WE can count. One of the things we number well is promises. This may have something to do with the expectations politicians who made them would soon forget. President Goodluck Jonathan may have a different intention in saying he did not have a number of items in the agenda of his administration.

He could have said that to distance himself from the seven-point agenda of former President Umaru Musa YarÁdua, but we know he made promises to Nigerians. He did, and Nigerians can decide to total them to the agenda for the administration. We should be too far concerned with managing Nigeria to be finicky about a tag for an aggregation of issues or the agenda.

Of course the President made promises if we must remind him. On Thursday, 19 March 2011 he promised to ensure that all 36 states have a domestic airport.

“If I win the election, within my four years in office, I will establish domestic airports in all the remaining States without airport. We will work with the state governments to achieve that and Jigawa will be our focal point,” Jonathan promised.

That is a lot to promise at the pace government moves. If the promise is kept, it is one that may be more political than economic. Many of the existing airports suffer low traffic and their equipment may not qualify them for the name.

The President made more promises on 29 May during his inauguration. He may call them his “fights”, however Nigerians see them as the agenda of the administration. “I will continue to fight for your future. I will continue to fight, for improved medical care for all our citizens. I will continue to fight for all citizens to have access to first class education.

I will continue to fight for electricity to be available to all our citizens. I will continue to fight for an efficient and affordable public transport system for all our people.

“I will continue to fight for jobs to be created through productive partnerships. You have trusted me with your mandate, and I will never, never let you down.

“I know your pain, because I have been there. Look beyond the hardship you have endured. The time for lamentation is over now is the time for transformation.”

“Over the next four years, attention will be focused on rebuilding our infrastructure. We will create greater access to quality education and improved health care delivery. We will pay special attention to the agricultural sector, to enable it play its role of ensuring food security and massive job creation for our people.

“In every decision, I shall always place the common good before all else.”

These are just a few of the promises he made less than two months ago. Neither in new speeches, nor in conduct has the President or his appointees shown they understand the weighty import of these promises. Nigerians will not forget the promises and it would not matter whether someone decides to make them the agenda of the administration or not.

People praised the inauguration speech more for the promises it promoted than the elegance of the speech still regarded as the President’s best. He promised, we are counting and  remember that, “The time for lamentation is over now is the time for transformation”.