If Buhari was the typical Nigerian in public life, he would be in possession
of trillions, cash wise and non-cash equivalents in other areas like
properties and jets ownership, Professor Soremekun claims in his
assessment of the President.
As the administration of Muhammadu Buhari continues in its strides, a
public affairs analyst and professor of political science at the National
Open University, NOUN has extoled the achievements of the President in
the short while he has come to power.
In his assessment, Soremekun declares that Buhari has impressed by not
acting like most political office holders who have helped themselves to
the coffers of the nation by stealing from the abundant resources of the
country.
Read his article below:
As I contemplate the Nigerian condition or non-condition, I continue to
marvel at contemporary happenings. The nirvana is certainly not here yet.
Still, it is possible to discern new ozone in public life. Suddenly, public
officials are more responsive. The refineries appear to be working. Petrol
queues, for now at least, are gone. Electricity supply seems to have
improved. And therefore one is tempted to ask: What has happened? Have
we really had any novel policy thrusts since Muhammadu Buhari assumed
the Presidency of the country? As a student of public affairs, it is possible
to answer this question in the negative. Yet, there is a new ozone in public
life. It does not take much to appreciate that, what has happened so far is
that the President’s reputation and sheer force of personal example have
probably struck the fear of God in people who run our institutions. The
upshot is that a novel and positive lease of life seems to pervade the land
One striking instance here is President Muhammadu Buhari’s recent
public declaration of his assets. As we all know by now, these assets are
now in the public space. And if those details are true, then what has been
declared should sear the conscience of all past and present public officers,
particularly at the highest of levels. Here is a man, who has been in
control of vast resources as a military governor, minister of petroleum and
a former Head of State. Yet, all that he could claim to own are houses and
lands in places like Port Harcourt, Kaduna and Abuja as well as N30m in
his bank account. To be sure, by the general Nigerian standards, Buhari is
not a poor man. But by the jaded and conscienceless standards of his
peers, he certainly comes up short-at least in materialistic terms. Some
people with warped values are even likely to snigger and ask: Is this the
entire worth of this man? Probably yes. But on the platform of morality,
very few of his peers can really hold up the candle to him. And this is
partly why, I have dared to state here that, Buhari is not a Nigerian. If he
was the typical Nigerian in public life, he would be in possession of
trillions, cash wise and non-cash equivalents in other areas like properties
and jets ownership.
Even then, the declaration in itself has sparked off implicit and explicit
comparisons, which seem to indicate that this man stands out. Indeed,
some people with a dark sense of humour or out of sheer wonder and
concern have pointed out that the average local government chairman in
Nigeria (where else?) is richer than Buhari. And of course and as we all
know, this may well be true. But, what is perhaps much more revealing
especially in these times is that other public officials are refusing to be
drawn into the ring of public asset declaration. Take our elected governors
for instance. Either out of ignorance or mischief, they are saying that there
are no statutory provisions which require them to do so. Very much the
same bankrupt postures can be observed on the part of the senators and
members of the House of Representatives who, by the way, are supposed
to be distinguished and honourable.
Meanwhile, and as revealed in newspaper reports, Buhari appears to be
exasperated by despite his attempts to come clean with what
he owns, he appears to have opened up another round of controversy on
this issue. In a sense, this is only to be expected. Vultures as they are
won’t, have to feed on something. Which is why, the General’s
contentions are very instructive. According to him, in the course of his
public life, he has declared his assets four times since 1974. At the risk of
being contradicted, I do not think that any Head of State or public official
has come forth in this way.
However, for the records, as well as balance, it is relevant to state here
that in the recent past, former President Umaru Yar’Adua, and his then
deputy, Goodluck Jonathan, respectively declared their assets. But when
the latter mounted the saddle as the point-man of our system, and the self-
same issue came up, he pointedly and memorably remarked: I do not give
a damn! Which is just as well. For in a rather Freudian and self-indicting
way, Jonathan was known to declare in another context that some of our
leaders behave like motor park touts!
But even then, before I am done, since Buhari has bitten the bullet, it may
be useful for other public officials to do the same. I am referring here to
governors, ministers, and the invisible army of invincible permanent
secretaries. And to President Buhari, he should take heart. After all, my
ancestral folk, in their eternal wisdom, have always said that if you indict
someone for cooking a bad soup, what will you do to the person who has
cooked none?
Last line: I am sure that the hidden dimensions of Buhari’s assets would
have been exposed by now if such information was available.
*.Soremekun is a Professor of Political Science at the National Open
University of Nigeria