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ON LAMIDO SANUSI’S STATEMENT


Related to country: Nigeria
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The grilling of Mr. Sanusi Lamido Sanusi at the Senate Chamber Wednesday last week for the highest seat of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) was, in my candid perception, revealing and enthralling. This was not because of the advantageous absence of the sickening and shaming culture of ‘take a bow’ that has for long defined what in the first place should be a hallowed chamber where men and women of outstanding learning and irreproachable dignity congregate to enact laws that will enhance the steady progress and sound development of the country.
Rather, it was because the lanky risk management banker’s brilliant answers to the questions posed to him by the Senators further emphasised the fact of what must be done to make the economic concerns of our direly ailing country viable. On the other hand, Sanusi’s well-articulated rejoinders also underscored the view that his cerebral predecessor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, in spite of his famed cerebration, was in some respect given to superficial and superfluous policies while in the saddle. It would be recalled that Soludo had once posited that denomination of our naira, a cause he was implacably passionate about, was the only workable solution to the problem of inflation. He spurned and scoffed at the voices of reason questioning the veracity of his claim. It took the intervention of President Yar’Adua before the economic pedagogue could back down on his infelicitous policy.
Again, with unfeigned hardihood, the new CBN helmsman made it clear that President Yar’Adua and his hurriedly assembled team of asphyxiating vision 20:2020 should spare us of the irritating clangour about uprooting us from the stymieing soil of underdevelopment in which we are currently tucked in and transplant us amongst the most industrialised nations of the world. The reason for this, he said, was because the excruciatingly painful dearths of sufficient power and strong infrastructure (two of the non-negotiable requirements for development) have not been seriously addressed. Said he; ‘Until we address the problems of power and collapsed infrastructure, we cannot move forward or achieve any meaningful progress.’ And this is a putative fact.
To my understanding, the imperative of this flinty submission is that it is high time for Mr. President to totally concentrate on the issue of power which is fast becoming a mirage in the arid desert. If he can deploy his presidential vim in this direction in the remaining two years ahead, Nigerians may remember him as the one who put the country back on the right track in terms of power generation. He can reach into himself to draw the needed courage and will power with which to manly declare the promised ‘emergency’ in the power sector. It will be wisdom on his part if he can stick to one major problem and face it frontally. Yar’Adua needs to adhere himself to the stark reality confronting him; it is not in his power to address the multi-faceted vicissitudes hedging the country off the chute of growth and development. The task is apparently above his ken. He neither possesses nor radiates the fervour and insightfulness that are required on the job.
Thus, his much hyped seven-point agenda remains what it is – a mere catch-phrase designed to distract attention. No amount of whatever number of agenda will avail anything for a country if it is the case that its leaders are committed mainly to noise-making! In other words, one of main loci of the new CBN head’s position is that the ear-grating jabber on being one of the strongest economies in the year 2020 should be exchanged with genuine and sincere movement in the direction of development of the necessary infrastructure. A roundly assailed post-colonial nation like ours requires useful solutions to its byzantine socio-political and economic misfortunes. And only foresighted, reflective and courageous leaders can proffer this. Indeed, to quote Sanusi again, we need real leaders who can ‘let us start moving’ and not just multiplying ‘visions’ that blur and dull our sense of gravitas.
In view of this, I strongly advise Nigerians to prepare for the 2011 election. Enough of that wounding pusillanimity. While we shop for the right men to lead us along the path that Sanusi has reminded us of, it will be better as well if we can continue to provoke President Yar’Adua to keep to the line of result-oriented governance in the remaining years ahead. We must all unite to make re-election unattractive to him.
As Sanusi takes over, he should arm himself with the truth that much is expected of him, more so that he is a banker. Given his excellent articulation of his economic and financial views before our wonderful Senators, I have no doubt that he is a man who can give an enviable report of himself on the job. One of the areas in which he must goodly acquit himself is the prevailing saddening disuse to which coins have been consigned in this country. He must see to it that the people of this country fall in love with use of coins. If possible, our five and ten naira paper money can be changed to coins. This will encourage the use of coins. Also, our banks require adequate monitoring. Soludo tried in this area. But Sanusi must do more. He must ensure that the CBN is efficiently alive to its enunciated functions. Above all, the CBN Governor should know that the nation does not expect only scientific analyses from him. We want to see positive results in our financial matters.
I wish him all the best.

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