By Emma Okereh
As Nigeria marks its 64th independence anniversary today, October 1st, an oil and gas expert, Engr Yakubu Mohammed has decried stunted economic growth the country has witnessed and called for retrospective steps that could help the nation pull back from its brinks.
In a statement to newsmen in Abuja, while congratulating the nation at its 64 years anniversary, he lent his voice on the way forward for the country even when he listed the challenges that have slowed down economic and political developments of the country.
Engr Mohammed said it behoves on all well-meaning citizens of the country to have a retrospect on our more than six decades of existence as a sovereign nation.
Part of the statement says, “Suffice it to say that this year, we are celebrating Nigeria’s independence amid numerous challenges and issues concerning our unity and sovereignty as the country is saddled with numerous problems, amongst which are: insecurity, poverty, unemployment, ethnic agitations, industrial crisis, corruption, climate change, constitutional issues, amongst others”.
Lending his voice on the way forward for Nigeria at 64, Engineer Yakubu Mohammed, an Oil and Gas expert and Chief Executive Officer of White Page International Concept Limited (WPIC), an international oil and gas company, explained that, “At 64, it offers us the opportunity to rethink and do a retrospect of the direction the country is slanting to. It gives us the great privilege to re-examine ourselves to know where we got it wrong in our 64 years journey as a sovereign nation and to be bold enough to make a detour, if necessary.
“Nigeria as a nation deserves the best and Nigerians are angling for the best which I believe will not be far-fetched with the dedicated commitment of all citizens. Nigerians are resilient people, they can withstand any situation. What an average Nigerian needed is an enabling environment by the government. This include, conducive working environment, good roads for easy movement and smooth transportation of agricultural products, adequate security of lives and properties, flexible fiscal and monetary policy that will not stifle the SMEs and petty traders and most importantly, reasonable pricing of petroleum products which is the life-wire of the economy of the nation”.
He further stated that, in finding a lasting solution to the multi-faceted problem bedeviling the nation, there is need to promote transparency, accountability and good governance by the leaders.
“Combating corruption, investing in quality education, reducing over dependency on oil, stimulating agricultural and industrial growth, encouraging SMEs, developing critical infrastructures, improving healthcare facilities both at the primary and tertiary level, tackling insecurity headlong, as well as opening up for international collaboration; remains the panacea for the Nigeria of our collective aspiration.
While elaborating on how Nigeria got to where it is now despite being endowed with rich and enormous mineral resources, Engineer Mohammed explained, “Our stunted growth as a nation is manifested in the main source of our economy which is the petroleum sector. In the past, we were refining our crude oil; our refineries were working, serving our domestic purposes. When the down-turn occured, the refineries suddenly disappeared and we started importing refined products which hitherto was alien to us. This was happening when other oil producing nations like us were building more refineries both for their local consumption and for export to earn foreign exchange.
“Apart from building refineries, those countries were also building petrochemical industries to harness the full benefit of crude oil, while Nigeria as a nation seemed exceptional in this value chain.
He opined that with proper leadership and redirection of focus, the situation can be remedied for value added economic indices for the country.
“As a strong advocate for the unity of the country, a country can only prosper and develop when there is togetherness and unity of purpose. If we decide to shun ethnicity and religion in our politics, make political positions less attractive, build a strong and workable electoral system and elevate the constitution above every Nigerian, we will attract good leaders.
The widely travelled Chief Executive Officer of WhitePage enunciated further that most countries that gained independence within the same period with Nigeria have gone far ahead in all ramifications.
” For a country like Singapore that we share several homogenous economic statistics, they have moved far ahead of us in economic and political development, earning a first world status. The case of Malaysia is not different. Nigeria and Malaysia both plural societies, share both federal and democratic status. Moving ahead, Malaysia has been able to a great extent; solve their cultural, religious and economic challenges. Coming back to Africa, it is even more disheartening comparing Nigeria, the acclaimed giant of Africa with countries like South Africa, Kenya, Rwanda, Ghana that got their independence within the same period or even much later.
“While basking in the euphoria of marking our 64 years as a sovereign nation, the period should afford us the great opportunity to take necessary steps that will manifest the country’s greatness. The recent pronouncement by the President through the Federal Executive Council for the approval of the Economic Stabilisation Bills where it entails amending the income tax laws, promoting the export of goods and services, reforming the exchange rate regime, both federal and state government collaborating to suspend certain taxes on small businesses and vulnerable populations, as well as unlocking the foreign exchange liquidity, is a commendable move by the government towards the economic growth of the nation.
He called on the political class and the elite that the responsibility now lies on them to build consensus for peace and lasting unity thereby creating avenues for sincere reconciliation among the various divides towards building the desired unity for all.
He also called on the citizens to use the opportunity of the anniversary to look inwards towards harnessing the great potentials of the country in order to build confidence and trust in the nation.
