Buhari’s ministerial appointment will enhance rapid development of Niger Delta – James

Bassey James, a cleric and head of a Pentecostal ministry is many things rolled into one. A political activist, public commentator, security expert and criminologist, he is also an educationist and an entrepreneur. He is the founder of Southern Atlantic Polytechnic, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.

A man with passion for the development of Nigeria, he told PATRICK OKOHUE in this interview why he is excited about the current Federal cabinet recently constituted by President Muhammadu Buhari and why he is in support of the recent ban on the importation of food into the country.

President Muhammadu Buhari only just appointed ministers and assigned portfolios, how will you assess the appointees viz-a-viz their assigned responsibilities and experiences?

I will give the President a good score for the appointments, he cannot be very perfect, but by my own calculation and assessment I will congratulate Nigerians, the President and the ministers. The positions are well fitted and the appointments in order, there may be minus here are there, but overall I think the President did well.

For instance, the Minister of Niger Delta, the former governor and distinguished Senator Godswill Obot Akpabio was given the Ministry of Niger Delta, also Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Festus Keyamo also given the Minister of State, these are two prominent Niger Deltans given the mandate to rehabilitate, reconstruct, rebuild and reposition Niger Delta.

Senator Akpabio is a former governor for eight years, former Commissioner and also a major stakeholder in Niger Delta affairs.

He understands the plight of the people, he knows about the issue of road network, the state of the roads in Rivers, in Akwa Ibom, in Cross River, in Delta, in Bayelsa, in Edo, he knows the needs of the people having governed the state that is a major stakeholder in Niger Delta, so I think he will do justice to the people of Niger Delta and the people of the Niger Delta should expect very high level of performance.

Secondly, the Minister of State, Niger Delta, Festus Keyamo is a known face in the Niger Delta and in the business of fighting for the masses, so this is an opportunity for him to put his feet in the sand of time and then look at the Minister of State, Petroleum, a core Niger Delta person, a former governor.

I think this is well arranged, for instance Cross River State has two ministers, I think the President has done well for the Niger Delta people including the South East, he has given them key offices, then in the North and the West, I think he has spread the appointments evenly and we cannot fault it.

But here and there, there may be some elements of criticism which is expected, but I give kudos to the President. But then, I challenge the ministers to put on their working shoes, not to spend too much time in their offices or seminars and conferences or receiving awards.

I think this is a period for every manner of awards to be discouraged, every manner of politics to be discouraged so that the people can concentrate on the issue of development, because we are in a very important time and season in this country.

The expectation of Nigerians from Buhari, the APC and the ministers including the governors of APC and PDP and APGA is very high, there has never been a time in the history of Nigeria that everybody is looking up to government as now, because the level of poverty,

the level of disconnect, the level of pains is so high and something has to be done, but thank God that the President has acted very promptly, I see a change, I see development that will be very unprecedented in the history of this country.

Even on their swearing in day, the President gave them a matching order to move into their offices and perform maximally for the benefit of the Nigerian people and I believe the ministers themselves are ready, from the statements that they have issued in the last few days I can see the eagerness, I can see the commitment and the loyalty and I can assure Nigerians that these ministers will perform to the satisfaction of the Nigerian people.

The President made a statement on the swearing in day that some people frown at, telling the Ministers that they must go through the Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari to reach him, do you think the Ministers need a go between to reach the President, if they are to perform maximally?

Even without the President say so, government procedure is clear. I have had access to a few people in government from 1999 to date.

The procedure is very simple, even if the President did not say it, the ministers themselves know, because most of them have been governors, ministers, senators, 99 percent of them have been in government.

They know that if you want to submit any letter to the governor you cannot submit to the governor directly, you have to go through the Chief of Staff to the governor, same thing to the President, even in the church, there must be a procedure, because the President himself is very busy with those things that affects the nation directly which he has to handle,

there are things that the Chief of Staff can handle, like correspondence, just like somebody wants to see the minister himself or herself, you cannot do anything in the ministry without the accounting officer, who is the Permanent Secretary. What the President said is a normal thing that should not throw up any controversy, to me he is in order.

