The 2009 Budget And The Poor Man In Nigeria
By Prince Charles Dickson
There are some things you learn best in calm, and some in storm. Will Cather.
I possess an above average knowledge of psychology and have been fascinated with what is termed the Nigerian Psychology, that psychology has many branches, from the ethnic, to the religious, from the political to the apolitical, it has different shades, but of all the phases of it all, one that never ceases to amaze me is the psychology of the poor in Nigeria. We just watch and expect miracles, forgetting that such does not happen out of the ordinary
With nostalgia I recall those past when the budgets of this nation used to be read on the 1st of January annually, although it was the military and one could not say much in the positives, yet there was much to take home with. First, Nigerians could say that they were waiting for the budget; there was a semblance of sanity, despite all the thesis of the opposite school.
Interestingly all these budgets have come with one cliché or the other, Budget of reconstruction, infrastructure, change, hope, and many more. Infact I recall one that was referred poor man’s’ budget.
Our budgets are now in trillions, and still do not take away the fact that there was a time that the nations budget was a few millions. Now state budgets are in some cases are bigger than that of some neighboring ECOWAS states.
The Aso Rock Presidential Villa, Abuja, will next year spend a whopping N4.2bn on food items, uniforms and office maintenance. Food supplies to Aso Rock would cost N205.88m or N17.1m monthly in the coming year.
It was learnt that at the price of N7, 000 per bag, the total budget for food items (N205.88m) could procure about 29,412 bags of rice.
And Nigerians have no table, no food, and no one has said anything and no one will. In 2008, N474m was set aside in the budget for the purchase of food items for the Villa. A friend asked 'wetin dem dey eat'?
An investigation as conducted by a local paper revealed that the same amount (N17.1m) could be used to build four units of a modest three-bedroom bungalow in areas outside the Abuja city centre.
However, this does not include a separate N127.6m budgeted for meals to be served during summits, conferences and banquets to be hosted at the State House in 2009.
A further breakdown revealed that out of N4.2bn, the sum of N800m would be used to maintain office buildings in Aso Rock and another N340m on the residential area.
In 2008, N900m was budgeted for the maintenance of office buildings in the Villa, and N440m for residential houses.
The maintenance of “other infrastructure,” which was not specified, had a separate provision of N207.7m, excluding the sum of N38.6m budget for “maintenance of office equipment.”
It was also observed that N38.8m, N150m, and N14.3m were budgeted for the maintenance of office furniture, vehicles and plants/generators respectively.
Again, “other materials and supplies” as well as “other maintenance services” had budgetary provisions of N105.1m and N50.1m respectively.
Drugs/medical supplies will take N362.7m, while “uniforms and other clothing” will gulp N26.5m in 2009.
More details showed that another N192.9m was set aside for “office materials and supplies,” excluding N109.6m for the printing of non-security documents and N38.6m for security documents.
A separate N35.7m was earmarked for computer materials and another N9m for the “maintenance of computers” at the Aso Rock.
Two years ago N1.5m was spent providing reading glasses for Presidential aides that are domiciled in the Presidency so they could see national issues, with the man on the street going blind from a lack of purpose, from the daily struggles of life, from a life of feeding 0-0-1, 1-0-0, 0-1-0, these days it is as bad as 0, 0 and only Allah knows when.
It is obvious that nobody has thought about the ordinary Nigerian who cannot afford roasted corn and coconut. A 'poor' Nigerian has never asked for anything other than the basics, food, shelter, he even careless about clothing, somehow any combination of two out of the three is okay.
Judicial workers went on strike, Doctors too, teachers, nurses, labourers, everyone that can strike has struck at one point or the other...at some point even the police threatened to strike, early in this our democracy made in Nigeria one of the two houses of the National Assembly threatened to strike over their allowances.
Nigerians are living a very mean life, cooking oil popularly referred to as kerosene is more expensive than car spirit. We are all living a life of promise, politicians riding us as camel, promising to build bridges where there are no rivers and taking our bald fathers to the saloon for a haircut.
Our failed leaders do not owe us an apology because they literally own us. We have no say; they treat us at their whims and caprices, and even through their actions and inaction provide us with comic relief.
In many parts civil servants are being owed months in salaries, private firms treating their workers in styles reminiscent of the abolished slave trade.
On a scale of happy and sad...Nigerians are on a permanent frustrate, living a life of bare survival, subsistent living, less than a dollar a day and living expenses stand at about $8 a day, how we cope with transport, feeding, contingencies are nothing short of magic, but for how long.
Universities apart from the half and unbaked graduates now produce robbers, prostitutes, churches and mosques are manned by con-men called men of god, while we the children of god have become vulnerable elements.
Take a sample survey and you will be shocked at the results, Nigerians may be naive, docile but interestingly they are not ignorant, they know the thieves, they know those men and these days women too that have crippled them economically.
They know that neighbor that was riding an old battered Volvo that went to the State House of Assembly that has six cars now. This is why a lot of us have advocated that the militants rather than the rubbish they are doing now; they should start kidnapping government officials, governors that have raped them mentally, economically and otherwise.
A lot of commentators are out there taking stands, off course no one can be totally neutral, but how many have thought of the people, the real people.
Any project meant for the masses is treated as a no money matter but when it has to do with the insatiable ego of our toy leaders, money comes out. If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor. If an elephant has its foot on the tail of a mouse and you say that you are neutral, the mouse will not appreciate your neutrality.
In Nigeria today injustice has become justice, crime a virtue, roguery a skill.
Painfully all that this government has done, it says that it was done for our good, yet we do not see the good and this makes the words of C.S Lewis most apt, he said "Of all tyrannies, a tyranny sincerely exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It would be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies.
The robber baron's cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated; but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end for they do so with the approval of their own conscience.
Our leaders have the approval of their conscience when they kill the public school system and allow for the growth of all sorts of nonsense in the name of private schools, they have the approval of their hearts when they go from Germany to Saudi for treatment, and we watch as the India, Singapore, Malaysia turn their health system into state of the art.
They have approval to treat us anyhow, most times with our permission but those days will soon be over, the poor will soon take revenge, we pray that it is done in palace manner if not, anarchy looms that day, because the poor know where they live, how they live, and will strike without sympathy.
It is better to die for an idea that will live, than to live for an idea that will die. The day of reckoning we hope may come, Nigerians will seek out revenge, and there will be something worth dying for sooner than expected. A storm is brewing...!
Prince Charles Dickson
Editor, LeadershipNigeria
Leadership Newspapers Group
Visit http://www.leadershipnigeria.com/
For God And Country
http://pcdbooks.blogspot.com/
Yours In High Regards
234-08033311301, 08057152301
Endless Hope Is Better Than A Hopeless End