Saturday, March 21, 2009

THE EFFECT OF DEREGULATION TO NIGERIA ECONOMY.

It has been a very long while since I put my pen on paper, but the delinquent in our society has forced me to do this, thus, what should be a delightful applause as turned around to be a scornful boo. Suffice you to note however that, Nigeria is a country that gained independent from the British colonial master in the year 1960, which will be approximately 51 years from now, during this period Nigeria was known to have practiced two major system of government in governing her people; this is the Parliamentary and Federal System of government. Nonetheless, suffice me to note that, at the dawn of Nigeria, Nigeria’s economy has been a little scrum satisfactory, but not too satisfactory in the outside sense, due to the fact that she cannot boast of satisfying over 80% of her citizens, leaving most of her citizen in abject poverty and abysmal health. Far gone, Nigeria has odds with her economy, leading to low standard of living of her citizen to a low standard of economy/development; they are given second class level over the globe, if not 3rd class. However, these are many of the issues that will be addressed in this essay, though it’s rapt to bring to the understanding of many people the evil and peril our so called leaders have exposed us to.
It is amazing to note that the government of Nigeria, which is not made up of 25% of the population spend over 25% of the national budget. What an irony you may wonder, but I want you to ponder on my submission that the government should do something about the budget been allocated to it (slashing or reducing it drastically I will humbly suggest). I was taught in my Government subject while in secondary school that it is very expensive running a Federal System of government, but I was not taught in that same subject that practicing a Federal System will lead to the collapse of a country’s economy or lead to INDEBTEDNESS as Nigeria has experienced in the past in the hands of past leaders.

What is even deregulation that we hear the government gabbing? Deregulation is however a process of government limiting its control in a sector or means of economical production. However, instead of government sizing control of these sectors, private bodies of individual are left to handle such sectors, deregulation can symmetrically mean privatization. Conversely, this is a means of capitalizing the economy, but it is not full capitalism in that sense, because governments still carry out some control measures on these sectors.
In point of fact, one may blame the leaders for the mayhem that has hit different sectors of the country’s economy, because they were the ones who controlled and still control over 50% of the country’s system of production or economical resources ruling out private ownership or let me call it privatization. The good, the bad and the ugly need to be blamed for the present position the country is in, in international scoring or reports, Nigeria is far below the standard of development among her contemporary countries. But sincerely the person I will make my blames to be lenient on his great Obafemi Awolowo (AWO), ruling out nepotism he had visions for his mother land but he was not giving a chance to rule and administer; the truth of the matter is that, he might have done less but no chance to access him, “he was a president Nigeria never had”. The little chance he hard was utilized by him neatly and that was while he was able to establish free education at primary and secondary level, I can go all the way to write his good deeds but that is not my main motive of picking my pen to write, although, Awolowo should not be exonerated because he also have a share of the blame in Nigeria.

And I will like to make my main motive made clear to my readers that deregulation has positive and negative effect to the nation’s economy depending on how the country’s private bodies can handle things in Nigeria and how government can carry out policies that will checkmate this private bodies for the benefit of the citizenry. But the private bodies are not given the chance to operate with ‘free hands’ in many of our economic sector or system of production, especially in areas like Agriculture and petroleum.
From my own point of view deregulation has a lot of positive effect to Nigerian economy, because with deregulation been given a chance in Nigeria we will have private bodies handling the nation’s economy or let me say petroleum industry and thus increasing and given rise to competition of services rendered.
With my recent accessing of things in this country, we many times mistake to a nation, I have found out that, private bodies are not always allowed to have their stake in the running of the country’s economy, if however they are given the chance, they will however be frustrated out of the system of the country. Many factors contribute to this factor, one of which is corruption at its peak in this country, the other is all-out insecurity in the country, another is lack of basic infrastructures in the country, however, I can go on and on to list so many factors that have contributed in making private bodies to shy away from investing and interfering into Nigeria’s economy. As many of us may be harboring doubt about the government generosity when it says it want to deregulate a sector, we tend not to trust the government based on antecedents. I belief that if 10% of our past leaders have been on the right track and have being implementing the right policies for the betterment of the general populace, Nigeria will not be witnessing the enormity we are living with today.
As with the recent happening in the country and the recent scene Nigeria as found herself, many people have the conviction that deregulation of a sector will first inflict hardship and punishment on the people before things begin to normalize in the nearest future which may take years. The government has given deregulation a bad name that the novice have to live with for a very long period in time.
Also, it is in Nigeria however that we see democracy in the form of dictatorship, it is however pertinent to note that, the government of this country to a great extent have not convinced the people into buying to the idea of deregulation. The recent action of the Goodluck Jonathan administration however depict dictatorship tendencies, need me remember the government that; democracy is and ought to remain a government by the people for the people and to the people and not in the reverse as we see in the country Nigeria. The government has failed to understand the people and has failed to understand the different between what is right and wrong.

