By Omoniyi Salaudeen
Discussion is still ongoing about the first year anniversary of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the pains Nigerians have endured from the policies of his administration.
In this interview, Senator Anthony Adeniyi bared his mind on a range of issues attracting negative commentaries from public affairs analysts.
He also spoke on the proposed merger of the opposition, declaring it as dead on arrival.
The overwhelming verdict of Nigerians shows that the policies of the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu have brought more pains than relief, contrary to his Renewed Hope agenda. How has it turned to the opposite?
I believe, honestly and frankly, that if we had taken the path Nigeria headed before Tinubu came in, by now, there wouldn’t have been any Nigeria again. There was insecurity, the Naira was bad and the economy had tumbled. We owed a lot of money, we had sold crude oil in advance without collecting money or we had collected money in advance, but doing nothing. So, somebody has to put a stop to all this nonsense to turn back the country from where we were headed. To do that, Tinubu has to make certain decisions. These decisions are hard and tough, but he must put us back on the path of growth and development. Therefore, he has to be courageous and be prudent to stop the financial hemorrhage we had before he came in. It is not that Tinubu is deliberately wicked; they are necessary things he has to do. And with due respect, there is nothing anybody can do about it for now.
You are following the old pattern of blame game. But you seem to have forgotten that we are dealing with the same party: All Progressives Congress (APC). Isn’t it?
It doesn’t matter. We are dealing with another person leading the same party. It was APC that was there when we were spending money to print money and used money to buy money, which was very painful to everybody. Up to date, I have a restricted amount I can withdraw from my account. The only thing I can do freely now is transfer money to another person. This is the first year of Asiwaju in office and he needs to put things right. We still have three years to go before another election.
You spoke about the country hemorrhaging under the previous government. However, it is general knowledge the present administration itself is also not prudent enough with the high cost of governance. Recall the over-bloated entourage the President recently took to the global summit on climate change and the sponsoring of Hajj with N90 billion at a time when people are being compelled to make sacrifices. How has that added to the economy?
I agree with you, religious obligation does not need such an amount of money. Such an amount can revitalize and re-invigorate the economy rather than spending it on Hajj. But you know that some people are out to frustrate this government. So, certain political decisions must be taken to, at least, counter those people.
Since the first anniversary failed to bring any relief to the ordinary people, the administration has just one year left for effective governance before the commencement of schemes for re-election. Has the time not run against this government already?
Tinubu still has three more years to perform. It is like your pregnant wife, at the early stage of her pregnancy, you have to deal with early morning sickness and things like that. When the pregnancy stabilizes, you will be happy. The first hardship experienced on the first anniversary is the result of sacrifices that will usher in the relief people are talking about.
In specific terms, what indication can you see right to show that things will be better in the coming years?
Food will come. People are embarking on agriculture because the security situation in Benue, the food basket of the nation we used to know, is being tackled headlong.
Even as bandits or herdsmen keep attacking innocent communities? How will food come if people cannot go to their farms?
Lately, insecurity has subsided in Benue from what it used to be. The same thing in Plateau State. We no longer see what we used to see hitherto any more. Things are getting better.
As a departure from the past, President Tinubu made the ministers sign performance bonds. One year on, how many of these ministers can pass the test of scrutiny, if they are subjected to a critical performance evaluation?
There are many of them.
Name them?
This young minister, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, is doing well in the Ministry of Interior. We have Nyesom Wike, doing well in the Federal Capital Territory. We have the Minister of Labour, Hon Nkeiruka Onyejeocha, doing well. We have the Minister for Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, who has paid a chunk of the debt that we owe. Festus Keyamo is also doing well in the Aviation ministry. We now have Emirates Airline plying Nigeria. Dave Umahi is doing well in the Ministry of Works. Minister of Solid Mineral, Dele Alake, is equally performing. So also the Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi who is now trying to deal with the issue of state/local government joint accounts. All these things will translate to something better for each and every one of us. Besides, Tinubu has already said that he will reshuffle his cabinet. Let’s see what happens after the labour crisis.
The agitation for the restructuring of the country has refused to die. As a strong member of the defunct NADECO, Tinubu had expressed a strong view on the need to review the present federal structure before he came into government. Why is he shying away from that responsibility now that he is in charge?
He is not shying away. What the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice is trying to do in respect of the money going to the local governments is part of restructuring. You can be assured that if after the Supreme Court’s judgment, money can go to local governments directly from the federation account, at the end of the day, we will all profit from it.
What is your perspective on the bill seeking a return to regionalism?
When people say we have to go back to regionalism, it is not a thing that can be done once like that. It will be gradual. If money can go directly to the local government, a lot of things will be restructured. Local government can take on more responsibilities, rather than subsuming them to the governors. By taking the courage to say allocations should go directly to the local governments, he has indirectly started restructuring even though I may not necessarily agree with the sponsors of that bill.
Why would you not agree with the bill?
I remember when I was in the Senate; our brothers in the Southeast used it as a basis for creation of more states. They thought if we returned to regionalism, they would be able to get more states. People crave regionalism because they want to restructure. But it will not come once like that. Let’s start with the local government reform. These things cannot be done in a day.
Are you afraid that Southwest region may find itself in a disadvantage position if the country reverts to regionalism as some people have opined?
We still produce Cocoa. Some South Western states produce crude oil like Ondo. If we control our resources, these states will do better. Lagos State has ports; Ogun is the gateway of the nation. They make their income from importation. Apart from that, we have the population.
Some northern interests are against the bill…
(Cuts in) Let them come and argue their view against it.
Is there any reason for Nigeria to jettison the present presidential system?
I don’t see anything wrong with the presidential system. There is no system that is perfect whether presidential or parliamentary.
The opposition parties, notably PDP, LP, and NNPP, are now engaged in another merger talk to wrest power from the APC. Are you people not jittery?
There is no cause for worry. You know that APC zoned the presidency to the South in the last election. I don’t see Atiku conceding the presidency to the South. I don’t see him saying he will not contest. He is very desperate about it. I also don’t see Peter Obi agreeing with Atiku that the presidency should go to the North. So, I don’t see the merger coming to fruition. Except Atiku can purge himself of his inordinate ambition to rule Nigeria, it is dead on arrival. I see it failing woefully.
But the song has changed. Atiku has said he will concede to Peter Obi if the presidency is zoned to the Southeast?
(Cuts in) Let’s see what happens. Atiku is an unrepentant person in terms of his presidential pursuit. Will he agree to be vice president to a Southern president? No.
