Nigeria marked her 62nd Independence Anniversary on Saturday, October 1, 2022, with commemorative activities across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), while a military parade was held at the Eagle Square, Abuja . The special parade was inspected by President Muhammadu Buhari with other government officials in attendance.
A 15-member Inter-Ministerial Committee, led by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha, had earlier been inaugurated to oversee and coordinate the week-long activities for the 62nd independence anniversary. The Committee was made up of the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed and his counterparts from Interior, Finance, Budget and National Planning; Foreign Affairs, FCT, Special Duties and Intergovernmental Affairs ministries, as well as the National Security Adviser and Special Adviser to the President on Policy and Coordination.
Other members include the Permanent Secretary, State House; Permanent Secretary, Political and Economic Affairs Office; Permanent Secretary, General Services Office; Inspector-General of Police, DG DSS and the Commander, Guards Brigade.
The Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbeola, while announcing a public holiday for Monday, October 3, to commemorate the occasion, said: “The world is going through dire economic and security challenges, which have also affected our nation. However, I am assuring us all that the Federal Government will not abandon the people, but will continue to confront all these challenges with all the might at our disposal until respite comes our way.”
There is no doubt that the chequered history of Nigeria since independence has been very challenging as most Nigerians believe that the developments recorded in the over six decades of political independence are not really commensurate with the available resources – human and material .
Political leadership in the past two decades has been very disappointing, especially with our nascent democracy continuously failing to deliver the expected dividends. Economically, massive corruption and over-concentration on oil as the main source of revenue have also compounded the nation’s woes, more so as highly organised oil theft has continued to rob the country of the much-needed revenue.
Terrorism and increasing criminal activities have unfortunately succeeded in placing the country on the global map as one of the most dangerous places to live, while Nigeria is now regarded as the poverty capital of the world with a high unemployment rate and grave hunger in the land.
Incidentally, this independence anniversary is the last for the Buhari Administration. Its lacklustre performance in almost every sector in the past seven and a half years is unequalled. With just a few months to go, many Nigerians have been wondering what the present administration, with its failed leadership that has thrown the economy into a total mess, was actually celebrating.
Nonetheless, despite all the damning reports on the nation’s economy, silver linings still lie ahead. The 2022 economic outlook recently released by Allianz Trade points to a gradual improvement in the country’s economic fortunes, despite the recent increase in interest rates by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). According to the report, ”Nigeria’s economy expanded by a better-than-expected 3.5 per cent y/y in Q2, up from 3.1 per cent y/y in Q1. The pick-up in headline growth was largely due to the contraction in the oil sector easing, while growth in the non-oil economy held up well.
“In seasonally-adjusted terms, GDP rose by around 0.9 per cent q/q. More timely indicators suggest that activity picked up further at the start of Q3. The MI rose from 50.9 in June to 53.2 in July. And private sector credit growth reached 21.3 per cent y/y in July. ”
The report however notes that “production in the key oil sector remained very low, essentially unchanged from June at 1.18mn bpd in July… the currency weakened against the US dollar, both on the Nafex exchange rate and the black market,” adding, ”Inflation jumped from 18.6 per cent y/y in June to 19.6 per cent y/y in July, the highest since September 2005.”
Despite all the challenges and the failures of the country’s leadership over the years, we still want to believe that Nigeria shall be great again, given the determination of the majority of Nigerians to make the right choice in the forthcoming general elections in February 2023. The forthcoming general elections really offer Nigerians another chance to put the wrong side of history behind them and open a new chapter for the future.
We also want to agree with the Interior Minister, Aregbesola, who said in a statement by the Permanent Secretary in his ministry, Dr. Shuaib Belgore, that “Our warmth, welcoming spirit and love, as well as our unbounded human capital and the richness of our land, make Nigeria unarguably the leading black nation in the world and Africa’s pride and beacon of hope.”‘
And we really have no doubt, like the minister also believes that “If we can rally ourselves together to harness our potential, we shall be the greatest nation on the earth.”
We wish Nigeria and Nigerians a happy independent anniversary.
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