Lawmaker Laments Poverty Amidst Plenty

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by Ahamefula Ogbu,

A member of the House of Representatives, Hon. Usman Bugage, has said the rising profile of the country's revenue does not reflect on the people's living standard, noting that it was very difficult to explain how the oil money was being applied.

Bugage, who spoke in Abuja yesterday at the opening ceremony of a conference tagged: "Nigeria's War Against Corruption in Myth or Reality," said Nigeria could not justify her huge revenue from oil in the face of poverty in the land, more so when there was no checks and balances in the way the revenue was being applied as President Olusegun Obasanjo is also the Minister of Petroleum.

Bugaje said since the inception of the democratic dispensation, it has been impossible to check the books of Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) because the executive refuses to allow the oversight of the corporation, adding that such could not augur well for the anti-corruption fight.

For a successful fight against corruption which he admitted has ravaged the country, Bugaje submitted that there must be a synergy between the three tiers and three arms of government on whose shoulders the application of the resources of the nation rests. He added that the nation stood a chance of catching up with its peers who are decades ahead if it takes the fight against corruption seriously.

He noted that the near absolute control of the executive arm of government has on anti-corruption agencies and the media was imbuing it with the ability to pick and choose what and who to fight.

"For example, we hear about other ministries and see their memos come to council, but we don't seem to hear anything on the Ministry of Petroleum Resources which the President has held close to his chest for six years running. We have not heard any special memo from this special ministry coming to council in these six years, nor has any parliamentary committee succeeded in carrying out its oversight function successfully.

"Members of the Appropriations Committee would recall the difficulty they face in establishing beyond reasonable doubts the exact revenue from the sales of crude oil; members of finance committee are still waiting to be told what exactly happened in the use of the revenue from excess crude to pay off 2004 budget deficits. Where is transparency? Where is accountability? Where is due process," he said

In a paper by Professor Attahiru Jegga of the Department of Political Science, Bayero University, Kano titled, "The Fight Against Corruption and Democratisation in Nigeria: How Little, How Late? he noted that one of the challenging tasks of democrats in periods of transition was to sift the good from the bad and to apply the good for greater benefit of the majority.

"One of the challenging tasks for democrats in periods of transition to democratic rule is associated with identifying positive gains and separating them from Negative tendencies, and then organizing effectively to prevent negative tendencies and ensure greater and more positive gains. That is how credible democratic consolidation comes about; through positive issues based coalitions and alliances of democracy inclined civil society groups", he noted.

He said that there was need for the civil society groups to keep the pressure on governments to focus on what should benefit the majority but regretted that the group in Nigeria was lagging behind in this regard.