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Oshiomhole's Government At One
It is now history that the Oshiomhole Administration in Edo State came in at a time when everybody had virtually given up on the system because of its rot. It is also history that the Administration came in after a very fierce battle; the type of battle never experienced any where else in the country, to regain the king's crown that had been snatched from the rightful owner.
Comrade Adams Oshiomhole came with a correcting fluid to erase the idea that what politicians these days call the dividends of democracy are, indeed, not dividends of democracy. Rather, they are dividends of governance. A man is elected by the people to govern them. He renovates a few classrooms, grades a few kilometers of earth road and then he proceeds to the television to shout to the high heavens that he has provided dividends of democracy. And these are things, which any government, even the most authoritarian military dictatorships also provide.
Essentially, true dividends of democracy deal in the realm of Chapter IV of our Constitution, which talks of the Fundamental Rights of man, including rights to life, dignity of the human person, personal liberty; freedom of thought, conscience and religion; freedom of expression and the press; freedom of movement, etc. By Oshiomhole's theory of "Let the People Lead", he means that democracy must be real. It must not only exist, but it must also be seen to exist. As an instance, the people cannot be said to be leading if they have no say in who governs them. For too long, people have remained docile while the affairs of State were left in the hands of a cabal who kept twisting power in which ever direction they want.
In this connection, the first litmus test came during the struggle to regain his stolen mandate. In the end, he convinced the people that their votes could be defended and made to count. Then came the battle for the soul of Akoko-Edo Constituency I in the Edo State House of Assembly. Under Oshiomhole, these hitherto disenfranchised people received a message of hope. The people were told that their fortunes could be changed for the better and that they could be part of the system where governance would have to attract the quality of people that are capable of justifying the cost of democracy. They were informed for the first time that they must come out to exercise their civic responsibility of voting for the candidate of their choice. They were properly tutored on the concept of universal adult suffrage, which embraces the idea of one man one vote. That was the beginning of the Revolution and the Liberation that would change the people's fortunes permanently for the better. That was the election that has since become the reference point throughout Nigeria and beyond. After the Akoko-Edo liberation, elections in Edo State will never return to the atavistic level of just being fixed. To that extent, the Oshiomhole Administration has succeeded beyond measure. History will be a better judge.
Oshiomhole came fully equipped to accept the fact that if true democracy must be enthroned, it was not going to be possible to completely escape those moments of profound crises when the tough decisions must be taken. He took the tough decisions that made the difference. The effects of those decisions are not quantifiable and they have no parallels in terms of short-term infrastructural developments. Two examples will do:
GA_googleFillSlot( "AllAfrica_Story_InsetC" ); From time, Benin City has been a land of history and greatness. It is an ancient civilization with a cultural richness that must accept only the front seat. Lately, though, Benin City has been turned to a ghetto. It would take the heart of stone for anyone not to weep for Benin City after visiting other State Capitals like Ilorin, Calabar, Owerri, Kaduna, etc. We are sure that in his private closet, Oshiomhole must have wept for Benin City; hence he decided that something must be done about the renewal and beautification of the City. The first tough decision here involved bringing out the original master plan for the City and any structure that does not conform to that master plan must give way. They were not going to look at anybody's face. Rather, they were to follow due process, which involves identifying every illegal structure and pulling same down after due notice. It is instructive to note that at first, the bulldozers were really busy but with time, after the citizens accepted the Administration's decision, the bulldozers have become virtually redundant because the people now carefully remove the illegal structures before the arrival of the bulldozers. This is a measure of democracy. It shows that if the people are properly co-opted into government scheme, they will be willing to go along.
In urban renewal, relocation is invariably the most sensitive issue, particularly against the backdrop that the vast majority of displaced people are poor. Efforts have been made to relocate affected traders in other markets where there are vacant stalls. But it is also clear that no matter what we do, it will not be possible to relocate all the affected traders. Here, we are also dealing with a peculiar population of small businessmen who are especially vulnerable to relocation. They often depend on small, well-known neighbourhood clientele who cannot favourably compete when forced to move to other sections of the town. All the same, the people are becoming gradually convinced that a situation where pedestrians, traders, motor cyclists, motorists, heaps of garbage, all have to struggle for the right of way - with all the attendant hazards, is not in their best interest. Now that the urban renewal programme has kicked off in earnest; they watch with amazement as renovation takes over from demolition; and Benin City is being turned to London; they now wish Oshiomhole had arrived earlier!
The ills of democracy can only be cured by more democracy. If the Administration must carry out its policies and programmes for the people, there must be the financial muscle to implement them. Incidentally, the Oshiomhole Administration came in at a time when the allocation from the federation account was plummeting, partly because of the world economic down-turn and largely because of problems from the Oil Zone. And the people had become used to the idea of Government as Father Christmas. They were used to not paying tax. Again, there was a tax regime, which succeeding Administrations in the State did not have the political will to implement. It was a moment of tough decision. Who else could have done it but Oshiomhole? He faced the situation frontally and carefully educated the people on the need to pay their taxes. The idea is being embraced. We hear that the monthly Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) has since quadrupled and it is still on its way up.
In a single year, so much solid foundations have been laid which will carry through to future generations. That's dividend of democracy. This Administration is focused. While we may seem to be paying attention to Benin City, it is necessary to mention that the Oshiomhole Revolution is taking place in virtually every part of the State as well as in every sector of the economy. Past administrations had given up on our township roads. We invite the reader to take a trip to the hitherto failed potions of Adolo College Road, Five Junction, Upper Sokponba Road, Eghosa Grammar School Road, Uwa Street, and Upper Mission Road, all in Benin Metropolis. In the past, these roads created nightmares for motorists and other road users during the rains but you can now close your eyes and drive through them (but don't get caught by Road Safety). Even in the face of dwindling resources, Oshiomhole has engaged more and more teachers and he has also promoted those who were hitherto stagnated. In spite of all these achievements at home, it marvels people how the man still finds time to carry out other national assignments. As an instance, history will not fail to record him as the one man who recently saved the educational system from total collapse, when he intervened in the FG-ASUU imbroglio.
The achievements at home have not been without challenges. For instance, it took months of unnecessary delay for the House of Assembly to approve his Appropriations Bill for the year. Two, Oshiomhole believes that every pupil deserves a place to sit and a teacher to learn from. He believes that poverty must not be a barrier to learning and that learning must offer an escape from poverty. And beyond more classrooms and more teachers, society must provide an educational system that grows in excellence as it grows in size. That explains the speed with which he sourced the necessary matching fund for the UBE scheme as soon as he came into office. But what do we find? The PDP-controlled House of Assembly has constituted itself into a clog in the wheel of progress by refusing to confirm the Governor's nominations to the UBE Board for one year now!
Oshiomhole's stewardship is already fruiting. In the past fortnight, a large segment of the PDP has emptied itself into the AC. In time, what they once battled, they will become; and what they once were, they will crush. The temporary distractions, notwithstanding, in the next one year, we see a second Lagos State in the offing. But in this defining moment, we should attempt to remove petty political considerations from governance. The time has come for Nigeria to begin to define itself to itself and for itself before dreaming of true greatness.
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