Mr President – it’s all about the confidence

By now you would have come to the painful realisation that running Nigeria is not an emilokan thing. Parading a score card that is worse than my score card when I was kicked out of Command has put you in a very delicate position. Nigeria has happened to you.

With runaway inflation crossing the 29.9% mark, Naira on a free fall, crossing N1, 500 to the dollar, food insecurity, violence all over, lack of cohesion in government policy, unemployment at its highest, poverty index at record levels, “even you sef go don tire”.

What is needed now is an immediate recalibration. When a car is overheating, you stop, switch off the engine and allow it cool before you start pouring water and get help

If not, the engine blows up and the car is messed up. Nigeria is over heating from pressure, we have started seeing pockets of demonstrations, a State Governor has announced food blockades, the sultan have warned you, I have seen reports that IBB has also warned you, NLC is gearing up for another round, seeking wage increases and all of that.

You are really in big trouble. What has saved Nigeria so far has been the informal market that carries over 60% of the economy. That market is not tied to mainstream financial and fiscal system and as such immune to the rascality of the system and ensuring stability in the polity

But your policies have begun to drive the middle class into that market there by dislocating it and pushing in instability. What I mean is that people are now leaving Banana Island to go buy Rice in Mile 12, thereby driving up prices there to the point that the normal man can no longer afford

A bag of rice is over N70, 000. Same for housing, health, and other such essentials. You cannot get a decent flat in yaba for less than N5m cos people are relocating from the island to the mainland and this is amongst others making the majority of retail people restive.

Mr President you need to just say stop. Beg Nigerians to give you 2 days to go on a national retreat with your team and recalibrate and come back with a more serious approach to governance.

You have to as a matter of urgency, face insecurity, food and the markets – FX. This should be your tripod approach to governance within the next six months.

I suggest you move Wike to the Ministry of defence. Much as the man is an anomaly, he sure has the decisiveness and boldness to move the laid-back Generals or kick them out. You see how his decisiveness have led to the cracking of the kidnapping siege in Abuja.

Secondly revamp your communications team. Between Aguri and Onanuga you have a mix of inexperience and dated strategies. All the leakages are not being countered strategically and the narrative being sold by your people is combative at best and not working.

Your man in Solid Minerals is out of his depth. Bring him back to his area of competence if at all and let him take charge of your communications. Your image is being battered daily and you are not fighting back well.

You need to be able to communicate better with the people, seek their support and be able to mobilize critical stakeholder groups as you forge ahead.

Your monetary and fiscal team is also suffering as you can see from the results so far. Is it until we hit N5, 000 that you will do something?

Sweep clean the team and bring in people with international depth, that can start negotiations and engagements on debt freeze, grants and long-term loans to calm the markets.

You need to be sure footed to bring back confidence. What you face now is a loss of confidence and that is why people are keeping cash under their beds and not releasing Forex to be sold.

If its true that your Governors are changing FAAC to forex, what are you doing about it. Obasanjo would have called a town Hall meeting and in the full glare of Nigerians reprimanded them and put a performance matrix in place to ensure release of future funds based on certain set criteria since he cannot arrest them as a result of their immunity.

Please as a matter of urgency begin the process of bringing people like Donald Duke, Jallo Waziri, Bimbo Ashiru, Akinwunmi Ambode, that Inec chairman before this one, Mustafa Chike Obi, Ezekwesili, Fola Adeola and the rest into your government.

Yes, we must recycle experience and depth. This is no time to learn on the job. They must be brought in as a team and given extensive powers to work.

An urgent meeting of the Board and Management of the Fugaz that is the top five Banks must be held in full public glare. Their support and huge sacrifice must be requested immediately.

A council of state meeting also must be held in full glare of the public and experience and advice from people like Obj who should really be your go to man right now be sought.

Obj is the greatest living modern day president. He handled the economy right. Instilled reforms and attracted the best minds and very importantly gave them the space to operate.

The telecommunications, pensions and banking reforms threw up a new middle class, opened up the economy and put us on the path of growth.

Mr President an exhaustive cabinet reshuffle is needed now – Finance, Solid Mineral, Health, trade and investments must be touched. Very critically, they must be touched.

Your chief of staff must have a lower profile or be removed. His activities run counter to the plan being proposed in this write up. Infact, I think a steady hand like Fashola must be brought back.

You need an expansive approach towards governance. You must reach out to all critical stakeholder groups in the country including Peter Obi and Atiku in a bid to build cohesion as you push towards a national reawakening.

The National Assembly must also be reigned in. They must be whipped in line to understand what exactly is expected of them.

Cost of governance must be reduced by over 50%, not just the pyrrhic reduction in travel mates, but a concise and comprehensive look at the total cost of running the government, especially at both the executive and legislative arms, with a view to bringing it all down.

Lastly, the question to be asked Mr President do you even have the political will to carry out all of these reforms and more?

The answer my oga is buried in you.

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