Indeed, the Democracy Day 2021 came with striking episodes. Prior to the day, tensions grew high in the society. Some planned for a revolution and unceasingly threatened that President Muhammadu Buhari must vacate Aso Rock. As a result, a hashtag ‘BuhariMustGo’ circulated across many social media for mobilisation. Eventually, after realising that a democratically-elected government has strict thorough procedures particularly in removing a president, the fire gradually quenched.
The architects perceptively realised, along the line that removal of an elected president is exclusively a legislative affair, and not a street affair by masses, thus, not feasible by civil unrest or protests. In fact, it doesn’t end with the legislature—the National Assembly as any impeachment proceedings must be endorsed by a panel to be set up by the Chief Justice of Nigeria, to proceed as provided in Section 143(5). And subsection 6 (Sec 143[6]) gives the accused president a right to defend himself against the allegations. In all these, the powers of the masses are only wrapped inside their elected NASS representatives. The parliamentarians are therefore people’s mouths except for peaceful protest merely to draw attention of authorities to pressing issues for urgent intervention.
Celebrating the occasion, Buhari, in his broadcast to the nation ‘committed’ two blunders in the eyes of many particularly the opposition groups. The first was the claim that his administration “has in the last two years lifted 10.5 million Nigerians out of poverty”. The second was his phrase “a dot in a circle” while answering questions on the activities of IPOB. Many have disagreed with the claims and rated Buhari as an insensitive leader considering the excruciating hardships people have been going through in the country. No responsible leader would politicise agonies subordinates go through.
Looking at the state of the nation as the cost of items, foodstuffs rise daily, even when many have no jobs, any reasonable person would be quick to mock the president over such claims. Nobody can deny that hardship is visible on the faces of the masses. A family that can afford a full square meals at this terrifying period should show gratitude to their Maker. Nonetheless, reciting the problems is not the goal presently, but to curiously trace what gave Buhari the audacity to make the two treacherously hard claims so as to either join in knocking or clearing him. Of course, it is an inalienable right to criticise, but a desideratum when the constructive.
From record, after blocking major leakages through TSA (Treasury Single Account) which tightened the system in his first term, Buhari’s government, in the second term, introduced ‘Free Registration of Business Names’ and many Skill Acquisition Programmes and Training for the masses to boost entrepreneurship. Next to it, the CBN introduced many financial grants to support small, medium and large-scale businesses. Many sectors were covered and these included households, enterprises, firms in agriculture, hospitality, aviation, health, manufacturing, trading and other lawful income generating activities.
Applicants in the category of ‘Households loans’ have a maximum of N3,000,000 (three million naira) obtainable without collateral as done in advanced countries. The basic requirement is to have a bank account with BVN (Bank Verification Number). For large-scale businesses, the maximum grant is N25,000,000 (twenty-five million naira). There are other schemes designed to support citizens’ businesses, particularly helpless masses that lack requisite facilities to meet up for loans from commercial banks. They include a grant of N30,000 as micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) survival fund to 9,000 artisans in each of the 36 states of the federation and FCT. Those that applied were mobilised accordingly.
Those not informed were deprived, therefore bitterly disagreed with Buhari’s claims. The blame should go to the elected representatives for not acquainting members of their constituencies with the federal government’s programmes meant to empower the masses. This is the primary reason federalism is patterned to have representatives from all constituencies. From records, Buhari’s claim to have empowered 10.5 million people stemmed from verifiable records of total number that have so far benefitted from his administration’s various financial empowerment schemes. It is therefore imperative that elected peoples’ representatives should carry the people in their constituencies along to benefit from the Executive’s initiatives as a responsibility irrespective of the political party in power. Government’s target is 100 million beneficiaries, thus, the schemes are not over since they are in phases.
On the controversial “dot in a circle” which is going to the extreme, it must be noted that the phrase is a figure of speech, and used to describe the few violently agitating for secession. It’s metaphorical, and not addressed to the Igbo ethnic group, but the small fraction aggressively taking laws into their hands. So far, leaders of thoughts and political leaders of South-East geopolitical zone have not endorsed secession but restructuring for equitable distribution of national resources. The same goes to South-West and South-South regions. The people of the zones are represented in the Parliament of the Federal Republic of Nigeria accordingly. The governments of the various States are all parts of the Nigeria nation alongside their respective governors as members of Federal Executive Council. These are the voices of the people in the states.
It is, therefore, a height of absurdity for a “Distinguished Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria” to join the gullible masses to misconstrue the figure of speech and sarcastically, publicly, wearing a branded T-shirt with the inscription “The DOT-Nation”. This is absurd and unacceptable. Senator Enyinaya Abaribe goofed. Instructively, a dot in a circle is a metaphor, and it literally means a paltry portion in a large space. It is self-explanatory. Sensibly, the president wouldn’t have tagged one of the three major ethnic groups which people spread globally as a dot in a circle. The great Igbo nation is clearly not IPOB that Buhari was answering questions about its activities. And Igbo leaders have never supported arsons and violent civil disorder, but few misled youths in the region. Public office holders must always display maturity.
Umegboro, a public affairs analyst, can be reached on 08173184542.
