The morning after inaugurations

Finally the day of inauguration has come and gone. What we are waiting for is the inauguration of the various Houses of Assembly. And till then it will be difficult to fully understand the line the new administration will toe. Be that as it may, it is refreshing even more than the elections themselves that at least the swearing in of a new administration as epitomized by the new president and vice president has come in a very simple way.

This was without rancor or pressure. This was without blood or bitterness (at least publicly). This definitely has confirmed the obvious truth that our democracy is headed in only one direction- the good direction! Our hope is that things continue this way till such a time in future when the major reason for electing anyone into political leadership will be ability, capacity and antecedence. To be sure, the stakes are high. From north to south; east to west the challenges and expectations are the same. The people of Nigeria are very expectant. They truly want to see a new way of doing things because they trust that the elected persons this term must be people who are concerned genuinely about the progress of society. Because President Muhammadu Buhari and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo are seen as morally upright, genuine patriots, and as people that have been tested and confirmed, Nigerians believe that the mantra of their campaign which was anchored on change will be the bastion of their administration. As such the people are not looking forward to any excuses. With speech that captured the hope of Nigerian, president Buhari indeed animated not a few Nigerians when he stated: “I belong to everyone, but I belong to no one”. This statement as profound as it is will be the standard for which his administration will be judged. It could mean several things to several people. Yet in all, it brings positivity to his new regime. And the Nigerian people appear to identify with those words. For they do not want a presidency that is held hostage by special interest and cabal. They rather want a presidency that is either held hostage by the whole of the people of Nigeria or the one that refuses to be held up by anyone. bottomline the people wants a president of their own, a president that will forfeit anything to be for the people than be for a particular group or part of a group-be they oil cabal or their generator counterpart. Between the inauguration and the time of going to press, governors and their deputies in various states have been making statements. They have been making comments and announcing officials. The best time to know how far a regime will go is by the kind of people they appoint at this early stage. The states must realize that with the outstanding salaries left unpaid by predecessors there are a lot of works to be done. There are a lot of grounds to be covered. As we look forward to the proclamation of the National Assembly this week, it is our hope that by then the Buhari regime must have concluded all its consultations so that they will hit the ground running with submission of ministerial list which we believe in keeping with departure from the past, portfolios should be attached to every nominee to make senatorial screening less cumbersome. It will also make screening a lot more professional and interesting because nominees will be screened on the rightful ministry he/she is to be posted. This makes it easier for more concise questioning and response. A situation where a thoroughbred economist is posted to power ministry whereas an engineer is instead posted to youth development is antithetical to proper national development. It's actually a joke. The pet of our practice that precludes ministerial nominees from attaching portfolios should be jettisoned. And for the senate, it should return the list to the president if the portfolios are not attached. In the same vein, the charade of “bow and go” reserved for former legislators must not be practiced again. It is an embarrassing to the Nigerian state. While the people expect so much from the new administration, it is important for that hope to be matched with patience. The country is in dire situation. It will take a time or two to have a full grip. But surely the people must be vigilant to reject any policy that does not suit them or any inaction that will hut our national pride.