AN OPEN LETTER TO PRESIDENT MOHAMMADU BUHARI GCFR

By KENKWO, KESAANDU KINGSLEY

Dear Mr. President,

RE: 2020 REVISED BUDGET

On Tuesday, the 8th day of October, 2019, you submitted your first budget to the joint session of the 9th National Assembly.
I was glad you tagged it, 'Budget of Sustaining Growth and Job Creation' which to a reasonable extent made me confident that things will work again.
First, i wish to express my disappointment towards the position of Education, Agriculture and Health in the 2020 budget as regards the funds allocated to these critical sectors compared to that, for the renovation of the National Assembly complex. This is core misplacement of priority.

It was so disheartening that while most Nigerians complain on your lack of interest on critical sector like Health as shown in the budget, the Covid-19 pandemic struck the world and Nigeria was not left out. It was as if all of us who tried to call you to order were Nostradamus, as we foresaw what might happen in future.
We appreciate the fall in oil price as a result of some global oil politics and the unfortunate Covid-19 pandemic. As expected, the value of dollar against naira rose and we saw the fall of oil price from your initial budget of $57 per barrel to $30 barrel. I and many reasonable Nigerians, quite understand that there shall be some level of adjustments in the budget. However, we thought and believed that it would change your scale of preference as Health, Education and Agricultural sectors shall be topmost and given priority, considering the reality on ground.

Surprisingly, in the 2020 revised budget proposal, while the National Assembly complex renovation budget was reduced to N27.7bn (a reduction of 25.1 per cent), the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF), which is meant to cater for all the primary healthcare centres across the 774 local government areas in the country, was significantly reduced by N44.4bn to N25.5bn, a decrease of more than 42.5 per cent. This clearly shows that you do not understand what direction the world is going as at today. It is also an indication that your advisers are not on ground with extent of decay in certain critical sectors of our economy like the Heath, which has manifested in the way we are fighting the dreaded Corona Virus, that is ravaging our nation today.

Your Excellency, as at today, according to the NCDC Twitter account, Nigeria has recorded 11166 cases with 315 deaths.
It baffles me tremendously how you gave priority to the renovation of the National Assembly complex as against the Education and Health of your people. This can not only be described as unfortunate but also high level of insensitive to the yearnings and aspirations of the people.

All over the world, countries are voting so much in their Health sector so as to properly guide their citizens because when wealth is lost, nothing is lost but when health is lost, something great if not everything is lost.

Your Excellency, Nigeria for now, is the only country we can call our own and we must do everything within our capacity to make it better. My fear is that, if the next generation meets this country like this, our souls may not rest in peace as they will never stop cursing us for making Nigeria unhabitable for them. If you carefully listen to the submissions of most Nigerians on the various electronic, print and social media platforms, you will understand that you are not on the right path as regards this 2020 budget and its fund allocations.

Sir, what matters most is the commendation you get from the common Nigerians whom you swore to protect and not these potbellied men who do not mean well for you, your administration and the country at large through their sycophantic lifestyle and advises.
Like other countries of the world, post Covid-19 era will be highly terrible as there will be scarcity of food. It is therefore necessary that Agriculture , Health and Education should be given priority. It is on this, that I make the following recommendations to you.

1) Have a total review of the budget and ensure that sectors like Health, Education and Agriculture are given the most attention as they will be topmost on your scale of preference.
2) Suspend the renovation of the National Assembly complex for 2022 budget.
3) Immediately, share the 27.7bn from the proposed renovation of the National Assembly complex amongst the three critical sectors of Health, Education and Agriculture, respectively.
4)Personally monitor the implementation of budget in these three critical sectors aforementioned so as to achieve the desired result of making Nigerians comfortable.

Your Excellency, despite all economic paper works that are unrealistic on ground, the essence of the budget annually, is to meet the numerous challenges of Nigerians to a reasonable cum huge extent.
If the common citizens die as a result of poor medical care, illiteracy and hunger, what will be the essence of the NASS building?
If we have functional health centers across the 774 local government areas of the federation, Nigerians shall never forget you. If our primary, secondary and tertiary institutions are given required attentions, posterity shall forever judge you right. If there is sufficient food supply in the country, thereby saying goodbye to hunger, your name shall be forever immortalized.

My dear President, it is therefore with a sincere heart for the good, growth and development of Nigeria, that I humbly send you this letter, hoping that out of your fraternal love for
Nigerians, will see reasons with me to implement the above recommendations.
Always remember that you are occupying the highest position of the land and it will be by virtue of your last tenure, your last opportunity to write your name in gold in the sands of time.
Kindly listen to the voice of reason.

Making Nigeria Great Again Is Our Collective Responsibility.


Kenkwo, Kesaandu Kingsley (KKK)
President, Ihitte/Uboma Youth Forum.
Thursday, June 4, 2020