Again, the national question returned to the front burner yesterday as former Secretary General of the Commonwealth, Chief Emeka Anyaoku reaffirmed that unless she goes back to regional government, Nigeria may be embarking on an endless, fruitless search for meaningful development .
Anyaoku who was chairman at the 2015 edition of the Akintola Williams Distinguished Lecture Series held in Lagos , maintained that Nigeria’s quest to attain full potential in national growth and political stability would be possible only if there is a restructuring of the existing basis of the country’s governance, saying a return to regional government is the way forward.
For Anyaoku, the present structure is militating against the fast development of the country.
Former Governor of Ekiti State, Dr. Kayode Fayemi who delivered the lecture titled: Leadership factors and good corporate governance: Key to national growth and development , said that a continued deliberate devaluation of the public sector in order to paint the private sector as very critical to building national prosperity will do Nigeria no good.
Fayemi stated that to project a private sector-led economy in a way to suggest that the public sector is irrelevant to the quest for national prosperity will slow the pace of development because authentic economic growth is impossible without a competent public sector.
He, therefore, said that the way to go is to have a more seamless transition of professionals from the private to the public sectors and vice versa, as cross-pollination of personnel would only beneficially impact both sectors.
The former Ekiti State governor stated that there are clearly strengths native to the private and public sectors that could be harnessed and synthesised to drive national progress.
He, therefore, maintained that by devaluing the public sector in the name of promoting private sector-driven growth, Nigerians have failed to realise that a buoyant economy requires not only an exuberant private sector but also a virile public sector.
“In short, where the public sector is certifiably dysfunctional, private sector-led growth will be marked by fraud, graft and corporate malfeasance that are possible because of inadequate policing.
“A public service alive to its regulatory responsibilities and healthy enough to modulate the tension between the market and society is absolutely vital. Without it, primitive capitalism and unhinged profiteering will take root.”
He insisted that Nigerians must understand that there are spaces that can only be administered by a functional public service, as not everything can be privatised nor should every area of society be surrendered to the whims and caprices of market forces.
According to him, there is no reason business interests cannot harmonise an aptitude for profit-making with a high estimation of the common good.
Anyaoku had argued that instead of the present 36 mostly economically-unviable federating units with concentrated political power at the centre, the country should adopt six regions with substantial devolution of powers from the centre, thereby creating more viable national components of a truly Federal Republic of Nigeria.
The former Commonwealth boss said that regional government would also help reduce cost and provide better viability for growth and development.
Reviewing the paper by Fayemi, Jiti Ogunye said that Nigeria must distinguish between occupying political office and leadership.
He called on Nigerians to stop celebrating occupancy of office but leadership instead, noting that years after Obafemi Awolowo left political office even after his death he was still being talked about because he was a leader.
Reviewing Fayemi’s presentation, the Director General of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Mr. Muda Yusuf, said that the rather large size of government was one of the biggest challenges of Nigeria’s economy, suggesting that it is important to limit the role of government to providing an enabling environment for businesses.
He called for a template to reward those creating value besides simplifying process of doing business because they are critical to checking corruption.
All the speakers at the event poured encomium on the celebrant, Akintola Williams, who clocked 96. They all highlighted how he has positively affected them through not just promoting integrity and ethical practices but acting it.
A former Nigerian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Dr. Christopher Kolade, said Williams was a living example of good behaviour in responsibility, noting that nobody can fully capture his influence on all those who encountered him.
Kolade said that when the celebrant participates in anything, he brings distinction into it, recounting how he went to Williams for advice and how what he told him positively changed the ways he was doing things, helping him to build his career and life.
Other dignitaries present at the event include the Ogun state governor, Ibikunle Amosun, Publisher of The Guardian Newspapers, Lady Maiden Alex-Ibru, Chief Philip Asiodu, Pastor Paul Adefarasin, former President of Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) Sir Ike Nwokolo, Dr. Adesina Folarin-Williams and Erelu Abiola Dosumu , among others. – Guardian.
