• ‘We are waiting for Board inauguration to hit the ground running’

By Kennedy Mbele

Senator Adedayo Adeyeye is the Chairman, Nigerian Ports Authority, NPA. In this interview, the former Minister of State for Works expresses satisfaction with President Tinubu’s performance in the past two years, awarding him 99%. Adeyeye, who was appointed NPA boss on July 12, 2024, said the agency’s board members have also been appointed and should be inaugurated shortly. Among other issues of public interest, the Ekiti State-born politician speaks on the political situation in the country, allaying fears about Nigeria drifting to a one-party system. Excerpts:

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu marked his second anniversary in office recently. How do you rate his performance?
If I am to score President Tinubu based on his performance in the last two years, I will probably give him 99%. He has done extremely well. Those of us who started the campaign, SWAGA, are not disappointed. We sold a very capable leader to Nigerians and he has not disappointed us. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has been extremely courageous in terms of the economic policy that he has initiated. Firstly, the removal of fuel subsidy. I don’t need to belabour the point, I think both national and international business people, economists and observers have all commended that effort because Nigeria was at the point of death; almost in Intensive Care Unit, ICU. By the time he took over, there was no money to pay for importation of fuel, let alone, subsidising it even as we were like Father Christmas to our neighbouring countries. The country was absolutely bankrupt and it was the decision he took that saved us. Mind you, other leaders have contemplated taking the same decision even since the time of former President Obasanjo but they lacked the courage to take it. Président Tinubu was able to see that without taking that decision, there was no way Nigeria could move forward; the economy would have collapsed by now.
We talk of increase in fuel prices, but, by now, without money to import fuel we would have all been riding bicycles. So, I want to commend those efforts, including his floating of the currency that was a genius step, a very brilliant move by the president, because we had people in the economy who were feeding fat on the resources of the nation. People used their connections with the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, and other powerful agencies, collected dollars and then went and sold at the black market without doing anything and made huge profits. Président Tinubu brought that to an end and now we have a situation whereby the naira is gradually stabilizing. In the last one year, exchange rate has been reasonably stable and businessmen and other economic agents are able to plan, given the fact that there is stability in the foreign exchange regime. So, the combination of these two factors has freed the Nigerian economy so that it could breathe at last. It was suffocating before, now it could breathe. The economy is alive and it has allowed the government to have enough resources not only to service its debts, but even to pay back some of the debts and then to be able to release more resources to states and local governments, all of whom were virtually collapsing. They were unable to pay salaries by the time President Tinubu assumed office. State governments and local governments have never had it so well.
They are now not only able to settle their debts, many of them have increased salaries and are paying salaries and are also able to invest in projects that are beneficial to the people. So, I think that, going by all parameters, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has done extremely well as far as the economy is concerned. He has also been bold enough to take up very important projects like the Coastal Road. This Coastal Road has been on the drawing board for long. I was in the Ministry of Works and I saw it. It was there when I was there but was never implemented and he now came and decided that this was one way to open the Nigerian economy because, as you can see, by the time this project is completed, you will see new towns and economic activities. It will be a new Nigeria entirely. I can tell you, it will be the 8th Wonder of the World.

The Nigerian Ports Economic Regulatory Agency, NPERA, Bill passed by the National Assembly is yet to be signed into law by Mr President despite its anticipated great roles in ushering in a structured framework for regulating Nigeria’s port system. What is your take on Mr President’s delay in signing it?   
Law-making is a general responsibility of both legislators and the executive. Lawmakers pass Bills, and then forward them to the president who has the right to assent or not to assent. He (president) may decide to veto but lawmakers can override by two-thirds majority. But the president does not have to rush to assent any Bill. It is his responsibility to look at the Bill critically; examine areas that might have been overlooked by the legislature, even additions can be made and then sent back to the legislature. I think the president is in the process of doing that. You know, he is a meticulous person. He is not a person who would rush to do things and I believe that at the appropriate time, the president will take action on that Bill.
 
