Musa Balarabe
A
Second Republic governor of Kaduna State, Alhaji Balarabe Musa, has
said that the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari is getting it
right in the fight against corruption, but not on other aspects of the
economy.
Musa said while the administration of
Buhari had shown promising beginnings in its anti-corruption campaign,
it was only showing glimpses of change in other aspects of the national
life such as electricity, supply of petroleum products and national
security.
In a telephone interview with our
correspondent on Friday, Musa said there was no certainty that these
glimpses of change would be sustained by the government.
He
said, “The new government is doing the right thing in the area of
anti-corruption, but only in that area. In any other area, even if there
is any improvement, it is just a glimpse; there is no certainty that it
would be sustained. It is not a question of doing more; they are not
doing anything reliable.
“I think in the area of fighting
corruption and the stealing of resources, we have seen promising
beginnings. In particular, the establishment of an anti-corruption
committee made up of, on the face of it, very responsible people to
advise the President on this anti-corruption campaign. This is admirable
and commendable, and it would lead to success. In addition, there is
the strengthening of this also by the promise of the President that an
anti-corruption court would be established to deal with all cases of
corruption. These are commendable, and it is a good direction towards
restoring sanity in this country. If it is followed as promised, I think
something would be achieved.
“But in all other cases, it is just
marginal. For instance, power. In the past one week, power has been
steady in the area I live. Two weeks ago, there were power cuts, at
least, 10 times a day. So, yes, we are seeing glimpses of improvement,
but even during (the administration of former president Goodluck
Jonathan, we had this glimpse. There is also improvement in the supply
of petroleum products, but we hope these improvements can be sustained.
But in the case of the anti-corruption campaign, I think it is more than
glimpse, but it is reality that something would be done.”
In the same vein, he said that privatisation was hurting the country’s economy more than it was benefitting it.
Musa said, “Privatisation is not good
for the economy. Not only privatisation, but a system and leadership
based on self-interest first, then public interest second; a system
based on the leading role of the private sector in the economy. These
are not good for the country. We should go back to the system based on
public interest first, then enlightened self-interest second. When I say
enlightened self-interest, I mean self-interest that takes into account
collective interest, on the understanding that it is the collective
interest that can guarantee even individual interests, however narrow it
is. If there is no collective interest, then there will not be able to
guarantee security and other things.
He also decried the situation where some state governments owed their workers months of salaries and wages.
He said, “It is just to show the level
of corruption, stealing and rot in this country. For example, many state
governments had, for months, been unable to pay the salaries and wages
of workers. I blame this on corruption. This corruption arises from the
leading role of the private sector in the economy, which is based on
selfish interests first. We never had a situation where a government at
any level was unable to pay wages of their workers during colonial times
and in the First Republic. The first time in the history of Nigeria we
heard that a state government was unable to pay salaries of its workers
was during the Second Republic, and the first state was Benue state. And
we were shocked then. That was the beginning of all this nonsense we
are experiencing today.
“So, it is not a question of private or
public sector; the issue is a question of the leading role, on which the
system and leadership are based. During colonial times and the First
Republic, government, not private sector, played a leading role, and the
system and leadership were based on public interest first, enlightened
self-interest second, unlike today. That was why we didn’t have this
level of stealing and corruption in both the public and the private
sectors, and the growth of the economy was steady. The purpose of
government is the welfare and security of the people. They (government)
should go back to the system whereby the state (the government) plays
the leading role in the economy to ensure peace, equality, dignity of
the human person and progressive even development of the country
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