By Kola Animashaun

Each time Sanusi Lamido Sanusi opens his mouth, most of us are compelled to listen. For he makes some good sense. But this is not to say that we do not say some good sense as well.

Oh yes, we have made some sense but nobody seems to care. But anytime Sanusi speaks, Nigerians listen. He has the clout; he has the position-spiritual and temporal. He is the governor of the Central bank of Nigeria.

Lamido Sanusi’s father was the permenant secretary in the ministry of foreign affairs in the 1960’s. And above, his grandfather was Alhaji Muhammadu Sanusi Dan Abdullahi Bayero, the 11thEmir of Kano and the 54thSarkin of kano. He started his reign on the new year of 1954. He was not only an Emir but also an Islamic scholar whose fame carried through the land. He was knighted a knight of the British empire (K.B.E).

CBN Governor,Lamido Sanusi

His grandfather was a contemporary of the Sardauna of Sokoto, The Premier of Northern Region, Sir Ahmadu Bello. We do not need to write that Sir Ahmadudeposed him in 1963 and lived out his life in Azare.

Sanusi Lamido Sanusi imbibes the characteristics of his father and that of his grandfather. He is scholarly, uncompromising and say-it-as it is. Of course, because of the way he came up, he is able to say anything and damn the consequence.

A few days ago (precisely last Saturday), Sanusi looked at the political structures of Nigeria and asked: “Do we need 36 states? Do we need the number of ministries that we have? Is an economy where states spend 96 percent of their revenue paying civil servants. An economy that is likely to grow in the long run? these are difficult questions that we need to ask.

“We have created states and local governments and ministries as structures that are economically unviable and the result is that we do not have funding for infrastructure, we do not have funding for education; we do not have funding for health”.

Speaking at an essay in honour of Prof. Adamu Baike, Sanusi said “I don’t know how many people know that 70 percent of the revenue of the federal government is spent paying salaries and overhead, leaving the rest 30 percent for 150million Nigerians”.

According to him, “there is no provision for infrastructural facilities by the various tiers of government. And in an emerging economy like our own, a well designed educational policy should be an integral part of its development strategy.”

Sanusi said the present development strategies should include measures to invest in human capital that facilitates the upgrading of industries and engenders the economy to attain optimal resource utilization.”

Did he see any wisdom in the creation of seven new federal universities? Particularly when the existing universities are crying for funds.

Sanusi has fought some battles and he has won some of them. Because the battles are on his streets–banking. I do not think he will be able to win this one. This one is political and many people are making money by it.

Thirty-six states are already too much but even now many are asking for many more. There are 36 governors; 36 deputy governors; 36 speakers and myriads of honourables and many not honourables etc. And they will bond together to fight anybody who wants to break their honey pot.

Carnival at Abuja

Ahmed Bola Tinubu, the ACN leader appeared before the code of conduct Tribunal in Abuja last Wednesday. The outing was like a carnival. At the outing were senators of the republic-past and present. There were many silks including the Lagos state governor Babatunde Raji Fashola (who sat among others) in the first row.

The governors were two for a penny. From among his adversary, there was also Alex Iziyon (SAN) who, the judge confronted. The chairman of the CCT, Justice Danladi Yakubu Umar “lambasted for not informing the panel that an earlier charge against Tinubu had been a subject of appeal at the court of appeal, Abuja”.

The prosecution had withdrawn a charge and filed an amended one albeit with the same particulars.

Justice Umar turned to prosecution counsel Alex Iziyon (SAN): “You mean this happened and you did not bring it to our attention?”

Of course Olanipekun (SAN) was quick to dub it “an abuse of court process”. He urged the panel of three judges to quash and or strike out the three-count amended charge against TInubu by the complainant/ Respondent.