The Great Mistake? Part 1.

There is a saying that goes, “those who fail to learn from history or the past are bound to repeat it”. That saying could not be any more true than what we are witnessing in the country known as Nigeria. Nigeria’s problems are many, in fact uncountable. Present a negative adjective and I’m sure it will fit nicely into this conundrum that has manifested itself into a country. For me it’s simple; Nigeria is living embodiment of a headache. The problem with Nigeria is that just like headaches, it does not take anything complicated to cure it. 
 2015 was tipped as a crossroads year for the country and for many reasons. For one, you had a situation where a political party in Africa’s largest country was facing off against an opponent that looked to take power from the largest political party in Africa, The PDP. These guys had ruled Nigeria for 16 years and 3 Presidents and none were able to move the country the way they had promised. From corruption to political assassinations to nepotism; Nigeria in that 16 year period had the same look of its very self during the military era. Example You had Former President Obasanjo set aside $16 Billion towards electrifying a dead power grid, till today there is no 24/7 electricity. So where did the money go? All of this ineptitude would be topped off by the rise of Boko Haram. What cemented PDP’s Doom was the nonchalant nature at which the then president Goodluck Jonathan handled Boko Haram. Allowing a ragtag group of miscreants to turn into the deadliest terrorist group on the planet while challenging Nigerian Sovereignty. 
 As the 2015 election loomed, a new political party emerged known as APC; a coalition of various political parties(ANPP,ACN & CPC) across Nigeria who had at various elections(1999,2003,2007 & 2011) were beaten by the all powerful PDP. This combination of political parties (whose ultimate goal was to topple Africa’s largest party) was no joke. It comprised of powerful men like Bola Tinubu, Abubakar Atiku and of course the Presidential candidate and former Head of State General Muhammadu Buhari.

A year has passed since Buhari was sworn in and quickly the honeymoon phase has tapered off as the Nigerian economy has plunged into the red in all sectors. Albeit Boko Haram has been brought to its knees, insecurity has been on the rise with the advent of Fulani Herdsmen and Farmer clashes in the middle belt. At the same time, a new terrorist group has arisen in the Niger delta as they have gone on a mission to blow up oil pipelines, severely affecting the power situation in Nigeria. From the Biafra agitation in the east to the issue of unpaid salaries and a volatile Naira , it seems as if the task facing Buhari and his government is insurmountable. 
 Despite the seemingly mountainous task of running the nation, I have never believed Buhari to be the man who could guide Nigeria. My reason was simple, he had once ruled Nigeria as Head of State and his tenure was remembered as one lacking in understanding of the social climate as well as economic climate. His economic policies then (at the time aptly known as Buharinomic’s) plunged the economy into near comatose. This would lead to a rise in inflation and the infamous cues for basic foods such as sugar and bread. Buhari’s track record spoke for itself and yet many were not willing to examine his work prior to electing him. He was a head of state that during his tenure was ethnically divisive, refused to listen to proper advice in running the nation and was slow to act. Fast forward 30+ years and we are facing the exact same issues as we did many years back as nothing has changed. For instance, it took him 6 months to appoint a cabinet, despite his vice president promising that they would hit the ground running. One of the things I pointed out then, was that Nigeria was too big to be stagnant and it truly is. Investors lost confidence and companies pulled out.

Stay tuned for Part 2…