Goodluck Jonathan's Transformation Agenda Is Very Deceptive..Fashola

Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola (SAN), yesterday described the Transformation Agenda of President Goodluck Jonathan as a mere slogan meant to deceive Nigerians. According to him, in a country where insecurity, poverty, unemployment, sub-optimal economy, high interest rate, the poor value issues, misuse of power, greed, selfishness, intolerance, nepotism and favouritism, among others continue to worsen by the year, there could be very little to describe as transformational in its system.

Fashola, who delivered a keynote address at the Leadership Newspapers Annual Conference and 2013 Awards Presentation in Abuja, said there was no correlation between the present Nigerian situation and the much-talked about transformation agenda. In his paper: “Rebuilding the Nation: Lessons from other lands,” the governor said the comments of some Nigerians on the state of the nation underscores the “inefficiency of government, mistrust between the governed and those governing at the national level.” Fashola said the unfortunate situation was not a surprise to him.

His words: “The signs that there was not going to be any transformation were obvious to me since 2011 or thereabouts. As a mere slogan perhaps yes. As a call to purposeful action, the deception is obvious if you look at the budgets we have presented as a nation, and more critically at how much of it, we have been able to implement.”

Fashola reasoned that for any serious public officer, nation or government the budget is the article of faith. “But details of the federal budget pieced together between 2010 and 2013 show that every year in those four years, we have budgeted at least 62 per cent and at most 74 per cent on recurrent spending, while the maximum budget for capital expenditure, from which roads, rail, power, hospitals, bridges, etc can be executed have received at most 38 per cent in 2010 before this administration started, and as little as 26 per cent in 2011. “If truly there was a desire to make a change for the better which is what transformation means, it should be obvious as a statement of intent from the budget.

“But contrary to what we profess, our budgets spend more on recurrent; payment of salaries, travel, importing kerosene, petrol, rice and every other imaginable thing. What is transformational about that?”

“Yet some Nigerians, who claim they are more patriotic than us, say that they are Ambassadors of this transformation and that we are wrong because all is well. Really is all well? “How can we transform if we spent over N2 trillion on importing fuel. This is approximately $12.5 billion.

“According to our own government, our transformation is evident in the handful of billionaires and the number of their private jets.” Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan of Delta State was given the best governorship award, while the five governors that defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to All Progressives Congress (APC) were given the best politicians awards. Former military Head of State, Gen. Yakubu Gowon, who got the Leadership Person Award, in his remarks stated that politicians should criticise policies of government and not personalities.