How true is the information we have that leaders of some agencies are not comfortable with the Bill and, as such, are pressuring Mr President to withhold assent to it?
It is natural that they may not want their powers taken from them, sometimes people rush to make decisions and take decisions that have not critically taken account of all interests. The Nigeria Ports Authority is saddled with its own responsibilities just as the other agencies in the maritime sector and some people believe that you can just one day take away those responsibilities.

I think the president is in position to have a look at all these things and decide. I don’t want to comment so much on whether NPA and all those agencies are pressurizing him. This president is not the kind of person you can push to do something he hasn’t considered critically. He is very careful in taking decisions. So, I advise those who are critics and observers in the sector to wait for the president’s decisions which I am sure will be in the national interest.

Almost one year down the lane, Can you share with us some of the changes you have brought into the NPA?
Let me state it clearly, my appointment was made by the president on July 12, 2024 but it was not accompanied with the full complement of Board members, there is no Board, as we speak. I was issued a letter of appointment but I do not have a Board over which I could preside and that process is being finalized now. My last information is that the president has constituted the Board and we are waiting its inauguration by the Honourable Minister of Marine and Blue Economy. That is why I was not able to act as I would have wanted to. I have not been in a position to initiate policies or to provide solutions to issues but I am recognized as the Chairman but without a Board that could take decisions properly for the agency. That’s the situation as of now.

In other words, you have been in limbo for the period as there are no board members to work with?
I wouldn’t say I have been in limbo. I have been partially effective, without Board. No Chairman of an agency can function effectively without a Board of Directors. Chairmen need Boards because the Board is the body recognized to be the final authority in any agency. And, without a Board, you alone, as the Chairman, can’t take decisions. You need the Board to take decisions and I think the president has his own reasons. Don’t forget, this president is well experienced, he has his policies and I believe that at the appropriate time he is going to do it. Like I told you, he has constituted the Board of NPA, and we are just waiting for inauguration by the grace of God.
I want to appeal to people in similar positions to be patient. It is good enough that you are recognized for these important positions. It’s an honour to serve the country and so, if your appointment is not effective immediately, just bear it in mind that you are already honored and, of course, in due course, it will be effective.

Recently, there was a protest over 15% increment in charges at the NPA. Can we say that this increment was not well assessed and advised, since there was no Board and you are not performing optimally?
I wouldn’t say that (is the case) since I was not briefed on it and I didn’t know anything about it. I just pray when the Board is on, we will take on all of these issues, we will be able to chart a new course for the organization. And, by the grace of God, we will bring our activities to bear. So, I cannot comment seriously on that issue. Let us come on board fully, then we will be able to address all of these issues. You can invite me after that and I will be able to answer your questions properly.

We understand there was a lot of traffic to your house after your appointment as NPA Chairman was announced. Can you tell us about the current traffic situation to your house?
The traffic to my house was very heavy when the announcement of my appointment was made. Everybody was coming. It’s natural in Nigeria, we have seen it before. People were bombarding me from left, right and centre. A lot of friends came up and a lot of people also came up and I expected it because that is natural. But, as they noticed that we have not been on seat properly, the traffic has reduced, considerably. People have realized that this man has not really taken charge of anything. I can see that, I don’t usually receive such amount of visitors again but I guess that will start again when the Board is inaugurated.

