How we run Nigeria

By 

Ufot Ekaette

1. INTRODUCTION

Joan Corkery, Anthony Land and Jean Bossuyt in their paper on the Process of Policy Formulation, identified seven stages or nodal points in the policy formulation process. While the stages can be placed in a linear sequence, the process is not normally an orderly linear progress from one step to the next. It often requires some doubling back to adjust the earlier stages in the light of fresh information. In other words, it is an interactive process involving the following seven (7) stages:

• identification of the Policy Issue;
• specification of Objectives;
• development of options;
• choice of preferred options;
• policy Decision-Making;
• design of Implementation Strategy;
• policy Review and Reformulation.

Moving from one stage to the other in the Policy Formulation Process requires three main action instruments, namely:

• Information Gathering;
• Information Analysis and
• Consultation.

Policy formulation, therefore, is seen as a rational outcome of detailed data analysis with choices optimized to suit existing circumstances. Public policy is influenced and guided by a combination of philosophy, goals, strategy and resources, targeted at the achievement of specific or general goals of Government. Let me briefly explain these four key elements of public policy.

(i) Philosophy

Policy must be fundamentally structured by the basic philosophy of governance of any administration. However, it is by no means a settled issue whether they are core philosophical concerns which all governments share. For instance, while the goals of the achievement of economic development and security of life and property of citizens are championed by all governments, there are fundamental differences in the philosophical basis which inform what policies will best achieve these goals. Hence while one philosophical stand places the onus of economic growth and development on the capacity of the economically-privileged to create opportunities for those less endowed, another places it on the ability and willingness of Government to limit this capacity, and thus ensure an equitable spread of wealth and opportunities as it is possible. To bring the issue nearer home, there is, currently, an interesting debate regarding what postures developing nations should adopt in responding to the challenges of globalization. This debate is rooted in conflicting philosophical traditions, one of which sees globalization as the final triumph of international capitalism, while another sees it as the logical outcome of the process of integration engendered by technology and international trade, which now binds both the rich and the poor to a common system where both could benefit.

(ii) Goals

A key element of public policy is the set of goals it seeks to achieve. These goals, which may target macro or micro objectives, need to be clearly identified and closely predicated upon the basic philosophy of governance. They also need to be analyzed in terms of their linkages and inter-relationship with other goals, so that the achievement of a certain set of goals does not negate the achievement of other goals. Again, to use the globalization phenomenon as an example, liberalization of national economies which is a key requirement and goal of the industrialization process, has also been linked with, in many instances, massive de-industrialization and loss of control by local entrepreneurs in many developing countries.

(iii) Strategy

Any policy must be predicated upon a clear strategy for it to achieve its set goals. The strategy must derive from the social values or philosophy which informs the policy, and must be clearly and specifically linked with the goals of policy. Issues of instrumentality, efficacy, clarity, capacity and relevance are central to the evolution and adoption of a strategy for the achievement of policy objectives. If we may use a very recent example, one which involves a rise in the prices of some basic foodstuff in the recent past, the centrality of the correct strategy may be further highlighted. Part of this Administrations strategy for improving a key area of achieving food security has the twin objectives of encouraging farmers to produce more, and for farmers to expect just rewards for their endeavours. The other is the interventionist policy of purchase by the State of surplus production and release in periods of lean harvest to ensure some stability of prices and access to essential food by especially the poor. While broad policy is therefore to encourage the market to largely determine the basic prices of foodstuff, a related interventionist policy is available to be deployed very carefully. Indeed in the recent past, this interventionist policy instrument has been in operation, and it is singularly the most pronounced factor in the stabilization of especially grain prices in the nation. I use this example merely to demonstrate that a key strategy of the Administration, which is the achievement of basic food security for the nation, is a good candidate for analysis in terms of the clarity of its objectives, its efficacy as an instrument and its relationship with other policy instruments, strategies and goals.

(iv) Resources

Policy must implicitly address the quantum and nature of resources which it requires to achieve its objectives. Resources here are not only in the context of funds. The resources required for public policy and the proportion in which they are required vary. They include, institutional capacity, funding and managerial capability. Certain policies also create their own resources in the process of implementation, and therefore enrich the capacity for more effective implementation.

 

PUBLIC POLICY FORMULATOR

The responsibility for public policy formulation in any country lies with the Head of Government to whom the entire executive and bureaucracy are responsible. A change in the political leadership of any country usually brings to the saddle of Head Of Government an individual who, during the first few months of his tenure, is learning on the job and therefore heavily dependent on his array of official and non-official advisers, bureaucrats, informants, and other informal sources of information, etc. Since, for the most part during the early part of the tenure of an Administration, these groups of people have their way while the supporters of the new leadership continue to bask in the euphoria of their election/selection victory, the boat is not rocked. This setting is particularly true of a democratic change.

