The critical mass of the so-derogated underclass and the seriously-poverty-stricken, Western education-disadvantaged Nigerians (about 80 million), are very current with trending news on the social and electronic media and could no longer be hoodwinked by dubious/greedy politicians in these trying times of our national history, because they had always been short-changed in spite of their constitutional superiority over and above those arrogant “representatives”!

THEY HAVE HEARD THAT THE SUPER-RICH LEGISLATORS (WHO SHOULD BE SERVANTS TO THE PEOPLE), LIVE LIFE OF OPULENCE, DRIVE POSH/EXOTIC CARS THAT COST NIGERIAN TAX PAYERS, A WHOOPING N55 BILLION NAIRA IN 2019, (WITH SIMILAR FIGURES IN THE PAST YEARS FROM 1999), DWELL IN PARADISE APARTMENTS/SUITES BOUGHT THROUGH THE BLOOD AND SWEAT OF THE TALAKAWAS WHOM PRESIDENT BUHARI VOWED TO SUCCOUR; ARE NOW BENT ON SPENDING ANOTHER N37 BILLION NAIRA TO RENOVATE THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY COMPLEX WHERE THEY PERFECTED ALL DIRTY DEALS OF ANNUAL BUDGET PADDING TROUGH WHICH THEY PROCURE THEIR ILLICIT WEALTH! AND THE PEOPLE ARE ANGRY, VERY ANGRY, AND ARE DEMANDING REVERSAL OF THE NON-TRANSPARENT DEAL! Show me a Nigerian politician from 1999 till date, not puffed up for occupying transient position of office and authority having accumulated illegal lucre and illicit financial gains created through various loopholes in the military-crafted Constitution of the nation’s capitalist Presidential system of government which is expensive, wasteful and prodigious!


Check out the convictions of high-profile cases won in the courts and you will not be surprised to find scores of former GOVERNORS/POLITICAL APPOINTEES in the various Correctional Institutions in spite of long delays in jurisprudence which must fulfil the constitutional grace of “suspects being innocent until proven guilty” by competent courts of lawful jurisdiction! The anti-corruption war score-card released by the Minister of Justice and Attorney General, on Friday, 20th December, 2019, was quite impressive: 1,636 convictions including FOUR ex-Governors in prison, while 22 other governors are also under investigation for corruption!


SUGAR AND HONEY POLITICS IN NIGERIA!
Have we not consistently and persistently shouted to the whole world that Nigerian politics can be likened to SUGAR/HONEY that attract multitude of ants and flies because of their sweetened ingredients? WHY DID THE SOLDIERS OPT FOR THE PRESIDENTIAL SYSTEM AND THE SELF-ACCLAIMED DEMOCRATS WHO TOOK OVER FAIL TO CHANGE THE SYSTEM UNTIL NOW, 1999-2019? Why must Nigeria maintain a BI-CAMERAL Parliamentary arrangement which gulps almost half of every annual budget appropriations in CONCURRENT EXPENDITURE into to the bellies of those GLUTTONS?
Was it not high time we dispensed with 109 SENATORS and reduce the REPRESENTATIVES TO AN AFFORDABLE FIGURE OF 74 on part-time in this age of super Information Communication Technology (ICT)? How could a country which was battered through a self-inflicted “Biafra” 30-month Civil War (1967-1970), and was immersed in military dictatorship for almost 30 years, opt for the luxurious administration of reckless affluence that satiates only the politicians in the chaotic midst of a scotched/dry land which badly needed showers of economic blessings to comfort a people thirsty for better life and basic amenities of life? And why had the politicians who took over the mantle of leadership from 1999-2019, found it very difficult to draft a brand new people-oriented/friendly Constitution that would ensure prudent management of scarce resources, suitable to deliver dividends of democracy to the masses, instead of a “prodigious” (wasteful), presidential system which recklessly institutionalized corruption.

The psyche of the already traumatized poor Nigerians because of the unacceptable disparity of life between the insensitive politicians who daily flaunt the illicit wealth stolen from the common wealth unabashedly, should not be further bastardized by PLOUGHING N37 BILLION TO RENOVATE THE WALLS OF THEIR POSH OFFICES AND CHAMBERS INSTEAD OF RENOVATING THE SOULS OF THE TALAKAWAS WITH: Modern Health care facilities, Decent Houses to accommodate their families, Provide millions of employment opportunities for the jobless youths, women and able-bodied adults, Guarantee Free and compulsory education for all street children, Potable water in every home, Electricity power to boost the economy etc, etc.


PRESIDENT BUHARI SHOULD PROVE TO BE THE TRUE GAME-CHANGER!
During the recently-launched National Security Strategy Road Map,(3rd December, 2019), held at the State House, Abuja, National Security Adviser (NSA), Mohammad Babagana Monguno, described the Almajiri System prevalent in the North as a ”time bomb” but comforted his audience and Nigerians that a comprehensive approach had been devised in the document to address the ugly trend!

In an overview on the feasibility of the working document, he expressed genuine concerns that the out-dated system of education whose graduates constitute the bulk of about 10.5 million out-of-school street children in Nigeria, should challenge the nonchalant attitude of governments at all levels to redress the dangerous trend and assured that the newly-reviewed security strategy would take care of NOT only the nagging issue but also address POVERTY AND HEALTH CARE DELIVERY SYSTEM across the nation!

