NIGERIA AT 56: ROOM FOR HOPE?

Aside from the usual tired voice of President Buhari (No one cheat change due to aging), the presidential address this morning to mark Nigeria's 56th independence anniversary dangled some reason to renew hope on the country's immediate future. But it could have offered much more.

For one, it does not look any more like the present administration is in power primarily to hunt down corrupt officials particularly from the stable of opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP).

Buhari still reemphasized anti corruption as the flagship of his administration but in addition Nigerians were told, for example, that self sufficiency in some grains is around the corner. He listed Rice, millet and others to be likely off the import list by 2018.

Indeed, he said that Kebbi state alone already has 1m metric tonnes of Rice within view and many other states are also stepping unto ring.

With back glance, all 12 river basin authorities existing in the country are to be revived, he also assured.

The president also mentioned some strategic roads under construction or rehabilitation across the nationeven though, sadly the strategic Onitsha bridge was conspicuously absent.

He briefed too of the government partnership with the Chinese and General Electric to revamp fully the nations railways to reduce pressure on roads.

He said the power supply bottleneck is getting renewed attention through development plans for alternatives to gas especially as in solar energy and hydro power.

He talked tough to militants and insurgent groups that no group that challenges the authority of the Federal Government will succeed and at the same time, told Nigerians negotiations are on- going to end the Niger Delta crises.

But alas, after acknowledging that Nigeria is threatened by sharp and still dwindling drop in foreign earnings, he offered nothing concrete as new incentives and strategies to tackle it head on. He only glibly assured that something is being done to attract more investors. The same with incentives and strategies needed to revamp industrial production and ginger creativity and more value addition in Nigeria

Luckily for Nigerians, in spite of this, God in his faithfulness is already offering some hope of crude oil price recovery via OPEC's recent consensus to cut production to shore up prices, with  key countries like Saudi Arabia finally lining up behind it.

Once world market allows crude oil price to recover well, the next most crucial issue will remain how Mr President and his team handle the renewed militancy in the Niger Delta.

Unfortunately linking the military arm of the operation to crocodile smile is already telling militants this is not a government with a smile that could be trusted. And so, naturally, for all it is worth crocodile tears was their response. Which shows how right words and body language and even how tired your voice is, conveying impressions that mar or boost such very crucial reach out efforts

Yesterday, Adaka Boro and his gang were the ones crushed. Then Ken Sari wiwa followed with his Abacha executed group. That's more than enough to teach any one that killing without tackling and removing the root cause of the Niger Delta recurrent discontent offers only temporary way out of the mess.

Much the same way, should the present recession come to an end without right foundations being laid for more judicious and productive use and sharing of the national cake alongside continuous baking facilities, it will be mortgage of the future for next to nothing.

After all, Nigeria's debt profile has risen astronomically in the last year or two and much of that will be serviced or repaid by future generations and governments.