What is your take on the current political situation in thé country which many fear is drifting into one-party system? 
The political situation in the country is not unexpected. Firstly, President Tinubu has performed exceptionally well as far as the economy is concerned. Governors realized that without his policies, many of them would have run away from their state capitals because they won’t have money to pay salaries. But now, they have a lot of money, some of them don’t even know what to do with it as I read from people’s comments. Some people say some of governors don’t know what to do with the money they are receiving, so they are happy with the president on that score. And then the president, I call him the grand master of Nigerian politics, give it to him, since 1999, nobody, I say it without any fear of contradiction, has been as politically suave as President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. People come to him usually, he is warm and open to everybody and so the governors feel that this is the person they can relate with and, given the political atmosphere of Nigeria, PDP seems to be in disarray after the (2023) elections. No one seems to be in control of the Labor Party, and we don’t have any other political group that you can say is good to challenge the president. In the circumstances, you find a lot of people drifting to the APC, they are not actually driven to the party but they are driven to Bola Ahmed Tinubu because this is a president they like, this is the president they want to support for the second tenure and I do not see anything bad in it. Every political system has either a one-party or two parties’ domination. What I am saying is that you will have several parties but one can be dominant or in other system two can be dominant. In America, you talk of Republican and Democratic parties but, don’t forget, there are at least 100 parties in the United States of America. In Britain, Conservative and Labour Party are dominant, but there are over 393 registered political parties. We have seen countries like Singapore where one party have been ruling since 1965. There are other political parties in that country but one has remained dominant. In Japan, one party has been in power since 1955 till date. So it’s not a bad scene, provided that the party is really serving the interest of the people and bringing unity in the country. Also, provided people recognize the party as a party which they can rely on for a better future. So, to the people talking about Nigeria drifting to one-party system, I tell them Nigeria can never drift to one-party system. One-party system is constitutionally legislated; it is usually captured in the Constitution. But, what we are experiencing now is the dominance of one particular political party which is the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC. And, we have had a situation like that before even in Nigeria when the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, was dominant for 16 years.

How do you justify your assertion that having a dominant political party is not unhealthy in a democratic setting like Nigeria?
I don’t think it is particularly unhealthy as I mentioned earlier. I mentioned the example of Singapore where one party has been dominant since 1965 and they have done well. Singapore was taken from a 3rd World Nation to a 1st World Nation within that period by one party that is still ruling the country. There are other parties that were not banned but people think that this party is doing well. In Nigeria, the PDP was dominant for about 16 years during which a former Chairman of the party was quoted as saying that the party was going to rule for 60 years. But Nigerians decided otherwise in 2015. APC is dominant today maybe because of the charismatic leadership of Bola Ahmed Tinubu. But, in another 10-15 years or more, I know Nigeria, another party may be in power and become dominant. So, it’s not particularly an unending situation, things change. APC is the party delivering now, that is why people are crowding around it.

Two years before the 2027 général elections, the ruling party, APC, is engrossed with endorsement of Mr President instead of governance. Is endorsement campaign the proper thing to be doing now?
You cannot blame the ruling party for starting such political activités now. Recall that people started forming their opposition months ago; they started building opposition to the government, saying that they want to form a coalition that will oppose President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in the next elections. Every action naturally attracts an equal opposite reaction, people also reacted, saying that this man you are forming opposition against, we will also let you know that we are standing by him, that is why those endorsements are there, but it has not caused any distractions in government, I can assure you of that. The government is functioning, the government is working, and everything that needs to be done is being done. We shouldn’t bother ourselves about that because I don’t see anything wrong with it at all. And, let me tell you, people don’t know, it’s not too early to start endorsing or start campaigning because, by this time next year, we will have the primaries for the president. In America, after one or two years, you start the primaries circle, and we are operating the same presidential system of government. If the president will be going round all the states in Nigeria to seek endorsements for his primaries, you now say that it’s not too early to start campaigns?
 
But, that is against the rules of the Independent National Électoral Commission, INEC…
It’s not a formal campaign for which INEC can sanction anybody. I started SWAGA in year 2020 when the government of former President Buhari was barely six months into its second tenure and people said it was too early and I told them it was not too early, you make hay while the sun shines. You don’t wait until the last minute if you are serious-minded in politics. You start very early, so it’s not too early and I want to assure you that even SWAGA, we will soon be launching our campaign for the second tenure of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. I don’t think it is too early because, by this time next year, we shall be having primary élections for president, governors and legislators; states like Ekiti that have just five months.

So, I think that, going by all parameters, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has done extremely well as far as the economy is concerned.