POOR GOVERNANCE BREEDS CRIMINALITY

POOR GOVERNANCE BREEDS CRIMINALITIES by Sanmi Adekola

At the risk of sounding amoral to social ethos, I'm tempted to link the increasing criminals and illegal activities in Nigeria today to poor governance.

Before you crucified me, let me explain myself. On my way from Church today, I was tempted to block a commercial bus driver who was passing one-way. On a second thought, I drove pass the 'Keke Napep' in front of him and took a glance at the Bus Driver. The guy looked at me, and attributed his decision to pass one way to poor state of the road of which I cannot but agree with him. I shook my head and drove past him.

I know there are hundreds of us who will say the guy should have stayed in queue like other law abiding Lagosians and that he had no excuse, sorry I begged to disagree for once. I said for once, because I'm an apostle of morality and preacher cum practictioner of the Yoruba concept of 'Omoluabi'; but the situation in our country can make the sane of men to go mad.

Like this commercial bus driver, there are millions of Nigerians who are willing and ready to do the right thing but of which the system have perverted their convictions and made them law breakers instead of law keepers. They are in private and public organizations trying to live above boards, but of which the system does not encourage because those who should lead by example have failed them.

They are those artisans who are willing to do good jobs, but who aren't willing to give bribe to Project Supervisors, who will go behind to sabotage them in the presence of Superior officers or owners of such projects by giving bad reports. Sometimes, it may because they have been priced above their mark up cost.

They are in offices giving their best, but with little or no material motivation. They are therefore tempted to make ends meet by cutting corners. Let me ask for instance, how can you pay a family man eighteen thousand naira as salary and expect him to come to work 25 days of the week whereby he will have to spend nothing less than #500 naira daily on transport? Or how can you pay a graduate #50,000 monthly and expect him to give his best with the present rate of inflation in the country and State like Lagos where a room apartment cost as much as #150,000 per annum without monthly bills and extraneous demands by estate agents into consideration? We lie too much in this country! Are you telling me if such a graduate is asked to supervise a project and the contractor regularly gives him money, not necessarily as a bribe, will he be able to call a spade a spade except he has conscience and fear of God?

If this country collapse today, it will not be because of wants of resources, human and materials, but because those who are saddled with the responsibility of managing the affairs have failed at different levels. The Councilor who supposed to present the needs of his people to the Local Government Council doesn't live within the community where he is elected. In fact, he may not be a resident of the Ward in the first instance because he is imposed on the people there. How about the Local Government Council Chairman who sees his position as that of a god, and who must Lord it over others by doing what he likes without questioning, thereby cornering public resources for personal aggrandizement.

Imagine if the Council Chairman will ensure that drainages are well kept neat through enforcement and provision of needed trucks to park the refuse and dirt from time to time, most of the flooding were are witnessing today in Lagos will not be there. Alas, they won't do it, they would rather embarked on frivolities.

At the State and Federal level, the various governments have continued to pay lip service to education. Less than 20% is earmarked for education and the little allocated are embezzled and diverted for private use. Hence, we have libraries without modern books. Lecturers cannot do research to update their skills because they are not well and regularly paid. Yet, we want the students from those ivory towers to invent and innovate. We are indeed country of jokers.

It's such poorly educated youths that turned to Yahoo Yahoo. Some took to drugs trafficking. Some others to Kidnapping. May others use corporate veils to dupe innocent people of their legally and illegally acquired wealth. We must do better as a people but the greatest responsibility lie with our leaders. This is where our leadership recruitment process comes to question, as people can only give what they have.

To have crime rate reduced drastically, leaders must find way to empower their people through effective governance. The follower also must learn to demand for accountability. 

God bless Nigeria.
God bless Africa.
God bless Humanity.