Former All Progressives Congress (APC) senatorial candidate for Kaduna Central senatorial district in the 2023 general elections and economic expert, Muhammad Sani Abdullahi Dattijo, has unveiled a 255 pages book, he authored, in Berlin, Germany.
The book titled; “Disruption: Rethinking Governance to Work for the Poor,” was launched on Sunday, in Berlin, according to a statement signed by Media and Communication lead for the event, Ahmed Maiyaki and issued to Blueprint on Monday. Maiyaki said the book’s foreword was written by United Nations Deputy Secretary-General, Ms Amina Mohammed and was published by Almara Publishers, led by Hadiza Isma el-Rufai, wife of former Governor of Kaduna state, Malam Nasir el-Rufai.
“The book tackles the pressing issue of creating a government that prioritizes the needs of the most vulnerable members of our society, aiming to bring about meaningful change and social equality. It challenges conventional thinking about governance and presents innovative approaches to address the needs of the present,” he said.
The statement quoted the book author, Muhammad Dattijo, commending President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for the bold step he took in ending the subsidy regime, with an excerpt from the book that correctly addresses Nigeria’s current subsidy removal, “the subsidy regimes have been rigged to benefit a small class of business persons working with a few corrupt public officials against the interest of majority citizens. It can thus be argued that the biggest beneficiaries are not those in need of them”.
Dattijo therefore advocated that “the subsidies have to free up revenues for social protection”, which is a politically risky proposition, especially because of the wide chasm of distrust between citizens and government over the years. He argued that “for the markets to work and productivity to rise, we must ensure that the poor, the socially excluded, and the vulnerable benefit from the well-designed programs that cushion the effects of government decisions”.
Addressing the occasion, Nigeria’s Ambassador to Germany, Amb. Yusuf Tuggar, commended the author, for his time at the United Nations, and his decision to return to Nigeria to serve the administration of Malam Nasir el-Rufai, under which the author served in various capacities, diligently.
He urged governments in Nigeria and worldwide to adopt some of the most innovative approaches to reforms recommended in the book, a detailed infusion of storytelling and real-time case studies, on making small governments rethink governance to work for people with low incomes.
The book launch was well attended by dignitaries including diplomats, several German CEOs, EU and German government officials, civil society groups, and the academia.
Another launch and reading of the book is scheduled to hold later in July in Kaduna, Abuja, and Lagos, though the book is already available online and offline on Amazon and other major bookstores.
