Government’s duties are inescapably
oodles. One of its duties is to take care of the welfare of its citizens.
According to Anthony
Giddens (1938 - )
in The Third Way: The Renewal of Social Democracy, “Government has an essential role to
play in investing in the human resources and infrastructure needed to develop
an entrepreneurial culture.” This is one the vital ways a conscientious government
trounce the challenges of refining the lives of the citizens. Government is
leadership and leadership means, meaning well for the citizens. The duty to cater
for the welfare of the people is not a lonesome task of the government. That
is, not the job of the elected ones alone. Well-to-do
private citizens are also servants to humanity. Service to humanity is
everybody’s routine. The body that fails to do this has failed the basic exam
of life. In so far as the well-to-do
and the poor have a service to humanity, the well-to-do has a major role to play on the physical, that is to
say, material resources. Most states in Nigeria have lived by example in this
light. Such as: Ogun, Lagos, Imo, Rivers, etc. But how well has
this been achieved in Bayelsa State?
Bayelsa state is a state created out of Rivers
State on the 1st of October 1996, which means the state is 20 years old as at
when this piece is written. 20 years means Bayelsa state in no longer an infant
state. A man of 20 years old is a man of accountability because a man of 18 is
an adult. Thus, Bayelsa state does not have any excuse to give in performing admirably
well. This is counter to the squabble that Bayelsa state is young and should
not be compared with other elderly states. While the people tolerably wait for
the state’s government to create jobs outside the Civil Servant jobs, as
earlier asserted, private persons are expected to contribute massively in
creating jobs. These groups of persons are assorted from politicians and mere
business men that cut across different vocations of life. Job creation can be
achieved by setting up companies, and other business organizations that would
help in engaging jobless youths and the society in general. Margaret Thatcher, former British prime
minister once was said that: “Young people ought not to be idle. It is very bad
for them”.
As earlier stated some states in Nigeria
have been examplenary in not just creating jobs for her state’s men but also in
contributing immensely to the macro-economy of Nigeria. In Abia for instance,
so many industries have been built by well meaning business men that have led
to massive job creation. Besides Oil, there are other industries manufacturing
textiles, soaps, plastics, cosmetics, cements and lots more which contribute
successfully to the Gross Domestics products of the state and today it is recognized
as one of the most commercialized states in Nigeria and Africa at large. Abia
state was created in 1991 which means Abia is just five years older than Bayelsa State. Ogun
for years has been one of the leading states where many Nigeria-made goods are
made. Ogun has the Procter and Gamble in Agbara, Lafarge Cement factory in
Ewekoro, Dangote, Nestle Factories in Ewekoro, etc. In one of the writer’s
travelling to Ile Ife at Osun state, he observed that there were many big
buildings. After five to six residences, the next would be such big houses. When
questions were asked to some passengers, it was discovered that most of such
houses are warehouses used for the production and storing of many produced
goods. This was made possible as a result of the zeal put up by well meaning entrepreneurs,
small and big, and other politicians that did not just anchor their hopes on
monies from politics but the establishing of Small and Medium Scale Enterprises
(SME’s) and other major business outlets. For Lagos, we speak of a good
business role model whose contribution to the Nation’s economy is not
questionable or contested. This made Lagos the fifth largest economy in Africa
with a Gross Domestic Products (GDP) of 131 billion Dollars, as reported by Naij.com, thereby even surpassing some
countries in Africa.
In Bayelsa state the reserve always seems
to be the case. Though, the indigenes may not be too blamed for not being too
business inclined due to fact that the Apprentice-System
is not in the blood of the people, but what about the development of entrepreneurship
skills in the people and the contribution of government and private citizens to
achieve this? The answer has always been on the negative. Yes, the government
has a role to play, but what about the ordinary politicians and rich folks?
What business ideas do they have? What platforms have they set up to establish
others who have good feasibility studies on business ideas? In Bayelsa, the
business ideas of the rich are very poor. The best one can invest in are:
Filling stations, Secondary Schools, Estates and Hotels. Most of the big hotels
in Bayelsa state are owned by the rich politicians. Is hotel business the best,
Bayelsa State politicians can invest in? How many people can a Hotel employ? How
many people can Secondary schools, Filling stations and House building employ? Where are the farms, paint industries, shoe making
companies, Sugar factories, cosmetics factories, Motor selling companies, etc,
owned by Bayelsa State rich politicians? The failure of our rich folks has contributed
gravely to the reason why strangers in the state conclude that Bayelsa state
indigenes are Lazy. It is high time, our politicians and rich folks rise up and
make things happen. It is high time they grow above the stage of just singing
exaggerated eulogies, lodging prostitutes in Motels and hotels, drinking beer,
having sex and wasting their monies on frivolous activities. It is high time,
they think of the people they are called to serve; whether politicians or not,
it doesn’t matter. For those who have the money, they are expected to know that
God has simply placed them in the position to help their state. This is not a
task for the government alone. It is a task for everyone. Build private
schools, Estates, and Industries, etc. Invest monies that will create jobs for
the people and also help to contribute to the Internally Generated Revenue
(IGR) of the state. Bayelsa needs to be financially independent. The people do
not need the peanuts from the federal government alone, so that when the going
gets tough they can sustain themselves. Human development is the best
development in the world. For the government, it needs to grow beyond the level
it is. John
Maynard Keynes (1883 - 1946),
British economist once said in The End of Laisser-Faire: “The important thing for Government
is not to do things which individuals are doing already, and to do them a
little better or a little worse; but to do those things which at present are
not done at all.” If this is successfully done, the statement attributed to the
once American President, Ronald Reagan (1911 - 2004),
which is that Government is not the solution to the problem—government is the
problem, would be defeated here in Bayelsa state. Bayelsa state politicians and
rich folks must understand that: “For
a government to survive, it must serve humanity.”
The duty to cater for the welfare of the people is not a lonesome task of the government. That is, not the job of the elected ones alone. Well-to-do private citizens are also servants to humanity. Service to humanity is everybody’s routine.
Ebi Robert.