Some call it the
Buhari bounce. Others describe it as the Buhari effect. Yet some others say it
is the Buhari aura. One thing is however crystal clear. Things have not been
the same in the past 100 days in Nigeria, since Muhammadu Buhari assumed the
presidency. A new sheriff has truly come to town.
Exactly 100 days ago,
he climbed the podium at Eagle Square in Abuja and got inaugurated as
president, 30 years after he had been toppled from power as military head of
state. He promised to belong to nobody, and to belong to everybody. It is a
pledge that still resonates loudly today, and will surely echo for a long time
to come...
On a day like this,
you would expect a presidential spokesman to chronicle the achievements of his
principal in office. He has turned stone to bread, slain the dragon, and
climbed Mount Olympus in ten seconds. But that is not what I want to do. There
are some intangible, almost imperceptible achievements, but which run very
deep, and are quite fundamental. Those are the ones I’ll rather talk of, while
we leave the tangibles till some other day.
> Oh, he’s
escaping. There are no concrete achievements, some wailing wailers would cry.
True? Not true. I could have decided to focus on the bloody nose being given to
Boko Haram in the North-east, which would see the country rid of insurgency
soon, the rallying of leaders of other neighboring countries to deploy a Joint
Multinational Task Force, the openness displayed about government finances and
the welfare package instituted for states that couldn’t pay salaries, the
Treasury Single Account, which would promote transparency and accountability in
governance, the disappeared fuel queues, fast-tracking of the cleanup of Ogoni
land, reduction in the cost of governance, and many others. But I will not
focus on all those. The day cometh!
> When a new
sheriff comes into town, disorder gives way to order. Chaos flees. Impunity is
swept away. Laxity gives way to diligence, and people change their old,
unedifying ways. When you have a Wild, Wild West situation prevailing, the new
sheriff comes, and stamps his authority. Old things then pass away, behold,
everything becomes new.
> Nigeria had
always needed attitudinal change. That was why the Buhari regime launched War
Against Indiscipline in the 1980s. And the war was succeeding, till a spanner
was thrown in the works through regime change. Buhari was called all sorts of
names then: despot, tyrant, iron fist ruler etc But the discerning knew. They
understood that it was a change we needed. And that change was postponed for 30
years.
> But what is bred
in the bones never goes out through the flesh. Immediately Buhari returned on May
29, Nigerians knew that discipline was back. The bird of the homestead told the
ones in the bush, and they all sat up. No unnecessary chirping. Stealing is now
corruption, they whispered to themselves. God help you if you get caught.
> Now, consider the
situation with electricity and with our refineries. Electricity has climbed to
about 5,000 Megawatts. Some refineries, which had not produced a drop of fuel
for years, have cracked into life. Even the perennial queues in our petrol
stations have disappeared, vanished. Is it because Buhari threw billions of
dollars at the problems? No. Those things simply responded to the presence of
the new sheriff in town. Those who manned those schedules could afford to be
laid back in the past. But not anymore! The music has changed, and the dance
steps must follow suit. And would Buhari take credit for the newfound zeal and
efficiency? Not the plain and honest man from Daura. The broadcaster Omotayo
Omotoso had come to the presidential villa to interview him sometime in July.
And she had asked what the magic wand he waved was, that refineries, long
comatose, had sprang back to life. The President responded that it would be
dishonest of him to have claimed he did anything. He had not touched refineries
at all. But unknown to the President, he did something. He had swept into town
with his reputation for efficiency, and for achieving results. And the
refineries, fuel supply, electricity supply, responded to the new sheriff. May
things continue to get better till the change becomes enduring and
irreversible. Amen somebody!
> Another
imperceptible but momentous achievement is the faith that Nigerians now have in
their leader. Yes, the opposition numbers in millions, and naturally so. A
political party had held power at the centre for 16 years, and its loyalists
would not simply disappear, or get converted overnight. About 12 million
Nigerians had voted for the presidential candidate of that party in the March
2015 general elections. Would they just cross over to the winning side? It
often takes awhile. But despite all that, a great deal of Nigerians, a vast
majority, believe in the new sheriff. And that is great achievement. A big
deal. When the citizenry believe in their leader, and almost can swear by him,
it is no mean feat. The NOI polls, in a survey in July, revealed that over 70%
of Nigerians were happy with the Buhari administration. And I can bet that the
percentage would rise, as the months and years roll by. Faith in leadership is
something that does not come cheap.
> And this one!
Even our foreign reserve knows that a new sheriff is in town, and has responded
appropriately. In June, just one month into office, and with the plugging of
some leakages and loopholes, foreign reserve surged from $29 billion to $31.89.
Holy Moses! Just in one month. Well, that is what a new sheriff can do. He
brings sanity, confidence and probity to the system. And you would agree that
Nigeria needs such shot in the arm, if we consider recent past experiences,
when our treasury was like a bag filled with holes.
> An evidence of
the believability of the new sheriff, and the confidence reposed in him, is the
disclosure that came this week from Ambassador Godknows Igali, Permanent
Secretary, Ministry of Power. He said since Buhari came to office, not a single
sabotage of the power infrastructure has been recorded, and it is one of the
reasons that electricity supply keeps improving. But did Buhari line up
soldiers across the power infrastructure? Did he hire a combination of OPC,
Egbesu, MASSOB, MEND and Arewa youths to keep vigil? No. Just believability.
Those who are so angry with the country, and would go to any extent to sabotage
development, have decided to give the sheriff a chance. They have heard of his
reputation. A man that believes in fairness and justice. He would do right to
all parts of the country.
> Can you imagine
the respect our sheriff commands on the international scene, and how it
redounds to the glory of the average Nigerian? American President, Barack Obama
said Buhari came onto his job with reputation of integrity and a clearcut
agenda. Ambassador Johnny Carson, also during the U.S trip in July, said the
Nigerian President was a man of honour and integrity. Everywhere he goes, the
Nigerian President is lauded and garlanded for his virtues. And the image of
the country is burnished and repositioned in the process. Surely, greater days
are ahead.
> Some people say
the sheriff did not hit the ground running, as he is yet to constitute his
cabinet in 100 days. And I usually ask such people: when you hit the ground,
and you land in mud, how do you begin to run immediately? You can only sink
deeper, if you attempt to run. The thing to do is to first clear the mud, till
you get to terra firma, and then you can begin to run.
> President Buhari
has spent time trying to clean the Augean stable he inherited. And he is
succeeding. Sheriffs can either come in with guns blazing, shooting malefactors
to kingdom come, or simply stamp their authority on the situation by sheer
force of personality and presence. The Nigerian sheriff seems to have opted for
the second option for now. But we should never forget that sheriffs are
licensed to shoot. And those shots can be lethal for lawbreakers. In a matter
of months, you can ask those who had bled our treasury to the point of death.
They’ll have stories to tell.
Adesina is Special
Adviser, Media and Publicity to President Muhammadu Buhari
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