For the mere fact that “the removal of fuel subsidy” is right and with a good intension does not make the government in action (removing the fuel subsidy at a wrong and bad time for Nigerians). It is shocking to note that the policy of “fuel subsidy” in the downstream or any sector is wasteful and corrupted, however, that does not make subsidy policy the “mother” of all corruption, in other words, Nigerians to my best understanding are clamoring that the government should address and deal with the “mother” of corruption, that is, mismanagement of public funds, non accountability and many more. However, just like Professor Jeffrey D. Sachs, special advisers to the UN Secretary General Ban Ki Mon, suggested new income taxes on the rich in the society and more public investment in health, infrastructures, security and many more. The Goodluck administration is forgetting something about being a leader and running a country like Nigeria, it is not enough to have budgeted almost half of the Nations budget on security alone, it far goes beyond that in a corrupt country like Nigeria.
Conclusively, it surprise me to hear the government claiming they subsidize a sector in which they have no full control over, most of the activities that goes on in the downstream sector are mostly carried out by private bodies like Shell, Chevron and a whole lot of others, however the whole activities carried out in the downstream sector seems corrupt. Deregulation is advantageous because it gives room to government to invest in other sectors of the economy that will improve the standard of living of the citizenry. However, that is not the case here in Nigeria, as money to be used to build infrastructures and establish a fabulous policies are used to manage the government which we run. Government and politics in Nigeria as being painted to mean a profession to enrich ones pocket and that of the people unborn, I respect civil societies, the citizenry and pressure groups coming out to kick against corruption and indiscipline in governance. It is only in Nigeria that we see leaders totally disconnected from the people in the grass root but dine with people at the higher level. It is so pathetic and sadistic that many Nigerians have to undergo these ill-mannered people attitude.
I will like to commend the action of Imo State governor Rochas Okorocha and Lagos state governor Babatunde Fashola, who have tried to build a formidable relationship between the people and government by coming closer to them in all manner, right from school children and the people on the street.

2015 is near and we would be faced with making some formidable choices.
GOD BLESS NIGERIA!


This article was originally written and published by me, Richard Oluseye Anthony (@Roluseye) on this blog in 2009 when I was just entering the University of Ibadan for my undergraduate program. I have really not had time to form my thoughts into writing in the past few years and I hope to resume on that as I have made up my mind to dive into the academia as well as carry out my entrepreneurial skill.

Saturday, March 14, 2009

'MOTHER'...

Dear mother, how do you do?
I have been on the street,
living you all alone to your fate.
I was stupid to have done that,
if not crazy to have left you one minute.

So sincerely I never mean to leave you,
but was perplexed by what I see from the outside.
you have been good to me mother,
let me say you have been good to all your children
you gave us things equally and evenly,
how then will I have to leave you?
Why then will I have to trade you for a Naira or Dollars,

Without your sincerity and generosity i wonder,
where will I be.
I have been waiting for an answer to a question
that have been troubling my heart for decades now,
the question is why do my people suffer?
I am under your care so i need an answer from you mother.
I now taught about it re branding can it work in me,
while my people suffer I talk about re branding,
am I been just to this people? Mother Africa free us,
free me free our lands free our people from this rout that as befalling.

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

ON THE STREET OF LAGOS.

