CACOL blames poor state of infrastructure on bad governance

A pressure group, Centre for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership (CACOL), has blamed the poor state of governance at all levels in the country for the worsening living condition of Nigerians and deplorable state of infrastructures.

Executive Chairman of CACOL, Debo Adeniran, stated this in a parley with newsmen in Lagos, accusing the government of adopting anti-people foreign policies which had further improvised Nigerians, stressing that the country could not developed beyond its present position because public funds were been siphoned by political officer holders.

Adeniran lamented the poor state of security situation and killings in several parts of the country, while berating the security agencies for its culpability which had showed in failing to arrest the perpetrators and sponsors of the killings.

He said, “The history of successive administrations in the country is that of daylight robbery, brigandage, arbitrariness, abuse of office and deployment of state contracts for political patronages. This negatively affected and frustrated the performance of these contracts leading to abandonment and neglects.

“Our social infrastructure and amenities like roads, power, water, health, education, libraries, mass housing etc were the victims of this rudderless policies. Even when a state like Lagos took it upon itself to ensure that Federal roads are motorable, the government refuses to reimburse such states. “This is further compounded by the wicked foisting of neo-liberal economic policies imposed by the Brettonwood institutions, (IMF/World Bank) on the nation. These are policies that encourage the state to abandon its social responsibilities in the provision of social services.

“The sum total of these anti-poor policies was the absolute neglect of the country’s decaying social infrastructure which eventually led to their collapse.

The nation is still battling with effects of this policy mis-adventure; $16 Billion for power cannot be accounted for, roads became death traps littered with several abandoned projects, government has no more business in the provision of portable water, hospitals became death clinics while education was grossly under-funded and commercialised out of the reach of an average family. There is no coherent policy on housing.

” He supported the agitation for restructuring of the country, while stressing that restructuring was not all about returning the country into regionalism but an overhaul of the country’s social and economic policies. Speaking further, the activist commended the anti-graft war of the present administration, and the subsequent sack and probe of top officials of some agencies in the current administration, while charging the administration to sustain the effort by arresting and prosecuting more highly placed individuals in the country.

He said “As much as we share in this aspiration, we must draw the lines. Yes, there are lots of imbalances in the systems that are even fed by aberrations in the constitution, we must be wary of those who may just be raising demand to calve out a sphere for their personal political fiefdom.

Restructuring is not only about self-determination or regionalism, it goes deeper. “It includes the overhaul of our social and economic policies; we have to restructure the access to our commonwealth.

We have to address the wicked inequalities in the country, the society must address social welfare scheme for its citizens. Restructuring must be about peoples’ ownership and inclusion in governance.

“If the entrenchment of sustainable social justice is not attended to, the ruling elite would merely be given a carte-blanc cheque to access our collective treasury and build a paradise for themselves, families and cronies in land far away from Nigeria.

“Interestingly the police and other security forces are also culpable. Nigerians have to cry out against various acts of violent misdemeanors by the police Special Ant-Robbery Squad (SARS). There are equally international outbursts against killings of innocent civilians by armed forces drafted into trouble spots.

The hallmark of constitutional and democratic rule is to maintain public order without adverse effects on the rights of law abiding citizens. Nigerian state and its operators must embrace this modicum of civilization.” Adeniran said. Iniobong Iwok.

Credit: Daily Times