Shouldn't we privatise the Presidency too?

Can you think of ONE – just one – government institution that is performing optimally and satisfactorily?

There was a time Nigerian Railway Corporation was the prime employer of labour in Nigeria. Over the years, it was run aground. President Goodluck Jonathan has been trying to resuscitate it in the last few years. Just like the NRC, there was a time Nigeria Airways was the pride of the nation. At its peak in the 1980s, it had a fleet of about 30 aircraft. It was also run aground. In 2003 when it was wound down, it was said to have a debt portfolio of more than US$60,000,000, with one aircraft flying domestic routes and two leased aircraft operating the international network.

Conversely, Ethiopia – a landlocked country which was so ravaged by famine between 1983 and 1985 that the musical group named USA for Africa was prompted to produce the 1985 hit song We Are the World to raise money for the country – has been successfully running Ethiopian Airlines. The airline was handed the international flights at the newly upgraded Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu and it is making a good job of it, making some good money and name for their country in the process. We fold our arms and watch Kenya Airways, Ghana Airways, South African Airways – not to mention other airlines from other continents – fly in and out of our country every day, making money from our land, because of our lack of patriotism and efficiency.

There was a time in this nation that Daily Times was rejecting adverts and cheques for lack of space. Because of its popularity, the newspaper used to have more adverts than the number of pages allocated for adverts. Some people would beg or use cronyism or even gratification to get their adverts and cheques accepted at Daily Times. Where is Daily Times today? Long dead and buried. But newspapers like The Punch, Vanguard, The Guardian – managed by people who have the same Nigerian blood and inhale and exhale the same Nigerian air – have been blossoming for decades. Why? Just one reason: Daily Times was owned by the Nigerian government, while the other newspapers are owned by individuals who run their papers professionally.

Someone would ask: What about the NTA and Radio Nigeria? Those two would have died too but for three reasons: 1. Without them, the Federal Government would not have any means of communicating to Nigerians, thereby being at the mercy of other news channels which may not present its stories to its satisfaction. 2. The two are still the only truly national electronic networks in Nigeria, as they have stations in all the states of the federation through which they reach all the nooks and crannies of Nigeria. Therefore advertisers still rely on them to reach a greater percentage of the population. 3. Nigerians – the consumers – don’t have to pay a kobo to watch/listen to them as they had to pay, for example, to buy a copy of Daily Times or get a Nigeria Airways ticket.

In the same vein, time was when NITEL was a king in Nigeria. The few who had telephones then were seen as a special breed of human beings. If your line was tossed, as it frequently was then, you would have to leave whatever you had and run after the NITEL staff, if you desired your line to be reconnected. Shortly after private telephone companies started operations in 2001, NITEL was struck by a mortal sickness. Not long after that brief illness, NITEL passed away. Several attempts made by the FG to sell it before it had its last breath proved futile. Meanwhile, right from 2001, the GSM companies in Nigeria have been booming and expanding.

Furthermore, I find no Nigerian building as artistic and exotic as the National Theatre, Iganmu, Lagos. Yet today, despite all efforts to revitalise it, anyone who invites people to an event at the National Theatre is regarded as unserious. At its expense, the MUSON Centre, Eko Hotel, Civic Centre, etc, are chosen as centres for hosting of events held by companies and individuals.

Again, the consensus is that the national electricity company, known as the Power Holding Company of Nigeria, was our worst impediment to industrialisation in Nigeria. In November 2013, the organisation was broken into smaller units and handed over to private companies to manage. With that bold step, there are hopes that electricity supply in Nigeria will improve tremendously soon.

In the same vein, our refineries, stadiums, universities, hospitals, roads, seaports, prisons, police, military, ministries and government agencies are all run unprofessionally and dismally. The more money pumped into them, the worse they become. Meanwhile, many private banks, schools, universities, hospitals, security outfits, and other organisations are well run and profitable. Interestingly, it is the same Nigerians who run their businesses professionally that run government businesses abysmally. The reason for this is that Nigerians run their private businesses as “someone’s business” but run government business as “nobody’s business.”

Since the Nigerian government has proved beyond every reasonable doubt that it is incapable of running any profit-oriented organisation successfully and profitably, the less government is saddled with, the better for us as a nation. I support that government should keep off as many businesses as possible and concern itself with regulation and support. Those who kick against the privatisation of government agencies may mean well for Nigeria. They do not want a few individuals to corner what belongs to everyone, probably with money stolen from the public coffers. But what is the essence of holding on to something that adds no value to anyone when someone can buy it and make it useful to everybody, even if at a higher price? Even if the buyers made their money by embezzling public funds, investing such funds in the nation will add more value in the areas of job creation, improved service delivery and boost to the economy than having it stashed away in foreign accounts.

Every day the news that comes from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation is demoralising. Sadly, President Goodluck Jonathan continues to say that corruption is not our MAJOR problem at a time decades of corruption have destroyed everything that used to make us a proud nation. I agree that corruption is not our number 1 problem – I believe that our number 1 problem is lack of commitment to Nigeria – but corruption is so high on our problem list that it needs to be tackled with special vigour. And the corruption we talk about is not just something that exists among those in high offices, for our corrupt leaders emerge from among us. It is the corrupt everyday Nigerian that one day becomes a permanent secretary, governor, senator or president. The everyday Nigerian shouts himself hoarse about the corruption in governance, but in his office he will not sign any document belonging to someone without demanding gratification for it. As he condemns those in government office, he prays day and night for God to bless him with a similar government appointment, so that he will get his own share of the national cake.

Therefore, my suggestion is that government should “privatise all privatisables,” as soon as possible, including the Presidency, if possible. It may sound ridiculous, but if Nigeria’s Presidency were to run like a non-government-owned company, it would be flourishing and declaring mouth-watering dividends and bonuses, given its natural and human assets and potential.

It may be impracticable to literally privatise the Presidency, but we can start running Nigeria like a business where the President acts like a CEO who wants the company to excel, flourish and declare impressive dividends that will not only make us – the “shareholders” – happy, but rich too.