Why Nigeria needs to focus more on development, by Osomo

Chief Mobolaji Osomo, an elder states-woman was a former Minister of Establishment, under the military, she also became a Minister for Housing and Urban Planning under the democratic government of President Olusegun Obasanjo. The woman who was Commissioner for Industries in the late Pa Adekunle Ajasin in Ondo State under whose leadership six industries were established in the state, last Thursday turned 80 years. During the occasion, which she marked modestly according to her, in reflection of the mood of the nation, she took time off to speak with ABIODUN FANORO

Impression about Nigeria
There is no doubt that we have made some giant strides, especially after independence, but as it is today, we still need to focus more on the development of the country, especially the economy and infrastructure. We have gone wrong in certain areas because we abandoned the structure we should have adopted to give development and social welfare services to the people, especially in the last seven to eight years. Some of us are not comfortable that many people in the country go hungry day and night, there is no power supply, so many things have gone wrong, which we have to look at and bend down to buckle our shoes and readjust.

It is true that some of us are very lucky because we can maintain a balance, but there are so many people that do not have this kind of opportunity. These people would naturally agitate because they have right to life and they would want to let government know that they are entitled to something from it. I think the government should take a better look at the country and examine what could be done for every Nigerian.

Clamour for restructuring of the country
There are agitations, yes and there is no doubt all those areas really need development. Take the case of even Port Harcourt area. The first time I got to Port Harcourt as a Minister and I looked at the port, I was shocked and horrified, I said to myself, is it the port? And people said yes. I felt that those areas are issues that the country has to deal with.

At the level of our development, I am very sad to know that, you have people who have more than they need and yet there are several millions over there living in penury. There is bound to be agitations from people who have been deprived their means of livelihood. So, the welfare aspect of the country must be re-examined, people must be entitled to something. If money is coming from oil, it must meet the need of the people resident there, it must also touch the lives of other poor Nigerian. You are not touching their lives by giving subsidy. The money should go to infrastructure, which will benefit every Nigerian.

Agitation in the Niger Delta is justified
Yes it is, it is not even the people of Niger Delta alone that have reason to agitate, people in every part of the country can agitate for one thing or the other. Every Nigerian believes that he is not being fairly treated. Look at the Fulani cattle-rearers all the way from Sokoto, if you examine what they go through, I took the Nigerian map and study where they are trekking from to get to Ibadan, or Enugu passing the night inside the rain.

Can’t we sit down to map out how we rear our cows? Must cattle-rearers walk all the way from Sokoto to Lagos to bring cows. Definitely both the cows and the shepherds are going through so much stress, really we should examine the amount of stress every Nigerian is going through; and do something about it.

How resolve the problem of the Fulani herdsmen
They should have ranches as it is done in other civilized environment. For instance, in England, so many people rear cows, they don’t have to take them on a trek to London. They are done in their various localities. Why do they have to travel all the way from Sokoto to Lagos or to Ibadan before they can sell their cows? We need to examine our infrastructure and development.

Government anti-graft war
Government has to combat corruption; there is no doubt about it. The question however is what should we do to discourage people from going into corruption? When you bring in people who are penniless into government, or who have no hope, who just believe that if it is just for a few months they are in the office, they would take as much as possible and at the end of the day, they pack everything and the whole place is empty. Where do they carry the money? They carry it outside. The thief inside has carried it to the thief outside. And, at the end of the day, the money becomes what the lawyers call bona fi cantier ie. The money does not belong to them and it does not belong to the country it was taken to.

Yes it is, it is not even the people of Niger Delta alone that have reason to agitate, people in every part of the country can agitate for one thing or the other. Every Nigerian believes that he is not being fairly treated

The country has to devise a plan where the basic needs of everybody would be taken care of. For instance, if a man knows that at the age of 50 he would have a house to live in, that he doesn’t have to steal to take care of his wife and children, if he knows that his family would have access to health and his children access to education, that all these would be catered for by the government, then the issue of theft and its bigger brother would surely be reduced.

The fight against corruption should be continuous; recovery of government property should be total. If people steal money, take them to court, recover the money from them and use it for the development of the country, use infrastructure, there is no point hoarding it. The states will now come to demand that the money be shared then what happens to all the roads, to the dilapidated hospitals? The money must be used as seed money to make Nigeria a better place for the jobless; at least 50 per cent of the jobless could have jobs.

Adekunle Ajasin government’s in Ondo State, which you served as Commissioner for Industry was reputed to have industrialised the state; with a record of more six industries established. How was this feat achieved?
Our government under Papa Ajasin and Papa Obafemi Awolowo believed that there were certain problems, which must be solved. One of them is the creation of employment for the generality of those children that were being sent to school free of charge. If they went to school, come out and no employment, they would become another liability to the country. Among the industries we established were Oluwa Glass, Okitipupa, Ifon Ceramics, Ile-Oluji Cocoa Industries; each of them employed about four thousand workers, before they were moribund. All over the places we meant well. We wanted employment to be created for the people and we wanted to make our own marks. That was why the issue of taking money or taking bribes from investors by any of us was a crime. Our commitment is the provision of job.

Then it was considered insult to come and say we have 10 per cent for you. I remember telling so many of those foreigners who approached one with 10 per cent that oh I am the foolish one who takes 10 per cent and you take 90 pr cent. If you mean well you can keep talking but if you mean business you better go and do your job. The issue of bribe did not arise and those people really saw that we meant business. So they were able to prove that they were able to do whatever we gave them to do. They knew they wanted to build the factories, the industries. Germans came, Italians came and they took it as challenges that they can do it and we too wanted them to be done and they were done and the people were happy with us at the end of the day.

Could you share your experience on how you debated and arrived at the decision to embark on those lofty projects? Were you given free hands?
We were given free hands. People like late Professor Sam Aluko, the economist, was a member and an adviser to the government. There were also many professors from the then University of Ife, who were experts in their own field. I as the commissioner for industries, before I went to Ondo State, I had set up housing estates in Lagos.

I had known all the legal aspects of the thing. And so, people sat down to debate either contract or projects and Baba Ajasin himself as the watchdog, if you go and ask anybody for any gratification, before you know it, Baba Ajasin would call and say I have heard that you have been demanding for kick-back from some people, and if I hear that again, you are off. The watchdog was wonderful and everybody knew that if Baba knew that anyone was asking for bribes, he would lose his job.