Saliu expresses concern on Nigeria’s challenges

A former Dean of the old Faculty of Business and Social Sciences, University of Ilorin, Prof. Hassan Ajisafe Saliu, has expressed great concern on the state of the nation, saying that the country is currently undergoing a most challenging time since the advent of civil rule in 1999.

Prof. Saliu, who spoke in his capacity as  the National President of the Nigeria Political Scientists Association (NPSA), explained that contemporary realities show that Nigeria is in the throes of a governance crisis, which straddles the nation’s political and economic spheres as he noted that the nation’s democracy still offers more hopeful prospects for comprehensive growth and development than any conceivable alternative.

In a press statement, Prof. Saliu said that the crisis threatens the livelihoods of the majority of Nigerians and the stability of the nation.

The don pointed out that, although the country has been able to conduct regular and periodic elections after decades of authoritarian military rule, democracy has not translated into inclusive growth because the security and welfare of citizens have not been prioritised by successive elected governments.

Prof. Saliu noted, ”If anything, there has been a worsening of development outcomes as indicated by deepening multi-dimensional poverty. Currently, we are witnesses to spontaneous public outcries and demonstrations in protest of the rising cost of living as major government policies fuel inflation while eroding the purchasing power of ordinary Nigerians”.

The NPSA President added, “Surviving a bitterly fought General Elections in 2023 with ethno-regional divisive undertones, it is expected that the mantra of national unity and elite consensus on major policy issues would take the centre stage. But what the country has witnessed is a dramatic worsening of living conditions that generates apprehension in citizens regarding the prospect of national stability and the achievement of decent and dignified life.

He added, “We are witnesses to the free fall of the country’s currency, leading to exponential increase in the costs of imported goods. Food prices have skyrocketed due partly to the increase in the pump prices of petrol. The steep decline in real wages and growing insecurity in cities and on the highways have created a sense of helplessness among Nigerians.”

The association, which consists of scholars of Political Science from all over Nigeria, noted that these developments have plunged the middle class and the urban poor into conditions of a Hobbesian nightmare of huge proportions.

Prof. Saliu insisted, “The spiral of uncertainty, exacerbated by the complicit role of the legislature at both national and sub-national levels in its failure to reign in the executive branch, all points to a looming severe legitimacy crisis capable of derailing our struggling democracy or bringing it to immense grief.

The renowned academic and administrator, who is also a former Member of the Governing Council of the Kwara State University, Malete, said that the nation is experiencing a rapid escalation in the cost of living, which is unparalleled and concerning.

He added that the rise is attributed to various issues, such as the significant decline in the real sectors of the economy, the sharp increase in food prices due to the elimination of fuel subsidies, and the escalation in the operations of non-state armed groups, each with distinct regional characteristics.

Prof. Saliu, who said that the NPSA’s intervention is informed by its core mandate of periodic audit of the operators of the country’s political system, said that the nation’s situation is both fascinating and disquieting.

He noted further that Nigeria is currently utilising more funds than its entire revenue to manage its public debts, resorting to borrowing from both domestic and foreign sources to finance its national budgets.