By Jacqui IWU
MON, APRIL 9 2018-theG&BJOURNAL-In this age of high technological innovations worldwide, it’s quite clear people are making waves with all kinds of information and communication devices within and across their environments and communities. People in rural areas who usually years back could not communicate instantly with those in the urban areas and big cities as well as abroad presently find communication with others and giving out necessary information with some level of ease.
In Nigeria, it is no more news that Government officials keep embarrassing themselves in the media by pointing accusing fingers on each other which usually stem from the fact that either they are misinformed by fellow colleagues or being fed with wrong information or not even given any information at all regarding vital situations happening at various work places in government.
When the issue of how the estranged dismissed Pension Boss resumed office after being sacked came up, the Head of Service and other officials were pointing fingers and denying openly that they were not aware that the dismissed pension boss has resumed work and who reinstated him. How could such a controversial government official resume work, collecting salaries at the end of the month and the head of service and other top officials, not to talk of the Presidency that sacked him are not aware?
There has been tons of such lack of credible communication problems in the Presidency and within those working with him but the one that really made me to come up with this talk is the one that happened on Monday 12th of March 2018 when the President of Nigeria, after so much complain from Nigerians regarding his insensitivity or would I say-body language to issues concerning herdsmen killings in Nigeria, finally decided to visit Benue state, one of the states in Nigeria that has been experiencing regular killings by Fulani Herdsmen. On his visit, President Buhari openly confessed to Nigerians that he was not aware for 2 months getting to 3 months in March when he got there, that the Inspector General of Police (IGP) of Nigeria he instructed to relocate and work from Benue state since January 2018, never did what he asked him to do. That he was not aware that the IGP left same day he went to Benue state to ascertain the horrific killings that took place in Benue state which attracted a mass state burial in January 2018.
I have been asking myself- Is it that the people that work under/with the presidency do not obey him any longer? Is it that for the past two and half months the President gave that instruction to the IGP, he never asked questions about the security situations in the area given that there were more killings after the January incident?
Was the President not reading reports given to him on a daily basis given the fact that security situations in Nigeria must be a priority to him? How about the ministers communicating with him concerning security affairs in the country? So, the ministers especially, the minister of Information is also not aware that the IGP did not do what the commander-in-chief of the federal republic of Nigeria asked him to do?
The President meets with his cabinet every week to dialogue on the happening in and around the country and for two months, no one mentioned or remembered the issue of herdsmen killings in Benue state? What exactly is the situation of affairs in the Nigeria Presidency? Let us say- the president was being honest in his remarks which I understand very well but; what does this entails regarding his leadership skills?
It is assumed that when such a person in his leadership cadre gives an instruction, he must ensure a serious follow up and feedback from people charged with the responsibility on such work positions. Was the president not aware that there has been series of other killings in the same Benue state where he ordered the IGP to stay? Between the months of January and March when Mr. President visited Benue state, issues of the dire security situations in that state has been the talk of the day both in Nigeria and abroad and, he was not aware? None of his media teams, special assistants, and minister of information /internal affairs communicated to him the situations of things in Benue state? Who should take the fall here?
How exactly do the media teams and ministry of information work in this country? It looks like the communication links with all the people that should be giving the president and Nigerians proper and efficient information is sick. How else could we describe this?
Let us assume the people working with the President is not giving him what he wants, he should let them go and replace them with more efficient officials. Some people keep saying, the president meant well and taking his time to arrive at his goals and plans for this nation; I also agree he meant well for the country but the high tension/suffering in Nigeria does not actually require such slow response or attitude to achieve fast results that could calm the raging nerves of Nigerians. It is time for him to change his leadership tactics and strategies.
I hear and see people in All progressives Congress (APC) asking and pleading with Nigerians to give him more time and allow him to continue and with time, things will change for better. Have we not heard this from other leaders who also failed time after time when given such leverage? If the political leaders in Nigeria are people Nigerians can really trust for their words, Nigerians will not mind but the thing is that, we Nigerians are tired of giving second chances to leaders who failed to arrest issues crippling the economic and democratic ladder in this country. What Nigerians want presently is either you get it right or allow those who can do the job well take over.
No day passes in Nigeria without news of blood shedding of innocent Nigerians in one part of the country. Meanwhile the Boko Haram issue just reinvented their act by the kidnapping of Dapchi girls when Nigerians were told that they have been defeated by the present Government.
Hunger is ravaging most Nigerians who cannot afford to eat healthy meals. Who is even talking about ‘healthy meals’ in Nigeria? There are no meals in the first place for millions of Nigerians and I am talking of ‘healthy meals’?
So if Nigerians consider Buhari as being honest and still having something to offer, it is obvious from what we have seen coming from the people that work with him that, they just can’t allow him to do what he wants to do for Nigerians. It was this same personality reason that made Nigerians vote for Buhari but, unfortunately, Nigerians have suffered and paid dearly for this sentiment. Hopefully, the President can understand this and accept that, Nigerians has really suffered in the course of his leadership tenure.
Jacqui IWU is a Media Communications & PR strategist|A Life &Business Coach with passion for youth and women Economic/Social Empowerment. |Twitter- |@Jacquiworld|@Vivantjacqui| #Talkbacktobwj
