Otunba Gbenga Daniel, former Ogun state governor has despite his support for fiscal restructuring he believes a sudden move for restructure could cause chaos.
Speaking on the Theme, “Understanding Democracy, Quality Representation and Political Management“, at the Continuous Political Education Programme of Political Leadership Training Institute, POLA.
The All Progressives Congress, APC, chieftain and Chancellor of POLA, stated that the path to Nigeria’s economic growth lied on the universe of values, and on the nation’s ability to develop a clear 10-year roadmap for local productions of all that its citizens must consume.
He said: “As an advocate for restructuring, I believe in compartmental growth, one which will relax the pressure on the centre and advance the economic strength of the federating units. But this approach must be systemic and not brash.
“A sudden fiscal restructuring that doesn’t focus on collective economic growth for all states will create a chaotic migration problem and burden for the developed ones. Hence, the approach for a heterogeneous country like ours will be to create a blueprint that will assist all federating units to reach sustainable economy that thrives on local economic growth relying on the peculiar economic niche.
“I repeat, the path to Nigeria’s economic growth lies on the universe of values; on the nation’s ability to develop a clear 10-year roadmap for local productions of all that its citizens must consume. This will answer not only to its economic recovery, but more importantly towards addressing what is now becoming its perennial security challenges.
“Therefore, restructuring plan can best work when the federating states have the potential for self-sufficiency. This underscores the need for a ten years blueprint for economic revolution across the country; the mono-economic dependency system is unsustainable, and archaic. Let’s call it ‘A path to restructuring’, but it must be one with the plan that no state is left behind.
“For instance, every political party including the All Progressive Congress have Restructuring in their Campaign and Policy documents (albeit in various forms and perspectives), what is therefore left is for creative leaders to channel the national thinking towards unity of purpose and common goals. Nigeria needs leaders who can manage our diversities for optimum advantage using the Principles of Comparative Costs and Advantage to develop every part of the country simultaneously”, the Daniel opined.
Continuing, the POLA Chancellor charged Nigerians to get involved in the electoral process and avoid ‘siddon-look’ attitude. “For citizens to enjoy good governance, they must ensure that only the best hands were handed over the mantle of leadership. When we fail to give public offices to individuals with the right quality and capacity, we end up with a GIGO (Garbage In, Garbage Out).
“But it is not also enough to give power, citizens play a crucial role in society. They are the ombudsman who checkmate the process and ensure that elected representatives perform optimally. For a society to be better, the citizens must avoid the siddon-look approach and participate in the process. They must critique, guide, educate, inform and most especially render assistance when required for collective prosperity.”
Freelanews is the editorial byline of Freelanews.com, used for staff reports, news updates, press releases, and collaborative stories produced by the Freelanews Editorial Team.
