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My attention was drawn to a rather innocuous news item that announced
that the government of President Umar Yar’Adua has banned the serving of
foreign beverages at official functions and offices during the official
launch of the Made-In-Nigeria products campaign in Abuja!
Good news, I would say under normal circumstances, as the ban went
further to cover items such as tea, coffee, biscuits, fruit juices,
water and soft drinks.
VP Goodluck, on behalf of President UMYA, also announced that,
“Henceforth, all government contractors must give priority to the use
of Nigerian products whose quality is certified by relevant regulatory
agencies of government like Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) and NAFDAC.
“All uniforms and boots of the armed forces; Army, Navy, Air Force,
Police as well as para-military, Customs, Immigration, Prisons and Civil
Defence Corps, Road Safety, etc, must be sourced from Nigerian
manufacturers certified by SON”
Sterling words and vision you might say. He then went on to conclude,
“With a population of over 140 million people, Nigeria’s market is big
enough to sustain a bubbling domestic industrial sector if only
Nigerians look inwards at their local products.
“Unfortunately, many industries had to close shop due to lack of
patronage of their products by Nigerians…We must, therefore,
re-orientate ourselves to value what we produce in order to develop a
strong and virile industrial base…, appealed to the organised private
sector to demonstrate a high sense of consumer patriotism by following
the footsteps of the government in their procurement programmes.”
But a proper look at the utterances and the directive by fiat reveals a
lot of insincerity and a total lack of focus on the part of the
government. True, I was not at the event as I was neither invited nor
made aware of the occasion through any sustained campaign of
enlightenment through public media such as the radio so I cannot confirm
if the refreshments at the venue included refreshments such as fóóra,
burukutu, palm wine, kola nuts, akára, dódó ikiré, bóóli, épa
and gúgurú among others. Indeed, I cannot verify that ‘pió’
water in sachets were readily available at this launching, but who wants
to bet against the odds?
So, where do we start, when our leaders say “all government
contractors” and not they and all government agencies and
parastatals must give priority to the use of Nigerian products?
Why do we draw lines with “all uniforms and boots of the armed
forces; Army, Navy, Air Force, Police as well as para-military, Customs,
Immigration, Prisons and Civil Defence Corps, Road Safety, etc, must be
sourced from Nigerian manufacturers certified by SON” and skilfully
exclude those who should lead by examples such as the legislative houses
and other political institutions?
And, oh by the way, why do we not have government official cars on the
list of made in Nigeria goods to be sourced henceforth? Is it because
Mercs, BMWs, Jaguar, Lexus, Range Rovers are better than …., ahem,
a non-existent Nigerian brand of car?
I was actually stupefied to hear that the government recognises that, “With
a population of over 140 million people, Nigeria’s market is big enough
to sustain a bubbling domestic industrial sector if only Nigerians look
inwards at their local products” yet the government has not deemed
it fit to understand the demographics of the same population base with a
view towards providing it with the required infrastructure that would
release the creativity of this vast market.
Indeed, such callowness was exacerbated by the declaration that, “Unfortunately,
many industries had to close shop due to lack of patronage of their
products by Nigerians” wherein it is a common fact that the per
capita earnings of the average Nigerian is one of the lowest in the
world and in direct contrast to the flamboyant and ebullient lifestyles
of (s)elected politicians and government officials. So, who is
more guilty of dereliction in this instance?
So, who do we need to point fingers at when we say, “We must,
therefore, re-orientate ourselves to value what we produce in order to
develop a strong and virile industrial base.” Is it the emasculated
and long suffering Nigerians who are held in servitude and bondage by
their thieving ‘servant leaders’ or those that makes it impossible for
the average Nigerian to rise up to his/her true potential without
feeling the need to steal or be involved in acts of perfidy or
corruption?
As much as I proudly proclaim my fondness of adiré, aso oké, Ankara;
my unflinching fondness of palmy, fóóra da nunu, akara and
ipekeré; my undying desire for nkwóóbi, isiéwu and asuún;
and my eternal gratefulness for the inventors of pounded yam and
vegetable stew, amálá and ewédu or tuwo shinkafa, I
cannot stomach ‘pió’ water!
So, I ask with all seriousness, does the federal government comprising
of the executive and legislative houses understand what their businesses
should be? It is not enough to make lofty pronouncements and hope these
translates into realities. It is government business to provide the
means that would empower the populace to achieve things. If the
government were alive to its responsibilities, it would provide constant
electricity, good transport network, sound education and health to its
citizens; it would guarantee the security of lives and limbs in order to
provide the atmosphere where buying Made-in Nigeria would not become
part of an insincere, sceptical sloganeering campaign.
Please crank up your medulla oblongata and get the country moving
in the right directions. Nigerians are no fools who need to be told what
to buy. If you like, keep gorging on your chips and sh*t, I will
stick to my kúlinkúli and gárri, if you like stick your
face in a bowl custard; I still prefer akamú but don’t tell me
not to buy what I cannot afford in the first instance.
BTW, who are the Nigerians that UMYA and Goodluck were talking to?
God bless the real Nigerians!
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