President Buhari promised in October 2019, to take 100 million Nigerians out of POVERTY IN TEN YEARS, but most people across the divide believed; that was “a tall order”, considering many militating -socio-economic factors – including but not limited to, regular deficit budgeting/budget padding, external borrowings/debt-servicing – but We believe it is achievable through frugal expenditures!


PRESIDENT BUHARI COULD NOT HAVE APPROVED N37BILLION NAIRA TO RENOVATE NASS WALLS? OR DID HE? HE MUST SPEAK OUT NOW!
The President was alleged to have approved the controversial N37 billion naira (US $100million dollars), to renovate the National Assembly Complex, which was initially constructed at a cost of N7 Billion naira in 1999! On Monday 16th December, 2019, a day before President Buhari signed into law the 2020 Budget, an excited Senate President, Ahmed Lawan, hinted that: “Mr Buhari approved the amount (N37billion), after lawmakers met with him to explain the poor condition of the legislature building in Abuja.
Between 2013 and 2017, the sum of N41.27,440 billion was approved by Federal Executive Council (FEC), for construction of Phase III Part III of NASS and upgrading of the two chambers and purchase of security equipment. Also in the twilight of President Buhari’s first term, the following monies: N874,000, N1,032 and N820,000 were disbursed to carry out sundry renovation contracts ranging from “Painting of Committee Rooms; Replacement of Address System in the Committee Room, to Supply and Installation of E-Parliament Software/Hardware etc which reeked of duplication, inflation/outrageous procurements and contract fraud!
Why is NASS building renovation a PRIORITY when the nation is burdened with so much DEBT? All of the above-listed expenditure totalling N3.4billion, was said to be balance of the controversial N10billion naira that former Minister of Finance, ‘Kemi Adeosun illegally released to the National Assembly! The sum of N6.6billion was allegedly spent on exotic cars by the legislators, according to a report released in 2018, s by the International Centre for Investigative Reporting, as published by Premium Times of 27th April, 2018 and 18th December, 2019, respectively. WE ARE NOT AWARE THAT THE PRESIDENCY HAS DENIED THIS DAMNING REPORT!


IS THE 9TH NASS A RUBBER STAMP? NO!
Whoever said that the Senate President and NASS were “RUBBER STAMP” to all Executive requests got it very wrong! The following activities before the D Day, 17th December, 2019, which debuted both the President’s 77th birthday and signing of the 2020 Budget into law should prove our point. President Buhari submitted the year 2020 Budget proposals totalling a sum of N10.3 trillion to a joint National Assembly (NASS), in September, 2019. The Senate jacked it up from N10.33 to N10.6 trillion with (N63.9 billion), which included the N37 billion for renovation of WALLS, surreptitiously inserted and the President could not withhold his assent to avoid the new Budget cycle period of January to December promised by Lawan and company from derailing! Has the crime of budget padding (which legislators always denied), not been committed by these 2019, “LEGISLATORS” again? Who are they representing, their pockets and families or “WE THE PEOPLE......” to whom they should be subservient? According to Lawan, FCT would carry out renovation through the FCDA; – But who will carry out the OVERSIGHT DUTY, where legislators have been alleged to regularly collect heavy BRIBES in other to look the other way? And the legislators are shamelessly defending their action for inserting the controversial amount in spite of negative foreign assessments with regards to Nigeria’s ratings as the nation with the worst index in corruption, poverty, under development, illiteracy, insecurity, human rights abuse, etc, etc!


INTERNATIONAL CENTRE FOR INVESTIGATIVE REPORTING SAYS N37BILLON NAIRA COULD BE BETTER UTILIZED AS FOLLOWS:
(1)Two Primary Health Centres each will be built across the 774 LGAs for N24.77billion at N16million naira each! (2) Twenty-one (21), Federal Teaching Hospitals will be equipped with Linear Radiotherapy Machines, for CANCER treatment (which are virtually non-existent compared to Nigeria’s population), for about N9.6 billion! Only FOUR tertiary hospitals are equipped!
The total cost of the above is N33.83 billion, leaving a balance of N3.17billon which can be ploughed into the Social Intervention Programme (SIP), to assist Small and Medium Scale entrepreneurs (SMSEs); At N500,000 NAIRA each, 834 beneficiaries will quit the labour market and at N250,000 each, 1.068, would have been established! THE APPROPRIATION OF N37BILLION NAIRA FOR THE UMPTEENTH RENOVATION OF NASS IS ANATHEMA – A MISNOMER WHICH MUST BE CANCELLED AND RE-ALLOCATED TO ALLEVIATE POVERTY!
Senator Ahmed Lawan who had been a legislator since 1999, should know better!

“There is a way that seemeth right unto a man; but the end thereof are the ways of death.” (Proverbs. 16:25). Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year to our highly-esteemed readers and followers.


I am, yours sincerely, Dr. David B.A. Olufon. 08130669886, 08098194390. 08080243066. G-mail- dvdolufon@gmail.com.

Well said

When you have a corrupt dullard as President... Approving billions to share by the thieving class becomes a norm. ...

Buhari is evil personified and those who support him are worse than Ebola