The emergence of Olusegun Obasanjo as President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria on May 29, 1999 following the victory of the Peoples’ Democratic Party in the February, 1999 elections was an exception to this usual pattern for several reasons. First, he was once the Head of State of Nigeria for 31/2 years from 1976 — 1979. Second, after leaving office, he spent most of his time interacting with several distinguished leaders across the world, engaging in soul-searching discourse on important issues of national, regional and international development and the enhancement of humanity. He was a member of the Eminent Persons’ Group; a Co-Founder of Transparency International; Founder of the African Leadership Forum, among several others. Thirdly, he was subjected to political maltreatment in the hands of a military dictator, in the course of which he had a spiritual renewal, which strengthened his commitment to the Nigerian nation for which he is ever prepared to put his life on the line. The sum total of these varied experiences is a huge reservoir of knowledge, wisdom, international contact and goodwill, patriotism and spiritual strength, which place him head and shoulders above his team. In his anxiety to move the nation forward rapidly, he had sometimes been viciously attacked and accused of adopting the military style of dispatch in a democratic setting. In many ways therefore, Mr. President has become a victim of his wealth of experience and commitment to rapid rejuvenation and reorientation of the nation. This notwithstanding, and more importantly, he has been able to bring this wealth of experience and international contact to bear on public policy formulation in our nation. Indeed, he has been the principal initiator of several of our public policies under this Administration. In doing this, he has adopted a mix of approaches including Retreats, Saturday Fora, and Breakfast Meetings, and Presidential Advisory committees, in addition to normal bureaucratic channels, to consult widely on various issues before they are concretized into public policy initiatives to be brought for the consideration of the Federal Executive Council.

Capacity building is one catalyst for improving both the process and quality of public policy formulation. It is an imperative where there is a gulf between the knowledge, experience and commitment of a visionary leader and those of his team. Capacity building helps to sharpen the tools of policy formulation and implementation and bridges the knowledge and communication gaps between the’ diverse initiators of public policy. Beginning at the very first week of the tenure of this Administration, the Presidential Retreat, a weekend of intense interaction among top functionaries of government, was introduced to achieve this purpose. So far four Presidential Retreats have been held for honourable ministers and Permanent Secretaries. Another series of Presidential Retreat was initiated in October last year as a yearly forum for Chairmen of Boards and Chief Executives of Government Parastatals/Agencies. Only last month, a 3-Day Presidential Retreat on Poverty Eradication Programme was held for State Governors and State coordinators of the Programme. The President has even met with the Local Government Chairmen. Several issue-centred Presidential Retreats are in the pipeline. In addition to the series of Retreats, there is also the Presidential Saturday Fora, which are organized to have an in-depth discussion of a specific issue of national importance.

Structured Training Workshops have been organized for every civil servant in the Directorate Cadre, GL. 15 — 17. The Middle Level manpower is also enjoying similar training programmes in order to modernize the tools of bureaucracy in the civil service. Government offices are being provided with computers while officials are trained to be computer-literate. Efforts are in high gear to network the computers in the offices of the very top political office holders. This, when completed, will go a long way in reducing the time taken to respond to issues, accelerate the process of public policy’ formulation and improve efficiency in policy implementation. The above initiatives in capacity building are not only unique and highly positive; they are being introduced, the first time ever, in this country.

INCREASING ADOPTION OF THE BOTTOM-UP APPROACH IN CONSULTATION WITH STAKEHOLDERS

Increasingly, Government is adopting the Bottom-up approach in consultation prior to the initiation of policy and we are achieving greater success in programme acceptance by the other tiers of Government. The National Youth Policy launched very early this year, epitomizes the approach. From conception and initiation through Zonal Consultations to the final National Youth Summit where the Policy was eventually adopted and launched, the youths in their number and diversity were in the driver’s seat. The end result was that a group generally seen as difficult, restive and volatile in other circumstances became the architects of a Youth Policy which they fashioned out, adopted and presented to Mr. President for his assent and implementation by Government.

Like the Youth Policy, the Poverty Eradication Programme went through various levels of consultations, culminating in the Presidential Retreat with the State Governors who happily embraced and endorsed the Programme while suggesting ways of fine tuning its implementation strategies for greater effectiveness.

FORCES FOR PUBLIC POLICY FORMULATION

I referred earlier to the wealth of experience, international contact and goodwill of President Obasanjo, built out of his interactions with distinguished world leaders for over two and half decades. Mr. President has had to go all out to mobilize his international contacts and goodwill to attract technical and financial assistance as well as bilateral cooperation on several topical issues in the areas of health, energy, environment, telecommunications, agriculture, defence, security, education, power, constitutional review and democratic governance, etc. These international efforts have been a positive driving force for the formulation of several public policies at the national level.

