Going Nowhere Fast
Taking a leaf from the Holy Bible,'What king would go for war against another king without first sitting down with his counselors to discuss whether his army of 10000 could defeat the 20000 soldiers marching against him? Who would begin construction of a building without first calculating the cost to see if there is enough money to finish it? Such a person might complete only the foundation before running out of money,and then everyone would laugh at him because he was unable to finish the project he began.'
In a country faced with myriads of monstrous and leviathan challenges, every step taken towards a better and improved nation,socio-political and economic stability and eventual happiness of her citizens,should be thoroughly considered and properly directed. Our leaders' visions seem to be vague and suffering from ambiguity. It has left them confused and at the same time forming a clog in the wheels of the nation's progress.
Often times,'visionless' people are appointed or elected to head different departments and ministries,maybe because of their 'long-legs' or the long-running nepotism, that has refused to stop. They come in with little or no idea of what to do to positively change situations. They fail to invent new ways of making things work,thus not producing tangible results. They move around a vicious circle and at the long run,whiling away their time and that of the nation at large.
Last week,the nation's election organiser said it was seeking more time to prepare for next year's presidential,gubernatorial and parliamentary polls,including getting a comprehensive voters register.INEC insisted that the May 29 date for the inauguration of a new president would not be changed even though they never made clear what they wanted. It announced after a two-day retreat,that the time line for the implementation of their plan is very tight after examining the commission's detailed action plan for the voters registration and elections. The commission also promised to engage all the relevant stakeholders with a view to exploring all legal avenues for an extension of time to enable the commission to deliver on the aspirations of Nigerian for a credible voters' register and free,fair and credible elections.
January 15,22 and 29 have been earmarked for the National assembly,presidential and gubernatorial elections respectively while the party primaries are to be held between September 11 and October 30, with voters' registration expected to be done between November 1 and 18.
I don't expect the electoral body to dance to the tune of the government if it really wants to conduct and produce credible elections come next year. The commission seems to be under undue pressure to give Nigerians free and fair elections. Of course they'll be blamed for conducting any election short of the standard. One may be tempted to ask- why did INEC announce the timetable for the 2011 elections when they actually knew that they were not ready for its execution within the obviously short period? If INEC is actually independent and ready, to a reasonable extent, satisfy the curiosity of Nigerians towards changing the status quo in terms of fair elections,they should speedily count the cost and make it plain to Nigerians, even if it is not realisable in 2011.
If Jega wants to preserve his much publicised integrity and radicality after being at the helm of affairs in the controversial body and retain the confidence of Nigerians, he should count the cost of a credible election,with the nation's uniqueness put into consideration. It should be stated in black and white. Dilly-dallying about this serious issue will only add fuel to the fire. We're passionately clamouring for a way forward despite the cost. It will be good for us to know this and seek best ways of settling it once and for all.
Obviously,the first step to our deliverance from this 'No-Progress Syndrome' is to prayerfully elect leaders of unquestionable character and integrity. Those not gotten by imposition or selection,but the collective efforts of expectant Nigerians. Our country urgently needs leaders who have the growth of the nation at heart and not those looking for opportunities to dubiously cut their purported share of the national cake. We should endeavour to expose and reject the wolves in sheep's clothings.
We're almost fifty years as an independent nation and there's no need to keep moving with no clear destination.No need for the usual things without unusual results.We should be thinking of ways of tackling the great challenges facing this nation through new and practical approaches. Our vision seems to be blurred by the selfish interests of our leaders and political godfathers. Jega should know that much is expected from him as much has been given to him.
We shouldn't be fast about going nowhere. The change we need is actually costly. Let's sit down without wasting more time and count the cost,for that is the only time we'll be happy with our old age.
In a country faced with myriads of monstrous and leviathan challenges, every step taken towards a better and improved nation,socio-political and economic stability and eventual happiness of her citizens,should be thoroughly considered and properly directed. Our leaders' visions seem to be vague and suffering from ambiguity. It has left them confused and at the same time forming a clog in the wheels of the nation's progress.
Often times,'visionless' people are appointed or elected to head different departments and ministries,maybe because of their 'long-legs' or the long-running nepotism, that has refused to stop. They come in with little or no idea of what to do to positively change situations. They fail to invent new ways of making things work,thus not producing tangible results. They move around a vicious circle and at the long run,whiling away their time and that of the nation at large.
Last week,the nation's election organiser said it was seeking more time to prepare for next year's presidential,gubernatorial and parliamentary polls,including getting a comprehensive voters register.INEC insisted that the May 29 date for the inauguration of a new president would not be changed even though they never made clear what they wanted. It announced after a two-day retreat,that the time line for the implementation of their plan is very tight after examining the commission's detailed action plan for the voters registration and elections. The commission also promised to engage all the relevant stakeholders with a view to exploring all legal avenues for an extension of time to enable the commission to deliver on the aspirations of Nigerian for a credible voters' register and free,fair and credible elections.
January 15,22 and 29 have been earmarked for the National assembly,presidential and gubernatorial elections respectively while the party primaries are to be held between September 11 and October 30, with voters' registration expected to be done between November 1 and 18.
I don't expect the electoral body to dance to the tune of the government if it really wants to conduct and produce credible elections come next year. The commission seems to be under undue pressure to give Nigerians free and fair elections. Of course they'll be blamed for conducting any election short of the standard. One may be tempted to ask- why did INEC announce the timetable for the 2011 elections when they actually knew that they were not ready for its execution within the obviously short period? If INEC is actually independent and ready, to a reasonable extent, satisfy the curiosity of Nigerians towards changing the status quo in terms of fair elections,they should speedily count the cost and make it plain to Nigerians, even if it is not realisable in 2011.
If Jega wants to preserve his much publicised integrity and radicality after being at the helm of affairs in the controversial body and retain the confidence of Nigerians, he should count the cost of a credible election,with the nation's uniqueness put into consideration. It should be stated in black and white. Dilly-dallying about this serious issue will only add fuel to the fire. We're passionately clamouring for a way forward despite the cost. It will be good for us to know this and seek best ways of settling it once and for all.
Obviously,the first step to our deliverance from this 'No-Progress Syndrome' is to prayerfully elect leaders of unquestionable character and integrity. Those not gotten by imposition or selection,but the collective efforts of expectant Nigerians. Our country urgently needs leaders who have the growth of the nation at heart and not those looking for opportunities to dubiously cut their purported share of the national cake. We should endeavour to expose and reject the wolves in sheep's clothings.
We're almost fifty years as an independent nation and there's no need to keep moving with no clear destination.No need for the usual things without unusual results.We should be thinking of ways of tackling the great challenges facing this nation through new and practical approaches. Our vision seems to be blurred by the selfish interests of our leaders and political godfathers. Jega should know that much is expected from him as much has been given to him.
We shouldn't be fast about going nowhere. The change we need is actually costly. Let's sit down without wasting more time and count the cost,for that is the only time we'll be happy with our old age.
Comments
Post a Comment
Kindly drop your comment.