Nigerian Govt needs to urgently address socio-economic challenges ahead 2025 – CISLAC, TI-Nigeria
*Want improved Early Warning systems, better salaries for security personnel
By BASHIR ADEFAKA
They advocated for adoption of international best practices in intelligence gathering and improvement of inter-agency cooperation among defence forces. “Radical reforms are needed, including Early Warning systems and better remuneration for security personnel,” Rafsanjani added.
Just ahead of New Year of 2025 that started today January 1, Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) and Transparency International Nigeria, issued a clarion call for leadership of Nigeria to give a serious thought to an urgent reforms that can address the socio-economic challenges the nation when through for the whole of 2024.
President of Nigeria is currently Mr. Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who came to office after President Muhammadu Buhari completed his eight years of two-term tenure on May 29, 2023, has governed Nigeria amidst cries and wailings of hardship, hunger and never-seen before poverty level occasioned by his policies on fuel subsidy removal and foreign exchange.
Despite these realities, some media organisations – to the chagrin of majority of the masses – declared the President, Bola Tinubu, as winner of their respective ‘MAN OF THE YEAR’ Awards even as the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) named the President in his report published on Monday December 30, 2024 as number three of most corrupt leaders in the world.
The OCCRP, which coordinates a network of investigative journalists and activists, revealed that Kenyan President, William Ruto received the highest number of votes in the process for determining the rankings but listed Tinubu as third, following former Indonesian President, Joko Widodo. Despite the vote, however, the main “Person of the Year” titled was awarded to Bashar al-Assad, who was recently ousted as President of Syria.
As those awards and rankings lasted at the tail end of 2024, CISLAC and Transparent International Nigeria came up with their own joint statement through which they made a case for urgent reforms to address challenges that corruption-related circumstances had caused the country and its people.
In the statement signed by Comrade Auwal Musa Rafsanjani, who is Executive Director CISLAC and Head of Transparency International Nigeria, the foremost civil society organisations said, “The government must implement rapid and holistic measures to address citizens’ plights.”
According to the Rafsanjani, who is also the Chairman Boards of Transition Monitoring Group (TMG) and Amnesty International (Nigeria), CISLAC and TI-Nigeria emphasised the excessive cost of governance as a critical barrier to national development.
“High governance costs divert resources from critical sectors,” the organisation noted, pointing out that many states are pursuing unproductive projects despite recommendations from the Orosanye Report aimed at reducing wasteful expenditures.
CISLAC and TI-Nigeria underscored the urgent need for enhanced security measures in 2025. “The government must allocate adequate resources to security sectors to combat ongoing violence,” the statement stressed.
They advocated for adoption of international best practices in intelligence gathering and improvement of inter-agency cooperation among defence forces. “Radical reforms are needed, including Early Warning systems and better remuneration for security personnel,” Rafsanjani added.
To safeguard democracy, CISLAC and TI-Nigeria insisted on comprehensive constitutional amendments and reforms in political parties and electoral systems. “A judiciary lacking focus undermines democracy,” they warned, urging reforms to restore public faith in the legal system. “The Nigerian people deserve leadership that is responsive, accountable, and capable of delivering development and prosperity,” the statement emphasised.
CISLAC and TI-Nigeria also highlighted that weak border security has facilitated terrorism financing, with 137 out of 261 borders unguarded. “We must enhance the capacity of anti-corruption agencies to tackle these issues effectively,” they stated, calling for stricter financial regulations to combat money laundering and illicit financial flows.
Despite attempts to undermine anti-corruption agencies, CISLAC and TI-Nigeria called for reaffirming commitment to their independence. “The government must fully implement anti-corruption laws to remove Nigeria from international grey lists,” they urged. “Without addressing systemic corruption, achieving sustainable development will remain an illusion,” Rafsanjani recalled the warning during a recent presentation at the UN General Assembly.
On local government autonomy, CISLAC and TI-Nigeria commended recent judicial rulings supporting local government autonomy but emphasised the need for constitutional reforms to ensure effective grassroots development. “Local governments must be empowered financially and administratively to deliver on their mandates,” they stated.
In conclusion, CISLAC and TI-Nigeria emphasised the need for an economic blueprint to address Nigeria’s challenges, focusing on diversification through public-private partnerships in agriculture and industry. “Our nation’s challenges are immense but surmountable. With transparency, accountability, and reform, Nigeria can still achieve its goals,” Rafsanjani concluded.
