Stop Blaming Jonathan Over Nigeria’s Woes, Blame Your Governors, Your Local Government Chairmen Too- Doyin Okupe

The Senior Special Assistant to the
President on Public Affairs, Dr. Doyin Okupe has asked Nigerians to stop
blaming the President for all the misfortunes of the country. He emphasised
that the Federal Government, Governors and Local Government chairmen are all to
be blamed for whatever the country turns out to be.

The Federal Government only takes 48.5
per cent of the total revenue of the country ,while the other 51.5 per cent is
taken by the states and all the local governments put together, he said.

He also assured that there was a
ceasefire agreement between the government and Boko Haram insurgents but they ‘turned’
it around since the ball was in their court. Continue below…

Here’s how Punch reports it in full;

The government of President
Goodluck Jonathan came on board totally unprepared for the insurgency ravaging
some states in the North, the Presidency has said.

Speaking at the public forum on
the impact of the Jonathan administration on Tuesday in Abuja, the Senior
Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Dr. Doyin Okupe, said
those that were bent on rating the present government, based on the worsening
state of insurgency in Nigeria, were wrong.

He said, “Somebody wants us to
believe that the only testimony of performance of this administration is
insecurity. (But) that’s not true. This government was totally unprepared for
the insurgency. Nobody planned for insurgency. And yet insurgency is a serious
problem on its own to contain. America, with all its power and resources, was
in Iraq for up to about five or six years with over 400,000 soldiers put on
ground and yet see Iraq the way it is today.”

He noted that it was a national
misfortune that the Chibok girls were still held captive by the terrorists,
stressing that the ceasefire agreement between the Federal Government and Boko
Haram was at the instance of the sect.

He said, “Yes, a ceasefire was
announced and it was at the instance of the insurgents. What the President has
demonstrated today is that he said that all options are on the table. So, when
the insurgents call for talk, how can anybody blame the government for that? If
it doesn’t work out, that is not the fault of the government. That is actually
the nature of the insurgents. Because they are factionalised, their line of
command is not clearly defined.

“So, this government’s capability and
performance cannot solely be represented on the outcome of the insurgency in
Nigeria. There is agriculture, education, infrastructure, health, social
development and many other component parts.”

Okupe further argued that Nigeria
had three tiers of government and Nigerians should start demanding the
dividends of democracy from their respective state and local governments.

He said, “There are three tiers of
government: federal, state and local. The Federal Government only takes 48.5
per cent of the total revenue for the country. The other 51.5 per cent is taken
by the states and all the local governments put together.

“But everybody focuses only on the
Federal Government and that is wrong. It is right to put their focus on the
Federal Government but it is wrong to put their focus only on the Federal
Government, because the share of the money for development and administration
is equal. And out of the Federal Government’s share, about 15 per cent goes to
foreign affairs and military, which the states do not bear at all.”