Former President of the Christian
Association of Nigeria, CAN, Anthony Cardinal Okogie, has lamented the state of
the economy.
The former Catholic Archbishop of
Lagos, in a statement titled, ‘Deprivation and Agitation: A Reflection on
Nigeria’s Late 2017 Budget,’ decried the living conditions of Nigerians.
Okogie said, “Some people do not
want to hear of restructuring. However, for how long shall we fail to see the
urgent need for far-reaching constitutional reforms in this country? The
current arrangement is not serving Nigerians. The relationship between the
government and the citizens places the citizen at gross disadvantage and the
politicians at an undue advantage.
“Our young people are the worst
hit. They are unemployed, hungry and angry. They are venting their anger on one
another while we, their elders, are silent. Could it be that some of us, their
elders, are stoking the embers of violent disintegration?”
The retired bishop stated that
the level of poverty in the country was not acceptable.
He charged Nigerians to question
those who managed the resources of the country.
“To say that the quality of life
of the average Nigerian is low is to state the obvious. Whether one talks of
education, medical service delivery, security or the economy, every aspect of
our life in this country is in downward motion. The extent of poverty
experienced by our people is simply unacceptable.
“This country has more than
enough resources to make life livable. If there is so much discomfort, we must
interrogate those who manage the affairs of our country. Why is it that the
government – federal, state and local – has failed Nigerians?”
Okogie lamented that the 2017
budget was presented to the legislature in the twilight of the 2016 and was
just passed on May 14, 2017, which was “more than five months into the year and
close to six months after it was presented.”
He said, “For a country that
should be in a hurry to exit the Destitution Avenue, this is simply
unacceptable. It is another instance of failure of governance. Failure of
governance is when government fails to serve the people. Nigerians should be
worried about the way the budgetary process runs in this country.
“In the period when the budget
has yet to be passed, how is government carrying out its functions? Who is
accountable to who when it comes to how money is spent?
“Does this reflect a country that
really wishes to put an end to corruption? But while there was delay in passing
the budget, there is an early bird approach to the politics of 2019. The budget
was not passed but politicians were positioning themselves for the 2019
presidential elections.
“Now, deprivation has turned into
agitation. In the absence of a budget, the economic conditions in which we live
continue to bite. Nigerians are hungry and angry. In their anger, they turn
against each other on the social media, using unprintable language, threats and
violence to sort out their differences. Young Igbo insult the Yoruba, young
Yoruba insult the Igbo, the North and the South have suddenly realised that
they cannot live together.
“In all this, instead of facing
their common enemy – politicians who abuse their offices and steal the wealth
of the land, thus depriving us of decent living – young Nigerians tear each
other apart in a society where civil discourse has become an unwanted alien.
“We have said it before that we live in clear
and present danger. We said it when herdsmen went on the rampage and arms were
being brought into Nigeria by ‘ghost importers.’ Now, we should ask ourselves:
is there a correlation between illegal importation of arms into Nigeria and the
drumbeats and dance steps of war we are currently witnessing?”
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