By itself after formulation, public policy is but a mere statement unless it is followed up with a Policy Implementation Strategy. For it to deliver the dividends of good governance to the people, there must be effective implementation. It is like a factory process chain. If the engine is turned off while the raw materials are fed in, they simply pile up, clog the process line and in extreme cases, damage the engine. Similarly, any slack or stoppage of implementation creates a bottleneck as policies pile up in the absence of implementation. It is for this reason that a Policy Implementation and Monitoring Unit has been set up in the Political Affairs Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, to monitor and follow-up on every policy and programme of government approved by the Federal Executive Council. This Unit complements the efforts of existing Government Agencies such as National Planning Commission and National Economic Intelligence Committee (NEIC), whose focus is project monitoring.

COMMITMENT TO THE PRINCIPLES OF TRANSPARENCY, EQUITY, JUSTICE AND ACCOUNTABILITY AS POLICY IMPERATIVES

At inception, this Administration adopted transparency, equity, justice and accountability as its guiding principles and policy imperatives. Ever since, these principles have been the benchmarks for assessing every action of Government and its agencies. It was the basis of the Kolade Panel and several other Panels and Commissions established by this Administration including, of course, the Oputa Commission. The principles will ensure commitment to public policies and good governance.

Four key issues towards which this Administration has directed tremendous energy, attention and resources present themselves as excellent examples to underscore the public policy formulation process and implementation strategies of this Administration.

They are:

(i) Economic Rehabilitation and Reconstruction and the Challenges of Globalization;

(ii) unemployment and Poverty;

(iii) Security of Life and Property; and

(iv) Corruption.

(i) Economic Rehabilitation and Reconstruction and the Challenges of Globalization

We are all aware of the unprecedented levels of collapse and degeneration of the basic economic structures in our country which assumed alarming rates in the late 1980s and the 1990s. A combination of callous indifference on the part of thc leadership, unspeakable levels of corruption and the total absence of policies to limit the decline were responsible for reducing our nation, which in the 1950s and 60s held the promise of being one of the greatest nations on earth by the year 2000, to the level of one of the most vilified nations in the world. It was the lot of this Administration to set into motion the process of reversal, through the careful selection of polices which will first stop the rot, then establish a strong basis for reversal of the trend of decline and self-destruction, and finally build a strong foundation for self-sustaining growth and development. I shall highlight, very briefly, some of the processes put in place to reverse the trend and the resultant policies.

(a) Rehabilitation and Regeneration Of Basic Economic Structures

This is being done with massive investments in power, communications, transportation, among others, and in vital social services. Policy here is informed by the twin concerns that it is the most hallowed responsibility of this Administration to ensure that government creates an enabling environment to attract and sustain external investment, and for citizens to pursue their economic well-being. Indeed, the Administration predicates its success on the degree to which it can achieve its set targets in these areas.

(b) Reforming the Economic Environment

Policies which limit the destructive results arising from government monopoly of key economic activities and sectors, and which encourage liberalization and the involvement of genuine players in key sectors have been diligently pursued as part of the strategy of re-engineering the economic environment. The Privatization programme of the Administration is only one of these policies. Others include legal reforms to remove inhibitors to investment, institutional and remuneration reforms to infuse higher levels of managerial competence and transparency, and the re-alignment of some of our laws to conform with the contemporary demands of the international environment in which our nation is poised as an effective player.

© Adopting Best Practice Strategies: Due process, Transparency in Government Transactions and Policy Consistency

In the increasingly globalized economic environment, nations have to compete, sometimes, fiercely to remain afloat, and those nations that are best able to create the necessary environment to attract investment and retain the confidence of the international investor, are best guaranteed survival and development. This Administration has however, been most careful in its approach and responses to stimuli and challenges from the international environment. Our basic policies have been to prepare and improve our own environment, principally, so that the Nigerian people and the economy will benefit and prosper from it. Some of the key requirements for this coincide also with the requirements of the international investor. These include the need to entrench rule of law and due process in all transactions, the requirements of openness and transparency in government business; and predictability and consistency in basic policies.

