Goodluck Jonathan: A Balanced Scorecard By Bayo Adeyinka In this piece, I intend to do a very objective assessment of the last 3 years of President Goodluck Jonathan and also give reasons why I fully endorse his re-election. However, I am not a Jonathanian as Im not a rabid supporter and my support does not qualify as an endorsement of the PDP. Rather, my support is premised on what the President has achieved and the quality of the opposition provided by the APC. In this assessment, I shall rely on evidence I have seen or experienced and not any statistics from any government official or records. I will also provide pictures where available. I shall endeavor to state what I believe he got right and what he got wrong. So here we go: WHAT GEJ GOT RIGHT 1. INFRASTRUCTURE I ply the Lagos-Ibadan expressway regularly- sometimes as often as once weekly. So many lives have been lost on that most important Nigerian highway. The road was so bad that there were potholes that could swallow small cars on that road. One incident I will never forget was the death of one of my friends, an alumnus of my University who was married to our lecturer Oga. She died on that road while coming from Redemption Camp a few years ago. So it was good news when President Jonathan courageously revoked the concession granted to Babalakins Bi-Courtney. For years, if you recall, Bi-Courtney just erected several billboards on that road asking the general public to bear with the company as work would soon commence. Now, a part of that highway is being developed into 8 lanes and the whole road is being re-constructed at an appreciable speed. That road, which was initially constructed in 1974, is now being re-constructed for the first time 40 years after. Though Ive not passed the road, Ive heard about the renovation of the Benin-Ore road. I have passed along the East-West Road along Port Harcourt and I saw the ongoing works on the road. These are the ones I saw personally though Ive read about several other roads. Ive had a contractor who is a foreigner tell me that he was relocating to the North because so many road projects are being awarded by the Federal Government in that part of the country. 2. REMODELING AND RENOVATION OF AIRPORTS I have been to the following airports in recent times- Osubi Strip, Warri, Benin Airport, Port- Harcourt Airport, Ikeja Local Airport (called Old Local) and MMIA1&2. All the airports have been renovated with commendable facilities. Ive even seen a few pictures online of people taking pictures inside the bathroom of MMIA ( this is not a joke!). A new wing is being developed at the MMIA where the car park used to be. A new car park has been constructed just beside the ship-like chapel and air-conditioned shuttle buses now take passengers between the airport and the car park. There may be a few complaints about some of the work done but no doubt, progress has been made. 3. AGRICULTURE It is my opinion that Akinwumi Adesina is the best Minister for Agriculture ever in this country. For the past 3 years or so, we have not heard of fertilizer scams that used to be a perennial national irritant. The Bank of Agriculture is up and running and I know some farmers cooperatives that have benefited. I know farmers who also benefited from various dedicated Agric loans managed by the Central Bank and disbursed through Nigerian Deposit Money Banks- some at single digit interests. I have visited farms being funded through such projects in Osun State and Edo State. I have heard of some farmers who are now involved in the backward integration of their primary produce- cassava to odourless fufu, cassava to garri, etc. By virtue of my job, I have assisted some farmers to access these facilities and believe it when I say they didnt know anyone or settle anyone before they accessed the facilities. Only God knows how much employment has been created in agriculture. 4. POWER GEJ successfully unbundled the former PHCN. The liabilities of all former staff were also settled. Apart from the completion of the privatisation of 4 power generation companies and 10 power distribution companies, the government also opened bids for the privatisation of 10 power plants, under the National Integrated Power Projects (NIPP). With the previous and ongoing investments in the sector, we will certainly begin to see the impact before two years. I know of a few power plants that are being built. Im certain that the power sector is the next telecoms and a proper foundation has been laid. While it is true that the power situation has not improved in terms of megawatts, the quantum of job done shows it is just a matter of time-and a few more investments. 5. NIGERIAN OIL & GAS LOCAL CONTENT ACT This bill was signed into law in 2010 and the impact was immediate. There are many small and local oil and gas contractors who would never had smelt certain levels of contracts in the oil sector in spite of their capabilities had that bill not seen the light of day. The oil majors like Shell, Exxon Mobil and Chevron were forced to ensure they had local partners. I know many Nigerian companies that have come up in that sector in the last 3 years or so. Jobs that were contracted to foreign firms are now been done by local firms. I have personally visited Forcados and Bonny terminals of Shell and Ive seen these local contractors at work. You can just imagine how much employment and empowerment this has created. 6. STABILIZATION OF THE BANKING INDUSTRY WITH THE CREATION OF AMCON If not for AMCON, so many banks would have gone under- under the weight of toxic assets and poor corporate governance practices. AMCON was created in 2010. One can still recall how a list of debtors was published in all major newspapers and the flurry of activities that followed. Credit bureaux are now in operation where credit details of customers are registered. 7. RESUSCITATION OF THE MANUFACTURING SECTOR Not many Nigerians knew of the Bank of Industry until recently, yet this Bank started operations in 1964. BOI provides funds to the Banks for on-lending to the manufacturing sector. Ive been personally involved in assisting SMEs to access the funds. If you go to Agbara in Ogun State, I can state confidently that quite a number of the companies in that axis enjoy BOI funds. Slowly but gradually, that sector is coming back. 8. DEDICATED FUNDS FOR NOLLYWOOD/ CREATIVE CONTENT PRODUCERS If youre into movies, you might have heard of Dr Bello, a movie produced by our Nollywood in conjunction with some Hollywood acts. That film was financed by NEXIM through some dedicated funds provided by the FG to assist producers of creative contents. I have personally visited NEXIM Head Office before to hold meetings with some clients of mine. Nollywood has become so big under GEJ because of this support. Even those who have fashion shows have dedicated amounts they can borrow. Go online to NEXIMs website and you will see all the information there. Can you now see why the Nollywood guys hobnobs with GEJ? 9. N150B COTTON, TEXTILE AND GARMENT (CTG) REVIVAL FUND This was set up through the BOI to revive the ailing textile industry at a rate of 6%. It is known that at least one company (United Textile Nigeria Ltd) has started skeletal productions upon disbursement of this fund with about 2,000 employees recalled. This is however, a drop in the ocean considering that there used to be about 150 vibrant companies in this sector but progress has been made. Read the full article here bayoadeyinka/bayoadeyinka/index.php/entry/goodluck-jonathan-a-balanced-scorecard-by-bayo-adeyinka
Posted on: Sun, 19 Oct 2014 02:54:17 +0000
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