The Vice President of Nigeria, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo on April, Monday 11, took to Twitter to make public his interest to contest under the aegis of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for the position of President come 2023. He is the latest in a long line of political bigwigs who are seeking to be the ruling party’s flagbearer at the polls.
There has also been activity in the camp of the current Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, who also declared an interest in seeking the seat of the President in the same APC that is the Vice President’s party over the last weekend.
Both announcements have been the biggest so far in the race to the 2023 elections, at least going by the staggering number of social media conversations that have followed the announcements of both candidates.
Although there have been other political actors who have also declared their interest in the elections, what the above listed two have in common is that they are both part and parcel of the current administration.
Osinbajo, whose position as President Muhammadu Buhari’s running mate in the 2015 elections was his first introduction to Nigerians as a political office holder, has spent the last seven years familiarizing himself with Nigerians as an able deputy for the outgoing Pres. Buhari whose administration seems to have been quite insulated from the plight of Nigerians despite the fidelity of their campaign promises.
Even if it can be claimed that the government Osinbajo still proudly remains a part of — especially as illustrated in his declaration speech where he said, “We have, together, worked through some of the most difficult times in the history of our Nation, but we have remained focused on securing the country, providing infrastructure and growing our economy. — meant well for Nigeria and Nigerians, the reality has been wildly different.
The fact that most of the claims Osinbajo could use to back up his credibility as a serious candidate for the Presidency, as portrayed through his declaration speech, have been devoid of any real action.
“In this period of seven years, I have served the government in several capacities, and have, at the direction of Mr. President, represented our country in sensitive high level international engagements. I have been to practically all local governments in Nigeria. I have been in markets, factories, schools, and farms. I have been in agricultural, mining and oil producing communities; in the Delta, in Kebbi, Enugu, Borno; Rivers, Plateau and Ondo; & in all other States of the federation, listening to the diverse experiences and yearnings of our people.
“I have visited our gallant troops in the North East and our brothers and sisters in the IDP camps. I have felt the pain and anguish of victims of violent conflicts, terrorist attacks, flooding, fire and other disasters.”
For a country faced with the magnitude of challenges that Nigeria currently finds itself, this feels like a very false start to the arduous journey that lies ahead of the country’s next leader.
The passiveness that has seen him be a part of a Presidency that still has not officially acknowledged the killing and kidnap of more than 200 of its citizens by terrorists a little over two weeks back.
The same can also be said of the candidacy of Rotimi Amaechi, the Minister of Transport whose ministry is responsible for the trains that were attacked by the terrorists. When asked about the security on said trains, his first response was to lament about the inadequate funds that have prevented them from making the trains more secure rather than attending to the reality of the victims of the sordid attack.
Amaechi said, “We knew what the problems will be. We know we needed to have digital security equipment on the corridors. We applied for it. Let me just stop here so I don’t hurt so many people. But I heard the president has given a directive that the procurement must be completed immediately.
“If we had those equipment on the tracks, you will see the entire track. And we warned that lives would be lost. Now lives were lost. Eight persons dead and 25 persons in the hospital. We don’t know how many people have been kidnapped. And the cost of those equipment is just N3bn. The cost of what we have lost is more than N3bn.
“We have lost track. We have lost locomotives and coaches. We have lost human beings. And the equipment is just N3bn. To fix the damages will cost more than N3bn. To imagine that we just said give us the approval and not even the money. At the time we asked for it, Dollar was N400, and now its about N500. When you come with sincerity to the government and people are stopping you, it is annoying.”
With the indolence and disregard that the policies and conduct of this Federal Government has inflicted on Nigerians, a government that is not sensitive to the plight of its people who continue to freely slide down the poverty scale will prove too expensive, and looking towards the very people who aided its occurrence for succor may not be the best thing to do.
Disclaimer: This article is the opinion of a Pulse Contributor, it doesn't reflect the opinions of the company.