CAN KOGI STATE BECOME THE GUJARAT OF NIGERIA?
What Kogi State should learn from Gujarat if it must develop
As the call for true federalism in Nigeria is gathering momentum, for any part of the republic to grow and develop, it must start thinking outside the box if that has been far from it. This will make it proactive rather than reactive.
Most times, one is forced to ask, what is the level of preparedness of Kogi Province towards this? The passage of Public Private Partnership (PPP) recently in the Province is not an end in itself but just a means to an end. Implementation to the last letter and constant and consistent supervision is the key. And this is where the idea of M&E (monitoring & evaluation) becomes very vital.
If Kogi province must develop or turn to a faster track of development, there is much to learn from Gujarat in India. Gujarat is a province located in the western part of India. The province has undergone rapid development over some number of years. It might interest you to know that the current Prime Minister (PM) of India, Narendra Modi was the former Chief Minister (Governor equivalent in Nigeria) of Gujarat. Some Indian political analyst have argued that, his emergence as the current PM from the April 2014 general election was a result of his effort in transforming the entire Gujarat which include 1800 villages. Whether this is true or not is not the case here.
In comparison, Kogi State is not left behind in the natural distribution of resources in Nigeria. These resources, if tapped by creative, sincere and visionary leaders would catapult the State from the state of apathy where it is now to compete with Lagos and the likes in the few years from now. The inability of the “soldier-come soldier-go” leadership to lift the State beyond the pitiable state not-minding plenty of resources has been linked to several reasons. The core reason for the State’s set-back which is partly the focus of this write-up is the absence of proper and committed implementation, sincere monitoring and evaluation and natural accountability. The model of governance in Gujarat (India) offers unquestionable explanation for urgent return to “true commitment”, sincerity, trust, “true accountability” and plainness in governance.
Gujarat is just a state among the twenty-nine (29) states in India. Its capital is Gandhinagar, while its largest city is Ahmedabad. The state is home to the Gujarati-speaking people of India and the nation’s richest state with a sustainable GDP per capital income. It is also the home of Mahatma Gandhi; the preacher of unity and a worldwide figure renowned for peaceful non-violent struggle against tyranny of the British Imperialists.
In contrast to Nigeria’s federal arrangement, India allows for true federalism in all the 29 states. With specific reference to Gujarat, the state plays an important role in the socio-economic and political landscape of India. Like Lagos state in Nigeria, Gujarat has been the location of major ports on the Arabian Sea with several trade and commercial centers, thus making it one of the fastest growing states with flourishing economy in India. Gujarat is governed by a Legislative Assembly of 182 members. Members of the Legislative Assembly are elected on the basis of adult suffrage from 182 constituencies, of which 13 are reserved for scheduled castes and 26 for scheduled tribes. The term of office for a member of the Legislative Assembly is five years. The Legislative Assembly elects a speaker who presides over the meetings of the legislature. A state governor is appointed by the President of India, and is to address the state legislature after every general election and the commencement of each year’s first session of the Legislative Assembly. The governor is purely a nominal cum ceremonial head and representative of the President of India in the state of Gujarat. The leader of the majority party or coalition in the legislature (called the Chief Minister) or his/her designee acts as the Leader of the Legislative Assembly. The day-to-day administration and business of the state is vested on the Chief Minister without any interference by the governor or president. He is thus the chief executive of the state.
The state thus enjoy a federal structure with genuine democratic ethos of rule of law, constitutionalism, independence of judiciary, independent electoral organ, full resource control, checks & balances et cetera, Consequent upon these democratic ethos and enabling political environment, the state of Gujarat over the years established itself as a leader in various industrial sectors including textiles, engineering, chemicals, petrochemicals, drugs and pharmaceuticals, dairy, cement and ceramics, and gems and jewellery, amongst others. This vibrant state as it is popularly called in India is the main producer of tobacco, cotton, and groundnuts in India. Other major food crops produced are rice, wheat, jowar, bajra, maize, Tur, and gram. Gujarat has an agricultural economy; the total crop area amounts to more than one-half of the total land area.
The 1991 post-liberalization period in India saw Gujarat’s State Domestic Product (SDP) rising at an average growth rate of 14% per annum in real terms. Gujarat has State Wide Gas Grid of 2,200 km. 87.9% of the total roads in the state are asphalt surfaced. Besides, 98.86% village connectivity with all?weather roads, the highest in India. 100% of Gujarat’s 18,000 villages have electricity connection for 24hr power through the Jyotigram Yojana. Gujarat ranks first nationwide in gas-based thermal electricity generation with national market share of over 8% and second nationwide in nuclear electricity generation with national market share of over 1%. Interestingly, the state since 1995 generates as much as 35% of its power generation capacity through Independent Power Plants (IPPs), a dream which Lagos state has been nursing, but which the federal government has found difficult to approve.
It may interest the readers to know that Bus Rapid Transport System was introduced in Gujarat with full autonomy and control under Ahmedabad Janmarg Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS); it is the first BRT project in the whole of India with monumental performance. The Gujarat BRT like the replica in Lagos, Nigeria is not only about creating bus infrastructure, but also about enhancing the quality of commuting with dedicated bus lanes, cycle tracks, pedestrian facilities, personalised vehicles and optimum parking. Consequent upon its efficiency experienced by foreigners (even the author) it was hailed as the best mass transit system in the country. Recently, it was awarded the international transport honour, as the 2010 Sustainable Transport Award.
Here, it is my informed opinion that implementation, constant and consistent monitoring and evaluation which is guided by sincerity, trust and accountability should be revisited and uphold strongly. Public office is a trust. If you do or say the right thing, you might not need to try to remember but otherwise, most times, is disgraceful. Attitudinal change from both the public servants and the people will contribute greatly in transforming the State. Mores so, as Nigeria prepares for a new political dispensation in 2015, once election is conducted and winners sworn-in, the first and most vital discussion should be towards constitutional amendments, specifically the issue of true federalism. The Kogi province should be ready and prepared to take the bull by the horn so that it will not be caught in a cave. When true federalism becomes the system of the day, the national political landscape would allow power and resources to be constitutionally divided between the federal and the states without rifts and acrimonies.
The proposed political arrangement like what was obtained in Gujarat would help engender pluralist democracy, equitable revenue sharing formula, competition among the states, state police, public choice, rule of law, independent judiciary and protection of minority rights. The present federalism going by the avalanche of criticisms indeed favoured arbitrariness, rent-seeking, self-seeking, monopoly of resources by powerful centre, weak cum non-viable states created for political reasons, nepotism, unequal opportunities and corruption, the result are over concentration of power at the Centre and big-headed federal government.
It may interest all readers at home that in 2010 Forbes’s list of world’s fastest growing cities included one of Gujarat’s cities; Ahmedabad at number 3 after Chengdu and Chongqing from China. The world is moving fast and would not wait for failing states and profligate nations. We therefore need to make a U-turn in 2015, as a nation with great hopes and aspirations.
Friday just finished his post-graduate studies from the Department of Political Science (Public Policy & Governance), University of Hyderabad, India. He can be reached here: alajifriday@gmail.com & +2348066423403
