While suggestive solution is an answer to a problem, or a process of solving a problem, implementation of such a solution however, is the fulfilment or accomplishment of that problem. In order words, a problem is unsolved until you implement the suggested ideas or solutions.

I strongly believe that our greatest impediment to solving our problems in Nigeria today is the inability of the government, or those responsible, to honestly implement or enforce the numerous solutions that already exist in our constitution and legal system. In addition, there are many suggested and well articulated solutions by many NVS writers, newspaper editors, news commentators, world leaders, and ordinary citizens of the nation of Nigeria that deserve implementation. These good, commonsense, and workable suggested solutions, unfortunately, fall on deaf ears or fizzle out when they get to implementation stage.

Most Nigerians will cite corruption by our leaders, as the number one problem that is facing our country today. Therefore, the calibre of the person who pilots the affairs of our country, as the President, makes a lot of difference. Since 1960, Nigeria received her independence, either the military coup lords have ruled the country, or puppets, who were hand-picked by the outgoing leaders, after rigging the elections. Nigerians have never had the opportunity to elect their leaders through fair and free elections.

Therefore, our first step to solving the leadership problem in Nigeria is to institute an electoral system that will ensure true, free, and fair elections, to enable Nigerians elect leaders of their choice. Can this be done? YES. However, it cannot be implemented because any party in power will like to perpetuate its leadership. This is often achieved through fraudulent electoral process. The ruling party operates the electoral machines, therefore is capable of manipulating the election results to favour the party.

Is there anything the people can do to show their resentment? YES. By rioting, conducting strikes, by staging military coup, starting a revolution that might invite outside intervention, write to protest and denounce the crooks, or keep quiet and take the insult, and the abuse. The people have to decide what kind of actions to take.

Another approach is to honestly implement many solutions that already exist in the constitution, or the legal system that governs electoral misnomer in the country. Again, can this be done? YES. However, it cannot be implemented simply because the ruling party has already planted their surrogates in the courts to subvert and manipulate the legal system in their favour. That is the reason why you cannot prosecute Gowon, Babangida, Obasanjo, and maybe Yar ‘Adua, after he is through with performing his miracles and wonders while he is still in the office.

In Nigerian politics, the power starts with the President, and ends with the President. It is only in Nigerian politics that the president has the power to over-rule the people’s choice for president by selecting his own replacement. It happened in 1993, when Babangida single handedly declared null and void a free election that showed Moshood Abiola victorious; and in April 2007, when Obasanjo hand-picked Yar’Adua to replace him.

There is no shortage of ideas on how to solve the problems facing Nigeria today, and for somebody to demand lack of it, is not only ridiculous, but also very myopic. In addition to conducting a survey, many articles have been posted on NVS, suggesting declaration of assets by our leaders, as a very important step to achieving transparency in our government. Has our government heeded to this call? Somehow, the president and very few members of his government have declared their assets, but not all the governors and top politicians. That still leaves many rooms for corruption in the system. Should we then stop demanding that the rest of our politicians declare their assets because it will tantamount to repetition of ideas? I personally do not see anything wrong with officials declaring their assets, if they do not have ulterior motives.

When writers cite one another, it only shows how critical the problem is. For a critic to complain about repetition of ideas that he can access from many novels, books and cyberspace, without offering any original solutions of his own to any existing problems, it is a display of arrogance, and very disingenuous. How do you know how many repetitions of ideas that can spur somebody to action? One, two, three, four…repetitions?

It will be a lost cause if we, as agents of change, fail to bring to the front burner, some workable and common sense ideas and solutions that have not been tested. It does not matter how many times we repeat such ideas. Until these suggested ideas and solutions have been implemented and proven to be failure, we should not give up repeating our demands. I think that is a civilize approach, and I can assure you, there is no information, idea, or solution you cannot access from novels, books, and internet nowadays.

In fighting corruption and other crimes in our society, the roles of the NPF (Nigerian Police Force) and our legal system cannot be overemphasized. Selecting good leaders to head both the NPF and our legal system in the country is paramount to achieving our goals in that respect. Both the Inspector General of Nigerian Police, and the Attorney General of Nigeria, serve at the pleasure of the President. That is why I mentioned earlier, that in Nigerian politics today, the power starts with the president and ends with the president. Until we can elect the right person as the President of Nigeria, we will continue to repeat our demands and ourselves too.

Nigeria desperately needs a few good leaders, who will honestly implement a laundry list of common sense solutions that are out there waiting for implementation. Good leadership is paramount to good governance. Good governance results in a good discipline. Good discipline results in law-abiding citizens. Law-abiding citizens maintain peace and tranquillity in the country. Peace and tranquillity in the country will result in a productive society. In addition, implementation of a solution, results in less repetition of the same idea.

GOD SAVE NIGERIA FOR WE ARE ALREADY BLESSED.

Chukwudi Ede 

Robot  Villager

# 1 It is becoming a laughing matter anytime somebody mentions about some problems facing Nigeria today,...Read the full article. Posted by Robot| 10.10.2007 03:22

Oghre  Villager

# 2 Mazi Chukwudi Ede, I am afraid on this occasion I have to invoke the “where is the solution” syndrome on you; rhetoric and ceaseless banter will not make a solution. On the political front, while you mentioned useful words such as revolution and credible leadership, I am afraid such concepts have been over flogged to burlesque. What we need if you like is a framework of advice, letters to government with suggestive ideas. We need to rouse the people, make them aware of their choices and what actions they can take to rekindle a nationalist struggle against the cabal that has held their future hostage for decades. Whatever we have written in 47 years has not worked, UYA is an illegitimate president elected by no Nigerians and as such the people should challenge it by massive revolt, it is only then we can use such an opportunity to elect decent leadership. On the economic front, we can suggest ways to foster economic growth drawing for our local and Diaspora experiences and ideas. It is certain the Nigerian government are either not interested or don’t have the first clue how to manage an economy, perhaps we might suggest ways to help them. Continuously highlighting their shortcomings gets no one anywhere, we have been doing it for over 40 years and not much impact was made. Nigerians are having children who are born to starve from day one, suggest ways to reduce the rate of childbirth for sustainable resource allocation. Suggest ways to introduce new opportunities to the unemployed, ways like setting up technical training institutes like those in India. Suggest ways to ban retro religious and traditional practices that continues to make us look backward and illiterate in the international community. Suggest ways to stop Lebanese and Chinese people exploiting Nigerians. Suggest ways to stop the massacre of innocent Christians in northern Nigeria. There are many core issues to pick from, educate Nigerians, make them aware and suggest solutions. People are reading all the time you may not know it, and they are fed up reading the same sh1te over and over again. Posted by Oghre| 10.10.2007 08:09

RAYNOSA  Villager

# 3 Thanks for making me go through your puzzle hoping to find the word SOLUTION. Please the only solution i can find is in the title. Your article is like transfering the same old high-lighting of Nigeria's problem tune from tape to cd. same old story Posted by RAYNOSA| 10.10.2007 14:48

aguabata  Villager

# 4 I perfectly understand this article, because nigeria runs a quasi democracy, a good nigerian president will make a difference, a nigerian president can push his parties ideologies more than bush or brown in their democracy, we dont have democratic stuctures to rein in the president, imagine if a person like Obasanjo was good, he could instruct contractors building lagos/ibadan road to finish their job in 6 months and if they fail he could take them back to Aso rock and give them 12 lashes to the buttocks as i heard he did to a police man in benin:biggrin::biggrin:: Posted by aguabata| 10.10.2007 18:13