Santa Claus was still handing out gifts even in January, or so I thought when President Muhammadu Buhari announced a N200 million cash reward to compensate members of the Under-16 national football team who won the FIFA championship in 1985 while he was military ruler.
Buhari, who had promised the players scholarships, shares in major companies, among other things but failed to redeem his pledge, was obviously eager to make good his more than 30 years promise. The hall filled with athletes adorned in the green and white national colours erupted into a raucous applause. Until then, the ambience was mostly quiet with the athletes less concerned about the gift announcements.
You could tell by the look on the faces of the younger athletes, who were also been recognized for various sporting success including winning the FIFA Under-17 championship last year, what they were thinking. N200million each? For real? And we the youngsters are getting a paltry N1.2 million?
Someone right in front of me quickly came up with the calculations. N200mill for 23 people would be N4.6billion and wittingly shouted; “so he is hiding this money somewhere? That is more than the budget of some ministries, that we may be borrowing to fund.”
I couldn’t help but think this to be another of Mr President’s error. He’s had quite a few since his second coming. And it was in fact a blunder. Mr President just “shoot” like we use to say when someone speak in error.
Earlier, the athletes didn’t seem to care when the President was calling out cash rewards for the other groups that participated and won different medals for the country at recent international sporting events. I recall seeing some sarcastic facial gestures that all but said; “for real, just that? If it was President Goodluck Jonathan we would have gotten more.”
After all while they got N600,000, their female basketball counterparts from Senegal got four bedroom apartments, cash rewards and national honours.
One of the athletes sitting close by threw an irresistible jab.
“If it takes 30 years for my money to mature to N200 million, the President had better keep it and hand it over when he returns to office in another 30 years”. We laughed.
A mixture of excitement at a new punchline and shame knowing that this was far from reality. I think Nigerians are gradually beginning to understand the austere nature of President Buhari. Maybe this explain why he reneged on a popular campaign promise to hand N5,000 stipends to unemployed graduates nationwide. He probably thought it may encourage indolence.
Not realising his mistake, the President in his usual manner, briskly walked down the stage. What did he think people were making so much noise about? Appreciation? if only he knew.
A few minutes later, Sports Minister Solomon Dalung cleared the air and corrected the blunder, to the disappointment of a few. While some of the athletes complained of not getting enough, the supporters team were already agitated for earning nothing. President of the Nigeria Football and other Sports Supporters Club (NFSSC), Rafiu Ladipo, was enraged that his group had nothing, despite being the ones who cheer the footballers and other sporting teams to victory.
Was excluding the supporters club from the freebies an oversight or just a cost cutting measure? I personally think it is for the later, because before announcing the packages, he reminded them of the country’s financial state. I can imagine him thinking, “why should I pay them for clapping hands and making noise?
The President asked for a minute of silence in honour of a member of the class of 1985 team, Kingsley Aikhionbare who died in 1986, and it actually lasted for one minute. Before now (that is in the previous administration) it was funny how fast they added may their souls rest in peace, without allowing one minute to lapse. This was the longest one minute silence I had witnessed. Military Classic, a real moment of silence; also a symbol in respect of the dead.
Did you notice that our President travelled in a smaller aircraft to Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates for the energy summit? Is it an indication that the Presidency is trying to cut cost? But is that really the true picture? As it indicates that he used two smaller aircraft to accommodate his aides and members of the delegation. Using two aircraft would amount to doubling the travel crew and payments for parking lots for the period of stay.
Air Force One is a Boeing 737 BBJ, that is now undergoing routine maintenance is the flagship or the premier aircraft in the Presidential Air Fleet (PAF). Other aircraft in the fleet are one Gulf
Stream 550, one Gulf Stream 500, two Falcon 7x, one Hawker Siddeley 4000, two Augusta 139 and two Augusta 101 choppers.
The Presidency had some time last year after receiving knocks for maintaining the fleet at a huge cost to Nigeria disclosed that government had spent just a little above N2billion between May and
November last year.
Still on cutting cost, the President probably must have decided to make a U-turn after Nigerians complained about his proposed N3.63billion BMW car, the embarrassing drama of the budget doctoring and the Prefects; the National Assembly picking holes in the statehouse allocations.The story is already on the public domain however some Presidency officials feel the parliamentarians are trying to get back at the President for criticising their proposed purchase of new cars for N4.7 Billion at a time the nation is facing a cash crunch.
A Senator had picked holes on the increase in domestic spending within Aso Villa from N580 million to N1.7 billion. Truth be told, cutting cost should entail non-purchase of pots, kettles and kitchenwares on a yearly basis. Similarly, office furniture and computers don’t expire
on a yearly basis as always captured in appropriation bills.
Meanwhile, the Federal Executive Council meeting did not hold last week. Though no official reason was given, some officials were quick to allude it to the late night / morning arrival of the President from Abu Dhabi. It is almost a norm now that each time the President returns from a foreign trip he takes his time to rest thereby cancelling all other engagements.
This brings us to the age controversy that triggered much debate after a statement in South Africa affirming that he was old for the job. We can’t however, shy away from the fact that the nation needs a strong and viral President to shoulder its multiple problems.
Elizabeth Archibong
