I hope this all-important message I'm about passing across to Nigerianleaders will register in their subconscious and conscience. I know manymay feel the time is not auspicious to convey such a fundamental message because of the ecstasy surrounding the Nigeria's annual Independence Day ritual. But, I strongly believe that there is no better time to send the Save Our Soul [SOS] message on behalf of the hapless majority to the leaders than now when each of the leaders is competing to have his views conspicuously captured in the media on Nigeria's big strides as independent country.Yes, Nigeria's 52nd independence anniversary affords them a momentous period to flaunt their achievements, pedigree and credentials as elected public officers in relations to their promises to the Nigerian people before the 2011 elections. It is for this reason that President Goodluck Jonathan could beat his chest that the country was making a steady progress, in spite of the vagaries of time. In the midst of this, he says he is bringing a 'message of renewed hope and faith in the immense possibilities that lie ahead for our country.' But, he has provided a caveat, which is that Nigerians should only hope for the new horizon at the turn of the nation's 53rd anniversary, when many of his 'reform efforts would have yielded even better results.' But is the baton of change and new Nigeria actually now in our hands, going by the words of Mr President' I do not think so. There is still much the government has to do in order to restore public hope and confidence in the system and governance. The first one is the necessity by the government to immediately arrest the current price volatility and fast-creeping food insecurity in the country. The prices of basic food items have taken sudden flight, with such staple foods like beans becoming scarce commodities in the menu of many of homes of the most vulnerable stratum in the society: the ordinary man. The poverty ravaging the ordinary people, who constitute more than 90 per cent of the 160 million Nigerian population, was deliberately inflicted on them by their leaders. It [poverty] is making it increasingly difficult for the citizens to afford the basic things of life. Most of these people reside in rural communities with dearth of infrastructure. Even in urban areas, the masses are groaning under the pang of the prohibitive prices of food items, drugs and indeed general spiraling inflation, which have all conspired against the new N18, 000 new national minimum wage, made life miserable to many and made the minimum wage itself meaningless, whereas most governors have reneged on their agreement with labour to pay it to workers. Then, how can you curb corruption in an atmosphere where a month's salary can hardly sustain the average Nigerian worker for a week'It is an irony that many citizens now only eat to remain alive and not to look healthy, in contradiction to the consistent claim by the authorities that things are beginning to look up for the country because of government's transformation agenda. Take for example, while the palliatives promised by the government at the wake of last January's pro-subsidy protest appear salutary so far, the problem of food crisis, is being aggravated by the stark realities of unannounced total deregulation of the downstream sector of the petroleum sector. Petrol currently sells for N120 per litre, instead of the official price of N97 in many parts of the country. A litre of kerosene, a commodity, which is commonly used by more than 90 per cent of Nigerians for several domestic purposes, goes for N135 per litre, instead of N50.It must be noted that the current situation concerning food security and hyper inflation was long envisaged by a number of expert among them, Nigerians, based on climate change and other incendiary factors. Recently, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Administrator, Helen Clark reinforced such paradox, the dire implications and called for a pragmatic solution to the African continent, especially the Sub-Saharan axis. She said that, 'Impressive Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rates in Africa have not translated into the elimination of hunger and malnutrition. Inclusive growth and people-centred approaches to food security are needed.' And by the definition provided by the 1996 World Food Summit, food security means when people cannot consistently access sufficient and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs for an active and healthy life at a price they can afford.I recognise the tireless efforts by the Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Akinwunmi Adesina to curtail Nigeria's huge expenditure on food importation, which Nigeria's High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Dr. Dalhatu Tafida said was more than $10 billion annually. But while the country sustains its pursuit of a long-run plan to tackle the problem, the authorities must immediately take proactive measures to stem the current spiraling prices of staple food items in the country because of the socio-economic implications.It is time for the government to put to test the reliability of its strategic grains reserve, if necessary, so as to arrest the galloping inflation and prices. Besides, the independence of the country can only be meaningful if it is able to feed its citizens. A hungry man cannot be mobilised for national economic recovery, growth and development.There are claims that the food crises is partly connected to security challenge, as it has made it impossible for many merchants involved in huge volumes of the North-South trade to ply their trade like before. Many of them, especially from the Southern part of the country, are said to rely on the natives of those troubled spots in the North to bring their consignments to the Southern traders, who now consider themselves endangered species in remote agrarian communities in the North. If true, this is a sad development in a country, where the people had co-habited harmoniously for close to a century as a federation.However, the untoward scenario demonstrates more poignantly the inter-dependence of the constituents of the federation and requires the government's direct appropriate agencies to restore the supply chain of staple food items in the country. In the words of experts, freedom from hunger enables people to live productive lives and realise their full potentials. The President, his agriculture minister and other relevant authorities, should pick up the gauntlet over the incredible upward swing of the prices of basic food items and drugs in the country because a hungry man is an angry man.Oderemi, 08023501874 (SMS only).
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