In the street of Lagos, Nigeria things I see everyday looks humorous and a bit laughing matter. To me the family is a vital thing and privilege that every being must have. I will be writing on this matter which you my reader milt find hilarious, but to me it’s painful. I was opportune to work down the street one faithful Saturday morning on my way to my destination, I found so many ‘people’ trooping themselves together to watch a movie which I never had interest on at first sight because it appears to me that its one of those movie which I had watch before, but to my fascination I have watched the movie before which English language was spoken all through and for this one which they all stand and watch it was Yoruba that was spoken all through by some white. I come to ask my self is it possible for these actors to act Yoruba version movie? While will the national and video board allow movies like this to be revised to Yoruba version without any license agreement with the original copy right? To my fascination I saw the popularly know coming to America by Wesley snipes, was been translated to Yoruba. After accessing all this it pains me more seeing most children and adult gathering to get a glance at this movie. This made me to start developing taught if these children gathered here have parent or rather if this adult here have families? Even with the frequent passage of vehicles and cars and there hear busting horns the viewers were still adamant to live the place. What sort of life is this if I may ask? What sort of government is governing this sort of family? What had happened to the families of this people……….. These are question which I know will have no answer. From the beginning of this write ups my main motive of writing was not made clear I think now you should know, while I decided to write this article. Firstly I am writing to make known to us the reason of this causes and how the can be stopped. Secondly I am here to highlight the importance of a family to the each citizens and levels at which one can belong in a family.
Before I can be justified in complete my write ups, I have to make it clear that this movies which where displayed on the road side are all called home videos and not otherwise.
With so much nepotism glossing my mind towards the affairs of the people of this state Lagos, I so think it is important to make everybody informed through education.
Vividly and with so much emphasis I will like to make know to use the reason of the dirty act displayed by indigence of the state. To my greatest surprise when coming back at night I found another set of people gathering at a bus stop to watch similar film like the first one, to my foresight I found different people like hoodlums, touts marijuana smokers and thieves who go ahead picking pocket. With this I came to a conclusion that the people are been ignorant and non educated, cause I can’t imagine seeing an educated elite standing among hoodlums and thieves and start watching films I know is and home video and not a roadside video. It hardens my heart to see this people being like this, which they themselves never want to be if not for poverty.
Poverty play another major role in fostering this act among people, it as been non to me with a statistic carried out that 50% of people own a television in the street of Lagos while the remaining 50 are left to their fate. I wonder what will happen to a citizen mentality if he does not live a good and soothing life. Definitely he will have to live on his fate. Sincerely a way of living really matter in ones life, whether positively or negatively it will surely and certainly will affect one’s life. The thinking habit and behavioral habit will likewise be affected.
Poverty is a sin psychologically and it is the duty of the state or leaders to evaluate poverty, because it is not part of human. I have felt so many things and see so many things to have come into this conclusion. I was under fortunate to have belonged to a poor family, whereby seven of us all sleep in one room which is 9cm long and 8mm tall. My dad does sleep in the second room regarded as the parlor. Though we are thankful to God for the little we have because seeing the way some people live it is so diverstitating to see them in that state. I am not here to preach against poverty because it is not the will of a person to be poor, but it is the state that makes us poor. The reason is this if jobs are provided with good emolument for workers of the state people will bless the government and bless the state. Presently tanker worms and economic beetle is eaten deep into the system of our country living the unemployed to there state of unemployment and living the employed to there state of bad emolument. Corruption is the root of this entire defect befalling on the country because instead of the citizens praying for there country they are there doing the opposite due to depression and oppression. Recently the teachers went on strike last year because they wanted an increment of their salaries against the old payment, they where forced to call of the strike since the federal government promise to compel to the bewilderment. But it has come to our hearing that the teachers are back on strike living the school children to no fate. Very soon the sss3 student will start there WEAC, what should they hope on? Instead of being at class learning they are at home doing something else. Now turning the government into a liar, because he promised to do one thing and he acted on the contrary.
I am writing with so much endearment to my state and not condemning it. If this things are been provided people will live a perfect life pleasing to God and pleasing to man. I have notice that over the era many people live a virulent life not pleasing to God and man, with this act of killing and prejudice among the people.
Before Lagos became who she is now or permit me to say Nigeria, she as gone through many odds and differentiate. I be back to continue what I started in a jiffy, please permit me go have my sleep for now and don’t take for a writer who does a half work without completion. I promise that this write ups and the others which I promise to complete will be completed when the times is come and I believe it’s very soon.
I really appreciate you for borrowing me some of your time by going through this article and I believe when it is completed we will all have gods to amend our ways and start a better life to all citizens in respective of tribal, racial and language difference.