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The former Director-General of the Voice of Nigeria (VON), Mr Osita Okechukwu, says emperor-like governors remained the bane of democratic dividend and positive development reaching Nigerians.
Okechukwu, who is a founding member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), said this on Tuesday in Enugu while reacting to 26 years of uninterrupted democracy in Nigeria.
He said that majority of the governors within the past two decades of democracy experience had woefully failed the people in spite of the huge Federal allocations and increased Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) accruing to their states under their watch.
“In distilling the performance of our dear governors it is safer to say that few in the last two decades had done exceptionally well; whereas the majority of the governors woefully failed the people.
“Most governors act as Emperors and do not make a distinction between their interests and that of the state.
“They (governors) do not abide by the constitution or respect the balance of power between the other two arms of government – the legislature and the judiciary.
“The social contract between them and the people is always in the breach,” he said.
Okechukwu noted that Nigerians ironically forget that after the monthly Federal Allocation Account Commission (FAAC), these Emperors (governors) run away with State 26 per cent allocation, plus 20 per cent local councils monthly accruals and expend as personal money.
The APC Chieftain said that it was regrettably that Nigerians “out of what one may term long fatigue”, most of the time transferred their aggression and hauled their blame game to whoever is the President.
“They blame the President even for repair of local roads and Primary Health Care hospitals in villages and communities in the states,” he said.
Okechukwu commended President Bola Tinubu’s vision to checkmate under development in the regions and by extension in states by setting up and funding regional development commissions.
He said, “Yes, am of the considered view that the North West, South West, North Central, South South, North East and South East Development Commissions will no doubt not only propel regional development, definitely they are catalyst for grassroots development.
“In fact, some pundits have dubbed the development commissions as restructuring by other means.
“This is because the members of the commission know better what each geopolitical zone needs and the geopolitical zone comparative advantage more than the minister whose landscape is the whole country.
“I subscribe to this assertion, for instance the South East Development Commission, which one has more details about, if well funded they will do well for the chairman, managing director, executive directors were chosen from among our first 11.”
On one party state, Okechukwu noted the general atmosphere of the assumption of Nigeria sliding into “One Party State is real”.
He, however, noted that the electorates are not actually onboard the defection train; while, secondly, none could predict the outcome of the coalition being midwifed by the other political parties.
On security, Okechukwu said that Tinubu’s administration had done a lot to contain insecurity in the land and “for security reasons one cannot disclose what one knows of asymmetrical warfare.”
“One commends and as well advise that more should also be done especially doubling down on non-kinetic arsenal like food security and social services like education and health,” he added.
