By Goddy Ikeh

Despite the issue of inadequate funding for capital projects in the states, the dearth of financial management skills and the inability of state governors to prioritise projects that will impact the mass of the people appear to be the bane of governance at the state level. 

SINCE the country returned to democratic rule in 1999, the impression created by some state governors is that their major challenge has always been inadequate funding. But more often, the governors have over the years demonstrated their inability to manage the resources available to the states well enough.

For instance, the governors, who become demi-gods soon after their inauguration turn the state into their private estate and the commissioners, mere errand men and women without powers of approval of any meaningful expenditure.

The manifestos used during the elections are dumped at a corner to gather dust and the personal interests of the governors and their kitchen cabinet are given priority.

Today, there is hardly any state capital with operational pipe-borne water, electricity, proper sewage system. Rather what you see today is subtle competition on who will build the longest flyover in a state capital that cannot boost of 10,000 vehicles, state universities of fishing, agriculture, technology and the construction of airports that the governors will be using for their regular trips to Abuja. Some governors go as far as spending millions of naira in conducting marriages for widows and sponsorship of pilgrimages.

These ambitious projects, which have no real impact on the people and the economy of the state are the priority of the state governor and his team and anybody who raises any objection to the execution of any of the projects is labelled the enemy of the state. In an effort to execute these projects, the governors will resort to borrowing money from commercial banks and seeking funds from donor agencies. And before the end of first term of four years, the debt burden of the states has doubled from the figure that they inherited from the previous administration.

And in order to provide some form of relief to party members, all kinds of ministries, including that of Happiness, and departments are created and several persons are appointed special advisers to the governors and the commissioners. With this form of commitments and bloated government expenditure, the state governments will not be able to attend to educational and health needs of the state as well as the payment of salaries of public servants.

And to avoid seeking constant bailout from the federal government, especially now that the monthly allocations to the local governments will be paid directly to them, President Muhammadu Buhari has advised the state governors to work towards improving their internally generated revenues.

Speaking during the inauguration of the National Economic Council, NEC, in Abuja on Thursday, June 20, Buhari, who had earlier in his first term, approved financial bailout for many state governments, urged all the state governors to pay special attention to the four major issues of security, education, health and agriculture in the coming years of this tenure.

Buhari told the governors that their successes in these four areas will go a long way in lifting the people out of poverty and securing the future for sustainable growth and development.

He, however, assured them that the federal government will strive to extend the school feeding programme, which will not only encourage school enrollment, but also enhance the health and learning capabilities of the pupils.

“We will also assist States as much as possible to access the counterpart funding provided for the development of basic education.

“Health is an area where the neglect of one person quickly amounts to the neglect of many. It is in our collective interest that each and every citizen gets at least a minimal access to healthcare, including primary, preventive and emergency care,’’ he said.

On security, Buhari said: “You can definitely make a difference, not just by assisting the security agencies in your respective States, but also by keenly pursuing policies and programmes that forestall communal, tribal, religious and societal conflicts; policies and programmes that promote education, information, dispute resolution, vocational training and youth employment.

“I have no doubt that if these four areas – security, education, health and agriculture – are actively implemented and closely monitored by NEC and the Governors’ Forum, we shall in the near future see a more peaceful and prosperous Nigeria,’’ he said.

Going forward, States should in the next four years find ways to increase internally generated revenues, improve Value Added Tax collection and increase agricultural output without disrupting business activities, he advised.

In the same vein, Thisday’s editorial of Friday, June 21, stressed the need for state governors to prioritise projects that will impact the mass of the people. The newspaper specifically took the example of Zamfara state where

Bello Matawalle, the new governor of Zamfara State, which is one of the most traumatised and backward states in Nigeria today, prioritized the airport project in the state.

Although the newspaper noted that Governor Bello Matawalle seemed to have a grasp of the enormity of the task ahead, as outlined in his acceptance speech last month. He had promised to tackle insecurity, resuscitate the state’s comatose educational sector, provide free healthcare to women and children, among other people-oriented agenda.

According to the editorial, after his assumption of office on May 29, the governor should have set in motion the machinery to translate those declared objectives into fruition, as they are some of the most critical necessities of the state at present.

“Instead, Matawalle has prioritised airport development and given it 100 days to take off because, according to him, that is crucial to the social and economic advancement of Zamfara.

“Ordinarily, the directive could be seen as an indication of a new chief executive eager to perform, considering the fact that the project was first proposed more than a decade ago during the administration of former Governor Mahmud Shinkafi and had featured in many of the budget proposals of his predecessor, Alhaji Abdulaziz Abubakar Yari.

“However, the sad realities of Zamfara at the moment would surely not lend credence to elitist, funds-guzzling ventures like airport. The state has been consistently brutalised by bandits, kidnappers, armed robbers and rustlers,” ” the newspaper said.

Obviously, Zamfara state is not alone in this misplacement of priority by state governors. Ebonyi state has recently announced plans to embark on one airport project. Apart from about N50 billion that will be committed to such enviable project, there is the large expanse of land that will be involved, which would have used for agriculture and the construction of industrial clusters for the state.

And as good and relevant as this piece of advice may be, it behooves on the governors to strive to prioritise their projects in line with the pressing needs of the states for the benefit of the people and the growth and sustainability of the economies of the states and the country.

BE

– June 22, 2019 @ 12:05 GMT |