From Priscilla Ediare, Ado-Ekiti
As Nigerians mark the 2025 Democracy Day, a Development Expert, Engr. Michael Ale, has called on President Bola Tinubu to be more committed to improving the welfare of Nigerians.
Ale, who lauded President Tinubu’s initiative in ensuring that there was sufficient funding for his administration with the removal of the fuel subsidy, said his administration should also provide enabling environment for Nigerians to thrive.
He also called on the Governors of the 36 states of the federation to use the huge federal allocations to their states to meet the basic needs of the people and provide good governance to the people of their respective states.
He made these remarks in a statement made available to newsmen on Thursday, in commemoration of this year’s Democracy Day celebration.
Ale said, “Without the adequate provision of infrastructures there is no government. You would notice that President Bola Tinubu began his administration on a note of ensuring that there is enough money to run his government. He removed the fuel subsidy and that allows for enough funds available for managing his government. The Federal allocations are now very huge for each state and you don’t see our governors going into unnecessary wars with each other. The era of using a governor to fight another is over now. Everyone of them concentrates on how to manage the huge resources coming to his state properly and ensure good government and peaceful coexistence.”
He charged the federal government to provide more enabling environment, stressing it is important for Nigeria’s development, “Actually, we now have the money but the pertinent question to urgently ask is, has this huge money translated to meaningful growth and progress for the people? Do our children enjoy good education at very low rate, social infrastructures and more importantly employments?
“The paramount thing for any government of any nation to do for its citizens is to provide enabling environment for them to thrive in all ramifications. Enabling environment to do business and grow healthily, enabling environment to get massive employment etc. This is what government in the white man’s land do that makes things to work there. We who are into entrepreneurship and provide jobs, do we have an enabling environment to do such business without fear that policy inadequacies may disrupt our businesses?
“In abroad for example, people there are made to pay taxes on virtually every utility, and there is a level playing ground for all to participate in the socio-economic activities of their countries. There is massive and adequate provision of social infrastructures, food, security and jobs and that makes things easy for all and allows progress to thrive.
Over there, leaders do not lionise themselves over the structures or their people. You hardly identify who is at the helms of affairs because the system works. Unlike here, where our leaders are more popular than the social infrastructures they ought to provide for the benefit of the people.
” I admire our dear governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State because he is a leader who has what it takes to turn things around. What he is concentrating on now is sustaining the legacies he had built for the growth and development of the state. This is possible because he has built enduring legacies in terms of developing Oyo State so, he is sustaining those legacies now. Sometimes, l like to advise other governors to learn how to properly develop their states like Gov. Makinde is doing in Oyo. Unemployment is a huge challenge in this country and the government must urgently tackle it.”
He equally urged citizens to pay their taxes so that there would be sufficient funds for government at all levels to provide social infrastructures and other dividends of democracy. He said this is an obligation the people must fulfill first and then challenge their Representatives at all levels of government to deliver dividends of democracy.
“Payment of tax will ensure that the government has the wherewithal to lead properly and provide social infrastructures needed by the masses for growth and development. If a local government chairman is given the autonomy to concentrate on managing the resources within his local area and the people in that locality pay their taxes as at when due. The chairman would have enough resources to provide social infrastructures for the people.
This is what happened largely in Lagos where you could see the budget of a single LGA outweighing more than that of a state in Nigeria.”
He advised the Nigerian government to provide leadership training for youths in the country in order to ensure the nation has a better future.
“I also want to advise the government to provide a compulsory leadership training for our youths. This idea came out of a dream I had today. We must ensure that our youths of today are properly trained in leadership so that they would lead aright when they eventually take over from the present crop of leaders. This to me is the only way our future can be brighter. We can solve all our problems with good governance. Insecurity and poor economy, all these could be tackled with good governance.”
