Buhari, Appointments, and Matters Arising.
This piece is in response to the media uproar following the last appointment made by President Buhari on 27/8/15. Before proceeding, let me reference part of a recent article written by the same author on 15/8/15.
“As soon as any appointment(s) is made, the first likely question most Nigerians would ask you is, what state/zone/tribe etc is S/he from. Rarely do we ask about the qualifications of the appointee(s) and how s/he can deliver. Those not favoured by the appointment(s) will start complaining. Then the spin doctors/conspiracy theorists will move in quickly, and start fabricating all sorts of stories. Mostly, there are stories out of every appointments made by the government. Make no mistake, most of these (spin doctors/conspiracy theorists), make a living out of these fabricated stories, or some try to remain relevant through these means. It becomes an issue, when you see the number of people (both the intelligent and non intelligent) buying into these conspiracy theories.
When you probe further, to discover the reasons, behind these attitudes of so many Nigerians, then you could trace it down to the federal character principle, which is part of the Nigeria’s constitution”… “The federal character principle was adopted during the 1977 constitutional drafting committee. It became part of the 1979 constitution of Nigeria, and has remained so till date. This gave rise to quota system. From then, merit and competitiveness, were sacrificed for mediocre. This principle also means that appointments have to be spread around. Yours truly is totally against this principle, because it will prevent the best from emerging. Max Weber (1864-1920) said, that employees should be hired and promoted based on merit and expertise. Singapore has an official policy on merit”. http://www.cvakutamedia.com/2015/08/appointments-appointees-expectations.html
Agreed that as at today (29/8/15), Buhari’s appointments are mainly Northerners, but he has not finished appointments yet. Besides, some of these appointments are non statutory. Guess, he should be given a free hand to select his cabinet. Those he can work with, and those that can deliver their terms of engagement to the Nigerian masses. If Buhari fails, little or no mention will be made of these appointees. Furthermore, we don’t know the information available to him, as to why he has made those choices so far.
On 28/8/15, the Punch news, had a story where Buhari, through his spokesman promised to redress any imbalance in his appointments. But if Buhari, fails to comply with the federal character principle after his appointments, then hold him to account for that. See further resources on the above. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzprzNURZnY/ http://www.cvakutamedia.com/2015/08/buharis-appointments-so-far.html).
SGF Position.
Just read an online story that the political intrigues etc, from some South Easterners and few others, might have been responsible why Ogbonnaya Onu lost out of SGF (Secretary to the Government of the Federation) position. These days a lot of stories fly up and down. So sure, the masses will think differently, if they know the underground currents regarding appointments. Please inbox me if you want to read the link too.
Buhari, and 2nd Niger Bridge.
What would have been unusual is, if President Buhari didn’t call for the probe of the 2nd Niger Bridge contracts etc. Glad he did. On 17th January 2015, yours truly raised alarm through an article titled (The Tue Cost of The 2ndNiger Bridge). The article revealed that the proposed 2nd Niger Bridge, public private partnership (PPP) arrangements were totally against the interest of Igbo masses. If you look at the (PPP) arrangements, Igbos are simply paying/building this bridge on their own. The Governor of Imo State (Owelle Rochas Okorocha) and some other Igbo leaders called for the cancellation of the contract/contract terms and conditions.
This proposed 2ndNiger Bridge might be the single largest federal government project at the South East. This is because, there are little or no federal government projects in the South East. Considering the contributions, that the Igbos have made in Nigeria, they do not deserve to pay for this bridge. Praying that President Buhari, should correct the anomalies, terminate the proposed toll collection and construct the bridge before he leaves office. Former Military Head of State (IBB) was the first leader that promised this bridge about 1992. Till date, it has been used to manipulate Igbos for their votes. Obasanjo, Yar Adua and Goodluck Jonathan promised and failed to build the bridge.
Job Role For Igbo Leaders.
South East leaders, youths etc, should monitor this project in addition to others through the offices of Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) and the Federal Ministry of Works.
C.V.Akuta.
UK
29/8/15
Like and Share our Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/pages/CVAkuta-MediaLeicester-UK/472490216216783