So, you are saying it is the normal due process

It is the normal due process, it is not new, I don’t see anything new about it. The President does not sign letters, the governors does not sign letters, it has to go through certain process which in the case of the President and governor, the Chief of Staff, they coordinate the activities of the office.

Because the Chief of Staff knows when the President is free, knows the itenary of the President, he knows the pluses and minuses, so this is the best way to handle it, because there must be some elements of accountability.

Just before swearing in the ministers the President made public an order he has given to the Central Bank not to release forex for the importation of food items and many people are worried by this order, especially considering that this is a period that many farmers can no longer go to farm because of insecurity, what is your view of this order?

To me, that is one of the best statements that has emanated from the Presidency, we are depending too much on foreign foods, foreign products, foreign services and all other white related services that even technicians in Europe can come to Nigeria and become chief engineers. That is to tell you that we need to concentrate more on local production.

I have a polytechnic in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, Southern Atlantic Polytechnic and in my school we have acquired acres of land for agricultural demonstration and production, I also have a mini shoe factory where we produce shoes, now the President is saying instead of bringing foreign shoes you should patronize made in Nigeria shoes, instead of patronizing foreign rice you should buy grown in Nigeria rice.

Nigeria is fertile, Nigerians don’t need to import food, the cost of food importation, the manipulation, the intrigues where people use it to get foreign exchange and divert the money into something else, so the President is right and the Central Bank should implement that order 99.99 percent.

But I am afraid of the capacity of the Central Bank, because we expect that by now the Central Bank governor ought to have given a directive to commercial banks and I have said that over and over, that the banks should concentrate on local business people, create new entrepreneurs, support entrepreneurs and help Nigeria to develop.

For instance if you are importing agricultural materials and products, it is creating a disaster that can happen any time, I don’t think the President banned the importation of machinery and equipment, what the President banned is finished products.

Look at toothpaste, where is Lever brothers today, where is PZ Industries today, where is Thermacool, where is UTC, where is Kingsway, so many of these companies were like the engine that was regulating the economy of Nigeria.

Today in Apapa you cannot see any company manufacturing, if you go to Oshodi Apapa Expressway most of the company warehouses are occupied by Churches and Mosques, most of the business places are occupied by religious houses, so we need to look at the content and we need to look at Nigeria and we need to look at the population.

Between Lagos and Benin, the agricultural facilities is zero and I have raised this as an alarm, if there is a massive concentration of agricultural production and activities along that Benin-ore-Abeokuta road, with government taking over that area, creating farm settlement and farm centres, build schools in partnership with states, local government and Federal Government, you would have taken care of the problems of the Benin people, Ondo people, Ogun people and partly Lagos people.

The number of jobs you will create in agriculture alone can become like off takers of the unemployed youths in the unemployment market, but that is not happening. Between Akwa Ibom and Abia State we have thousands of acres of unproductive farms and bushes that is not being utilised, the same thing in the North and other parts of the South and the West.

So, the President is saying go back to the farm, but I want Mr. President to match that words with action, Customs should also take the words of the President and start implementing it, we may suffer for two, three, six months,

but if a Nigeria can go to the bank, maybe the Central Bank and get a N1million loan with minimal collateral and if 500,000 Nigerians can get agric loan, real agric loan not political loans, there will be transformation, the President’s order will be very effective, so I think that somebody must take drastic actions on such issues.

Quote

The positions are well fitted and the appointments in order, there may be minus here are there, but overall I think the President did well. For instance, the Minister of Niger Delta, the former governor and distinguished Senator Godswill Obot Akpabio was given the Ministry of Niger Delta, also Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Festus Keyamo also given the Minister of State, these are two prominent Niger Deltans given the mandate to rehabilitate, reconstruct, rebuild and reposition Niger Delta.