APC’s story of change: Reality bites

By Joseph Edgar …
The honeymoon is definitely over. The euphoria of victory has glided away and the stark reality that is the myriad of problems facing us as Nigerians stares us in the face. Left with a new seemingly inexperienced government hobbled by intrigues, power play and forces entrenched in the pits of self-interest, Nigerians are in for a major roller coaster ride which, if care is not taken could be a one way ticket to Golgotha.
The Buhari administration is waging too many battles on different fronts. The anti-corruption battle is limping. What with the stories of selected persecution, the political face of some of these charges, the slow grind of the wheel of justice, Nigerians are beginning to ask if this war in itself is really that necessary. They are yearning for economic direction, for a way forward while at best still prosecuting the war and not making it the full center of this administration’s policy.
To me, this corruption war is getting nowhere. No major victories have been won, no major monies refunded and the economy stunted as a result of the almost maniacal concentration on the anti-corruption war. The battle has pitted APC against itself ala the Saraki matter which if not careful could lead to the decimation of its ranks. I am even hearing from the grapevine that Saraki and his group have left the APC and have formed another party platform. The following weeks would give us more clarity on these and other issues.
The economy is the worse for it in all this. Are we removing or keeping subsidy. This dilly dally is killing the sector. Banks are being owed, marketers are being owed and the subsidy payments I hear are not being paid. Report shows that payments have not been made by this administration in a long while. All these would lead to stagnation of the economy, inflation and job losses.

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The issue of the TSA is another matter on to itself. It was in my opinion ill advised and the late exemption of some parastatals may be medicine too late for some banks. I hear banks like Unity and First Bank are currently experiencing malaria fever. Economic indices are flagging, inflation is on the rise, unemployment galloping, made worse by the continuous drop in oil revenues occasioned by the low prices in the international market.
All these have led to a drop in our ratings by international rating agencies and our exemption from the Bond Index as a result of CBN’s kalokalo attempt at managing forex in the face of pressure. Last week even the CBN finally sent out a warning signal that we may be heading for a recession. These are indeed dark days and panic is not far away.
On the political front we witness no respite. No clarity as the confusion continuous unabated. The Selfish intent of the owners of the ruling party to me has delayed the announcement of the cabinet hence throwing a cloud of confusion on the direction of the government. The infighting amongst stalwarts continue to send a signal of unseriousness to the nation. Everybody is fighting everybody, Oshiomole’s is fighting Sylvia, Saraki is fighting Tinubu and the party is divided into all kinds of demarcation that we just may begin to yearn for the PDP days. At least there was cohesion in their thievery.
The excuses are pouring in, we can’t expect Buhari to clear the rubbish in less than 100days, Buhari’s body language has given us power, he is trying to reset the economy, the corruption war is a necessity amongst all other excuses. To me, as my father will say, the morning tells us what the day will be like. The seeming slow and almost confusing decision-taking process, the lack of clarity in policy direction, the lack of solutions to jump start the economy especially in the much needed area of diversification all tells me that we may not find Uhuru with this government.
Where does that now leave us as a country? The answer my friend, is blowing in the wind.

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