I am very sad

Today I am a very sad man. I am not sad because those who kidnapped Pa Soludo are asking for N500 million (in Dollars?) to return the old man. I am not sad because the Federal Government is performing the annual ritual of preparing to increase the pump price of petroleum products – just in time for Christmas. I am sad because nobody is doing anything about what is going to happen in this country in the months leading to, during and immediately after the general elections scheduled for 2011.

Ordinarily such mundane problem should not give me insomnia but in Nigeria the only ordinary thing is nothing. Armed with what we saw during the 2007 general elections, President Yar’adua agreed that something needed to be done about our electoral malfeasance. So he set up the Justice Uwais-led Electoral Reform Commission. The notoriously meticulous Justice Uwais and his co-eggheads have since submitted what even the blind can see as the way forward in Nigerian politics. It is what the Federal Government is doing – or not doing with the Reports – that has stolen my well-deserved sleep.

Are we going to face 2011 Nigerian-style? If you know my country, then you know what I mean. Nigerian-style means waiting till the very last minute before embarking on anything and expecting good results. Nigeria is the only country that expects to win the FIFA world cup with three weeks of preparations while other countries spend all of four years. Is the Federal Government waiting for the very last three months to the elections to give INEC money to up-grade the Voters Register so that they will display it two hours to voting time? When will INEC be given money to experiment and perfect the kind of voting system we will use come 2011? When will INEC be in a position to recruit and train the different grades and types of workers they will need to conduct the general elections? Are we going to depend on our Youth Corpers and Policemen with little or no training in electoral duties? I hate to think of what will happen in 2011.

The man I pity most is Professor Maurice Iwu. I don’t know how History will view him if this mighty project called Nigeria crashes on his head not because he is unable to do a good job, but because those at the helm of affairs are benefitting from the status quo so they won’t do anything to rock the boat.

Tata, everybody

Napoleon.