^th August, Mr. Takasu thought it wise to fulfill his pledge, thus he graciously gave the team $390,000. The donor further gave the sharing ratio; hence, the team coach - Siasia and its captain – Mikel Obi were asked to take $200,000 and $190,000 respectively. But reports emerged that some officials of the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) tried to hijack the process and demanded that the prospective donor must hand the money to them for onward disbursement to team members. One may ask: on what grounds were the officials agitating to ‘hijack’ a match bonus?       

     Our last outing in London was obviously poor and disastrous, thus any right thinking Nigerian both home and abroad expected compensation in Brazil. Though our Dream Team VI were able to acquire bronze owing to passion and sheer luck, 20 years after it defeated Argentina to clinch gold at the Atlanta 1996 Olympics, it’s noteworthy that, generally, Nigeria’s outing in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil was as well pathetic. The consolatory medal won by the male footballers unequivocally indicates a clarion call for restructuring of the country’s sports at large.

       It’s on record that the bane of Nigeria’s sports industry, ab initio, has been inadequate or non preparation whenever a competition is awaited, which is often occasioned by administrative error. Most times when the officials of the various sport authorities in the country are expected to mean business, they would rather prefer to indulge in frivolous politics thereby ending up creating quagmire. Though it’s obvious that there’s an element of politics in whatever we do here on earth, it’s imperative to acknowledge that while discussing how to fortify the nation’s sports arena, politics is required to be set aside.

      For crying out loud, four years is good enough for any preparation, and Olympics aren’t exceptional. We can’t be confidently told that if a competent and reliable fund-raising committee was set up by the apt quarters toward the Rio Olympic Games, Nigeria wouldn’t boast of reasonable sum of money needed to cater for the overall preparations. The plight remains inability to comprehend what to do as well as how best and when to implement it. Rather than concentrate on the needful, the men we entrusted our sports to keep dancing Makosa when they are meant to dance Reggae, or vice-versa. Honestly, there’s a compelling need for a rethink.

     The country has every required potential talent and facility towards participating in any Olympic game to include swimming, golf, table cum long tennis, gymnastics, boxing, javelin, and shot-put; name them. The needed human and natural resources are conspicuously abound; all we need to do is to harness them by using the appropriate technique and mechanism. It’s quite appalling that the intra/inter-school sports competitions, which used to be the talk of the day, are currently no longer in vogue as a result of apathy, laxity, and what have you.

     Every socio-cultural sporting activity that used to speak volumes has abruptly vanished into thin air. All the country needs at this point is indeed, restructuring and nothing more. Think about it!

 

 

Comr Fred Doc Nwaozor

(TheMediaAmbassador)
-Researcher, Blogger, Public Affairs analyst & Civil Rights activist-
Chief Executive Director, Centre for Counselling, Research
& Career Development - Owerri
_____________________________________
frednwaozor@gmail.com
Twitter: @mediambassador