 

(ii) Addressing Unemployment and poverty issues

For a nation so well-endowed with human and material resources as ours, the current levels of general poverty and unemployment especially among the youth must represent the most serious indictment of our past policies and strategies. While history will record that all manners of programmes, schemes and projects have been introduced in the past to reduce the unacceptable level of poverty among our people, it is also on record that they have all suffered from a myriad of weaknesses, from faulty conception, to widespread corruption , indisciplne and the absence of the political will to make them succeed. The current policy on Poverty Eradication has been predicated partly on informed analyses of the failures of the past, and a realistic assessment of the contemporary structural weaknesses of the Nigerian economy which breeds such high levels of poverty and unemployment. Certainly, we have learnt that throwing money at rampant poverty in the form of cash handouts or the establishment of institutions that merely serve to channel easy money to selected groups, does not solve the problem. The National Poverty Eradication Programme is a vital policy instrument which has various components that together seek to channel resources and energy in key areas and sectors that have direct relevance to the fight against poverty and unemployment. Its strategies are reinforced by the policy of massive rehabilitation and expansion of economic and social infrastructure, currently a top priority of the Administration.

(iii) improving Security of Life and Property

Security of life and property represents perhaps the most vital justification for the existence of any government. Given the levels of crime, especially violent crimes in the nation today, there is no basis for complacency by the Administration. Massive investment in the areas of improving the capacity of the security agencies, particularly the Nigeria Police is a hallmark of the current policy. Increasing the size, modernising the equipment, boosting the morale and improving the remuneration of the police are elements of this policy. The policy is also structured to improving cooperation in the area of security among security agencies of government and between Governments, particularly, federal/State/Local Government on one hand, and Nigeria and its neighbouring countries on the other hand. It is vital to keep in mind here that civil society is critical in terms of containing the levels of insecurity in our country today, and this is currently engaging the attention of the Administration.

(iv) Containing Corruption

No phenomenon had greater negative impact on our nation than the unbridled corruption which, sadly, had become part of our everyday existence as a people. Indeed, it is no exaggeration to say that until the recent all-out assault which this Administration has unleashed on this evil, this country was close to irretrievable collapse, in terms of our economic structure, our moral and ethical system and our political environment, all of which have been eroded by pervasive corruption.

The current policies targeting the elimination of corruption are unprecedented in this country, not only in their scope, but in terms of the political will which supports them. We must admit though that our policies against corruption have also been shaped by a thorough appreciation of its root causes, the factors that nurture it, the forces that support and benefit from it, as well as comparative analyses with other societies or nations which have had similar experiences like ours. The policy is an all-embracing one targeted at a number of key areas which provide structural support for corruption. For example, it has been noted that one source, or cause of corruption has been the propensity of past administrations to exercise more than healthy regulation and control over the nation’s economic activities. This problem is being tackled through the policies of economic liberalization, commercialization and privatization, as well as the key legal and institutional reforms introduced in the economic sector.

Another sector that bred corruption has been the uncontrolled expansion in the public sector employment. The painstaking processes of verification of actual size of the Federal Public Service the streamlining and rationalization of government ministries parastatals and agencies, and stringent controls over expansions have been used as effective policies to deal with the corruption manifested by this problem. Yet another source which has been identified as providing a basis for widespread public sector corruption is the massive expansion in public procurement. To control this problem, a battery of new systems and processes have now been introduced. These include a comprehensive system of

Due Process to deal with the problem. Major revisions in the Financial Regulations of the Public Service have been made. The objective of policy in this area is to achieve value-for-money in the area of Public Sector procurement and thereby eliminate rampant corruption which has rendered prices of basic purchases by government in Nigeria as one of the highest hi the world.

Finally, the weaknesses of regulatory and control mechanisms within both the public and private sector have also been major sources of corruption. Policy in this direction has targeted the achievement of enhanced capacity of control mechanisms, as well as improving the integrity levels of key public service operatives. Above all, the enactment of the Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Act, and the establishment of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission represent effective policy instruments which seek to eliminate corruption in both the private and public sectors.

In the course of this presentation, I provided, very briefly, the theoretical basis of policy formulation process. I then went on to draw from our current national experience by highlighting the factors that motivate and sustain Public Policy under the Obasanjo Administration. I then selected a few issues towards which major policies have been formulated and deployed by this Administration, to underscore the Administration’s objectives and strategies. I wish to conclude by highlighting a number of key elements that will guarantee the success of public policies in governance:

(i) Public Policy must be predicated on a realistic assessment of issues or problems, means and ends;

(ii) A Public Policy should be structured to evolve by the most widespread consultation from experts, stakeholders, including relevant groups adopting a mix of approaches, "top-down ", "bottom-up", lateral, and even popular opinion, and should be given extensive publicity to secure for it maximum institutional and public support;

(iii) Public Policy must have an in-built capacity to be monitored, evaluated and reviewed without compromising its essential components;

(iv) Public Policy must be backed by a strong institutional commitment towards its faithful implementation; and finally

(v) Sustainability of any Public Policy relies on a strong political will and discipline to ensure that it is shielded from sabotage and subversion from unpatriotic elements.

Being the excerpts from the lecture delivered at the Senior Executive Course 23 at the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies , Kuru, Jos

October 2001