Hehehe...na true ooooo.....Some call it the Buhari bounce. Others
describe it as the Buhari effect. Yet some others say it is the Buhari
aura. One thing is however crystal clear. Things have not been the same
in the past 100 days in Nigeria, since Muhammadu Buhari assumed the
presidency. A new sheriff has truly come to town.
Exactly 100 days ago, he climbed the
podium at Eagle Square in Abuja and got inaugurated as president, 30
years after he had been toppled from power as military head of state. He
promised to belong to nobody, and to belong to everybody. It is a
pledge that still resonates loudly today, and will surely echo for a
long time to come.
On
a day like this, you would expect a presidential spokesman to chronicle
the achievements of his principal in office. He has turned stone to
bread, slain the dragon, and climbed Mount Olympus in ten seconds. But
that is not what I want to do. There are some intangible, almost
imperceptible achievements, but which run very deep, and are quite
fundamental. Those are the ones I’ll rather talk of, while we leave the
tangibles till some other day.
> Oh, he’s escaping. There are no
concrete achievements, some wailing wailers would cry. True? Not true. I
could have decided to focus on the bloody nose being given to Boko
Haram in the North-east, which would see the country rid of insurgency
soon, the rallying of leaders of other neighboring countries to deploy a
Joint Multinational Task Force, the openness displayed about government
finances and the welfare package instituted for states that couldn’t
pay salaries, the Treasury Single Account, which would promote
transparency and accountability in governance, the disappeared fuel
queues, fast-tracking of the cleanup of Ogoni land, reduction in the
cost of governance, and many others. But I will not focus on all those.
The day cometh!
> When a new sheriff comes into town,
disorder gives way to order. Chaos flees. Impunity is swept away. Laxity
gives way to diligence, and people change their old, unedifying ways.
When you have a Wild, Wild West situation prevailing, the new sheriff
comes, and stamps his authority. Old things then pass away, behold,
everything becomes new.
> Nigeria had always needed
attitudinal change. That was why the Buhari regime launched War Against
Indiscipline in the 1980s. And the war was succeeding, till a spanner
was thrown in the works through regime change. Buhari was called all
sorts of names then: despot, tyrant, iron fist ruler etc But the
discerning knew. They understood that it was a change we needed. And
that change was postponed for 30 years.
> But what is bred in the bones never
goes out through the flesh. Immediately Buhari returned on May 29,
Nigerians knew that discipline was back. The bird of the homestead told
the ones in the bush, and they all sat up. No unnecessary chirping.
Stealing is now corruption, they whispered to themselves. God help you
if you get caught.
> Now, consider the situation with
electricity and with our refineries. Electricity has climbed to about
5,000 Megawatts. Some refineries, which had not produced a drop of fuel
for years, have cracked into life. Even the perennial queues in our
petrol stations have disappeared, vanished. Is it because Buhari threw
billions of dollars at the problems? No. Those things simply responded
to the presence of the new sheriff in town. Those who manned those
schedules could afford to be laid back in the past. But not anymore! The
music has changed, and the dance steps must follow suit. And would
Buhari take credit for the newfound zeal and efficiency? Not the plain
and honest man from Daura. The broadcaster Omotayo Omotoso had come to
the presidential villa to interview him sometime in July. And she had
asked what the magic wand he waved was, that refineries, long comatose,
had sprang back to life. The President responded that it would be
dishonest of him to have claimed he did anything. He had not touched
refineries at all. But unknown to the President, he did something. He
had swept into town with his reputation for efficiency, and for
achieving results. And the refineries, fuel supply, electricity supply,
responded to the new sheriff. May things continue to get better till the
change becomes enduring and irreversible. Amen somebody!
> Another imperceptible but momentous
achievement is the faith that Nigerians now have in their leader. Yes,
the opposition numbers in millions, and naturally so. A political party
had held power at the centre for 16 years, and its loyalists would not
simply disappear, or get converted overnight. About 12 million Nigerians
had voted for the presidential candidate of that party in the March
2015 general elections. Would they just cross over to the winning side?
It often takes awhile. But despite all that, a great deal of Nigerians, a
vast majority, believe in the new sheriff. And that is great
achievement. A big deal. When the citizenry believe in their leader, and
almost can swear by him, it is no mean feat. The NOI polls, in a survey
in July, revealed that over 70% of Nigerians were happy with the Buhari
administration. And I can bet that the percentage would rise, as the
months and years roll by. Faith in leadership is something that does not
come cheap.
> And this one! Even our foreign
reserve knows that a new sheriff is in town, and has responded
appropriately. In June, just one month into office, and with the
plugging of some leakages and loopholes, foreign reserve surged from $29
billion to $31.89. Holy Moses! Just in one month. Well, that is what a
new sheriff can do. He brings sanity, confidence and probity to the
system. And you would agree that Nigeria needs such shot in the arm, if
we consider recent past experiences, when our treasury was like a bag
filled with holes.
> An evidence of the believability of
the new sheriff, and the confidence reposed in him, is the disclosure
that came this week from Ambassador Godknows Igali, Permanent Secretary,
Ministry of Power. He said since Buhari came to office, not a single
sabotage of the power infrastructure has been recorded, and it is one of
the reasons that electricity supply keeps improving. But did Buhari
line up soldiers across the power infrastructure? Did he hire a
combination of OPC, Egbesu, MASSOB, MEND and Arewa youths to keep vigil?
No. Just believability. Those who are so angry with the country, and
would go to any extent to sabotage development, have decided to give the
sheriff a chance. They have heard of his reputation. A man that
believes in fairness and justice. He would do right to all parts of the
country.
> Can you imagine the respect our
sheriff commands on the international scene, and how it redounds to the
glory of the average Nigerian? American President, Barack Obama said
Buhari came onto his job with reputation of integrity and a clearcut
agenda. Ambassador Johnny Carson, also during the U.S trip in July, said
the Nigerian President was a man of honour and integrity. Everywhere he
goes, the Nigerian President is lauded and garlanded for his virtues.
And the image of the country is burnished and repositioned in the
process. Surely, greater days are ahead.
> Some people say the sheriff did not
hit the ground running, as he is yet to constitute his cabinet in 100
days. And I usually ask such people: when you hit the ground, and you
land in mud, how do you begin to run immediately? You can only sink
deeper, if you attempt to run. The thing to do is to first clear the
mud, till you get to terra firma, and then you can begin to run.
> President Buhari has spent time
trying to clean the Augean stable he inherited. And he is succeeding.
Sheriffs can either come in with guns blazing, shooting malefactors to
kingdom come, or simply stamp their authority on the situation by sheer
force of personality and presence. The Nigerian sheriff seems to have
opted for the second option for now. But we should never forget that
sheriffs are licensed to shoot. And those shots can be lethal for
lawbreakers. In a matter of months, you can ask those who had bled our
treasury to the point of death. They’ll have stories to tell.
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