A number of issues came up in the last few weeks that are worth examining. They include need for proper funding of education, lowering expectations from the government, why it is important to venture into massive food production, and why illegal mining should be prevented in the country. To start with, a student leader, Comrade Meshach Nwankwo, has called on the President Bola Tinubu-led administration to increase funding to federal universities in country. Nwankwo had observed that education was becoming more expensive for children of the poor, and almost becoming the exclusive of the rich.
“I am making a passionate plea to President Bola Tinubu to invest more in education by increased funding. It was the Academic Staff Union of Universities that has been fighting for the improvement in infrastructure in our universities. Government should channel 30% of the budget allocation to education, because education is gradually becoming the exclusive of the children of the rich, while the children of the poor are gradually being shut out”, he said. On the other hand, a public affairs analyst on national and global issues, Dr. Segun Ayedun, has advised Nigerians to lower their expectations from the government this year. He urged the Federal Government to ensure that there were no sacred cows in the fight against corruption, adding that all those who worked against the progress of the government must be prosecuted without fear or favour.
Speaking on ways to ameliorate the economic and security challenges facing Nigeria, Dr. Ayedun admonished the government at all levels to cut the cost of governance and work on constitutional review, so as to boost infrastructural development and reduce crimes in the country. On his part, a legal practitioner, Hon. Yomi Solanke, has urged Nigerians to make food production their priority, avoid luxurious items and imported goods, desist from getting loan to finance business, switch to renewable energy, and invest in themselves. According to him, the economy was biting hard, noting that the problem did not start from the present administration, but stressed that the removal of fuel subsidy without proper plan to cushion the effect had contributed greatly to the current hardship, which Nigerians are facing.
He reiterated that this year’s budget could not change the fortunes of Nigerians, saying what was allocated to agriculture, to affect citizens’ well-being, was not much. He noted that poverty had been one of the weapons used by the political class to weaken the masses from challenging poor governance, while pointing-out that the National Orientation Agency (NOA) was not doing its job as expected, describing poverty as an organised crime against the people. Hon. Solanke, however, maintained that the orientation that the people needed in order to stand for themselves was not available, arguing that what Nigerians “need is a top-to-bottom orientation for a better and corrupt-free society”. Similarly, the Public Relations Officer of the Nigerian Union of Mine Workers (NUMW), Ogun State Council, Comrade Tunde Soneye, has warned anyone engaging in illegal mining activities in the country to desist, or risk jail terms. Soneye stated that before someone could go into the mining field, he or she must get registered and secure a mining certificate, saying those who fail to provide mining certificates are often regarded as illegal miners.
He noted that the neglect of the sector had led to the high rate of illegal mining activities in the country, saying the perpetrators also engaged in child labour and under-employment, adding that the Ogun State government had been working with the union at making sure that such aberration did not occur again in the state. The NUMW spokesperson further revealed that the union had been working in collaboration with the state government in making sure that illegal miners were not allowed into the mining pits, stressing that each state should be allowed to manage and control its resources. Soneye, however, reiterated that the economic benefits of these mineral resources superceded that of the oil, which the nation heavily relied on, saying every state in the country has one mineral or the other, but that most of them remained untapped, as the country continues to suffer in the midst of plenty.
From the analyses above, what are the takeways? First, is that the government should channel 30% of the budget allocation to education since education is gradually becoming the exclusive of the children of the rich, while the children of the poor are gradually being shut out, to correct the imbalance. Secondly, Nigerians should not put all their hopes in the government while those serving the people should fight corruption and reduce the cost of governance to make more resources available for the people. In addition, the importance of re-orientating the citizens for better patriotism and honest dealings by desisting from economic sabotage such as illegal mining activities, was highlighted. Finally, the importance of respecting the principles of derivation and economic diversification came into limelight, hoping that those concerned would do the needful to turn around the fortunes of our country for the better this year and beyond.
