LANDMARK ACHIEVEMENTS IN TWELVE YEARS OF DEMOCRACY IN NIGERIA

BY

AUSTEEN ELEWODALU

 

Nigeria is celebrating 12 years of the return to democratic rule in the country. The week-long activities lined up to commemorate the event climax on Sunday May 29 when Dr. Goodluck Jonathan is expected to be inaugurated as President.

On May 29, 1999, the military government led by General Abdulsalami Abubakar handed over power to a democratically elected civilian government headed by Chief Olusegun Obasanjo. Since then, 29th May of every year has been declared work-free day to commemorate the return of democratic governance to the most populous black nation in the world.

Indeed, Nigeria has every reason to roll out the drums to celebrate. A country consigned to a pariah status and suspended from the Commonwealth of Nations over its gross violation of democratic principles, has cause to celebrate its return to the warm embrace of the international community. Nigeria has since moved from a pariah State in 1999 to a major player not only at the regional and continental levels but also on the global stage.

Nigeria is celebrating political stability. The last 12 years is the longest the country has ever been under a democracy. Many more years have been spent under military dictatorship than in democratic rule since independence from Britain in 1960. The transfer of power from one civilian government to another in 2007, the first time ever in the history of Nigeria is an achievement worth celebrating.

 

Nigeria has also recorded commendable strides on the economic front. It embarked on an elaborate banking reform which has not only restored the confidence of the banking public but also attracted accolades from within and outside Nigeria.

The restoration of peace and normalcy to the restive Niger-Delta region where, for decades, violence, kidnapping and disruption of oil production had reigned supreme is a phenomenal achievement since Nigeria’s return to democratic governance.

Government’s offer of amnesty to repentant militants in the region in which an unprecedented number of weapons were surrendered by the ex militants has not only brought peace back to the area but also brought about resumption of oil production in full scale, which translates to increased foreign revenue earnings for the country.

Besides, scores of beneficiaries of the amnesty programme are currently undergoing training abroad in various fields ranging from aircraft piloting to marine engineering, pipeline maintenance and crane operation.

No doubt the knowledge and skills acquired during these training programmes, and the subsequent impartation to other trainees, will contribute significantly to further growth and development of Nigeria.

The last 12 years have seen the Nigerian government tackling a myriad of challenges including electricity supply, infrastructural decay, corruption, electoral reform, trafficking in illicit dugs and substances, advance fee fraud and many more. The country has made commendable progress in addressing these challenges. 

The April 2011 general elections will go down in history as the most credible election ever conducted in Nigeria’s 50 years of existence. The election which was adjudged free and fair by domestic and international observers has become the parameter by which future elections in Nigeria and indeed Africa could be measured.

Dr. Goodluck Jonathan who became President on the death of President Umar Musa YarÁdua last year won last month’s Presidential election on the platform of the People’s Democratic Party, and will be inaugurated tomorrow, the 29th of May, which has been adopted as Democracy Day.

Expectations of the Nigerian people and the international community are very high that Jonathan must perform. He cannot afford not to deliver.

He is expected to deliver on his promise to provide uninterrupted electricity supply, jobs for the unemployed, affordable housing for the people, revive the rail system, good roads, security of life and property as well as guarantee food security.

As Goodluck Jonathan gets ready to be inaugurated as President for a four-year term, one issue that must be uppermost in his mind is that he must leave Nigeria and Nigerians better off at the end of his tenure.

 

Broadcast on Thursday May 28, 2011

 

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