‘It looks as if it is everyday that things are becoming very difficult in this country. The worsening condition of living we experience everyday shows that this Yar’Adua government is not really working.

Although the man talks and behaves as if he means well, but what is presently on the ground does not give anybody the confidence to say he is succeeding after over one year in office,’ he observed with dissatisfaction.

Parliamentarian Tony Amadi took it up from there. ‘Yes, the situation in Nigeria presently does not call for celebration or commendation.

Honestly, one expected that Nigerians should, by now, have started reaping the fruits of Yar’Adua’s Seven Point Agenda and his Vision 2020. 

Personally, I think a year is long enough for us to start enjoying the dividends of democracy under his administration.

But that is not the case if one is to  assess his performance in office. So, if after one year, we still have nothing to show for it by way of an improvement in the living condition of Nigerians, it is either that the man is not capable of ruling us at this time or his Seven Point Agenda is faulty.

And if his economic policy is faulty, it only means he has to change it fast instead of waiting for the Nigerian economy to collapse before doing anything about it,’ he stated with feeing.

But parliamentarian Abdul Farouk could not understand the fuss being raised over the President’s performance so far. ‘When you said the President has not performed, what exactly do you mean? You’re not specific on how he has failed to perform for us to understand how he has failed.

Is it in the area of the economy, which he is still rebuilding after all the years that it was allowed to collapse?

Or, is it in the area of politics which he has set up a body to reform the electoral process so that Nigerians can have more confidence in the way elections are conducted in this country in the future. Please tell me,’ he challenged.

Tony was quick to respond to this as he said: ‘Look around you today and tell me what is working in this country. Is it the regular power supply he promised us by declaring an emergency in the power sector? Are you not aware that the power situation has worsened since he came into office? Are we to talk of the roads?

Almost all the federal roads, especially in the South-South and South East are no longer motorable. Are you not also aware that the prices of foodstuff and other essential items that people need to survive have been hitting the roofs in spite of all the money we have been making  from the sale of crude oil?

Apart from that, everyday you open the newspapers or put on the radio or TV, what do you see?  Crises everywhere.

Even the kidnapping that started in the Niger Delta that was targeted at oyibo people has spread to other parts of the country and nobody feels safe because the Police has not been able to do anything to arrest the perpetrators. So, is that the signs of a government that is working?’

Before Abdul could respond to this, Parliamentarian Ken Onuoha had come to his aid. ‘Look, my brother, the situation you have just described cannot be blamed on Yar’Adua. Those problems have been there for long and he is just slightly over one year in office.

These problems are structural and they will take time to be tackled effectively. I think that’s what he’s trying to do with his Seven Point Agenda and the Vision 2020. Whatever is worth doing is worth doing well.

The kind of problems we’re talking about do not require short term solutions but long term solutions. Somebody suffering from ordinary headache will be right to just take paracetamol or panadol.

But if a test proves that the problem originates from an attack of malaria or typhoid fever, then he has no choice but to go for full treatment which may take a longer time to accomplish.

That is how it’s with the problems that affect a country like Nigeria ,’ he submitted with conviction.
But, both Tony and Frank were not impressed by this submission and expressed opposition to it.

‘What you have just said is nothing but a lame excuse in the context of the situation of things in the country under Yar’Adua.

As a President, Yar’Adua should know without being told that he was elected into office to find solutions to our problems as quickly as possible,’ began Tony in a reprimanding tone. Continuing, he said: ‘We did not elect him to spend years in office experimenting on how to solve our problems.

Abeg, we Nigerians have suffered for too long; we need a respite; we need immediate implementation of programmes that will impact positively on our lives so that we can begin to live like other people in other parts of the world’.

Ken, however, has an appropriate response to this. “If you think Yar’Adua is not aware of these problems, why do you think he just reshuffled his cabinet? The man wants to deliver on his electoral promises and is doing his best to make this possible.

It’s just that we Nigerians are usually impatient; we want solution to every problem in a twinkling of an eye without bothering to find out what is behind the problem in question. We also forget that as a government is trying to find solution to the problems in the country, some people are busy trying to sabotage its efforts because of their selfist interest.

So, we should give Yar’Adua time to sort things out for us instead of criticising him unnecessarily,” he argued with feeling.

But Tony and Frank still refused to buy into his argument and so the debate continued.

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