By Frank Meke
Two major documents on “Nigeria Everywhere” with the year 2030 as the premium eclipse date and a supposed infrastructural special purpose vehicle public liability company to drive a 100 billion dollars Cultural tourism and creative economy with two million jobs in view, was approved by federal Executive Council about two weeks ago.
These two documents have been the green plate of Hannatu Musa Musawa’s policy focus since she cat walked into our sector as a federal minister of Culture and Creative economy, lately of Tourism. In other words, these documents and others she had regaled us with their assumed potency were not new. She has worked hard to drum them into our ears and not into our hearts.
A day after the Creative and Tourism Infrastructure Corporation ( CTIco) went viral, I warned that the document, which in the first place has no clear-cut buy-in by the organised private sector players, whom Hannatu consciously or unconsciously avoided like lepers, would not fly
In my published report tilted, “Hurdles before Hannatu’s CTICO and the dysfunctional structures in the ministry of culture and Tourism”, I had pinned to wall that the proposed CTICO is a death nail and instrument of a vote against the established institutional structures as represented by the fourteen government parastatals under the ministry.
It’s imperative to advantage our concerns and worries about CTICO, as possible vehicles of corruption and arboretum of dysfunctional infrastructural development gaps in Nigeria, and to carefully focus on the mandates of each of agencies under the ministry.
In this second focal look at CTICO ( we shall later address the short put and envelope expectations of Nigeria Everywhere 2030), the integrity profile and risk assessment of this special purpose vehicle would be highlighted.
My brother and good friend, Obi Asika, Director General, National Council for Arts and Culture ( NCAC), believes that these policy documents hold the pivotal dream to relaunch Nigeria into the global cultural tourism market, and particular in creating jobs.
Apart from the several calls and written interventions from critical stakeholders who read my first published report, some even threatened to go to court to challenge Hannatu’s pet projects, I had warned Asike of the consequences of giving voice to a project that threatens the jobs of his colleagues and himself inclusive.
In fact, many people who reacted to the FEC approvel, certainly wondered if the council actually took time to debate and discuss the socioeconomic, political, and legal landmines inherent in floating such a CTICO company .
Recently and as documented in the audited Reports of by the Auditor General of the Federation, a whopping 167 billion naira was collected from 31 Ministries, Departments and Agencies of government by contractors without any trace of executed projects anywhere.
This trend questions the integrity profile of CTICO, which aims at 45 % stake by the government through the Ministry of Finance, which will also be a watch dog on the company, baffles the operational survival of the Hannatu’s CTICO which smells like other failed government inspired special purpose vehicles that later transmuted into vehicles and central bank of corruption.
Indeed, CTICO is not only a simplistic and emotional absurdity to jump-start and solve the problem infrastructural needs in the tourism space in the country, it also begs the issue as the multiplicity of effective ecosystem to fulfil the dreams are captured by state governments and even other federal government ministries and Commissions.
The massive looting of funds by contractors engaged by the government and I also dare say that even public quoted companies strike at the heart of Hannatu’s CTICO as an arboretum of suspicious special purpose vehicle to fulfil the job creation agendas cum any perceived infrastructural gaps.
Already the SOCIOECONOMIC Rights and Accountability Projects, a civil society organisation has sued the President and Attorney General of the Federation to court, requesting that the minister of finance and coordinating minister of the economy, to name and prosecute the contractors who made away with 167 billion naira belonging to MDAs.
I fear, like many other private sector players, that CTICO may end in the belly of snakes and monkeys. Critically, we can not understand the single digit absence of collaboration and consultation by the madam minister on this project, which she seems to be championing as an ego project.
Did Madam Minister actually reach out to sister ministries, commissions, and state governments to prep this idea, or is she consumed by the” I know it all” mentality?
One major off beat about the minister’s operational ecosystem is her poor consultation metrics and agenda to Lord her views against anyone, forgetting she is appointed to serve Nigerian private sector players in the industry and not to dictate absolutism to them.
As one of her major critic, I hold no personal bitterness against her person and would be failing in my duty as an accountability watch dog, If one looks away from the pitfalls, she blindly wish to lead into.
Last week, the Nigerian infrastructure Concession Commission opened discussions with the International Finance Corporation ( IFC), a member of World Bank, on how to fund infrastructure development in Nigeria through public private sector partnership
We all know the operational mandate of Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission and wonder if Hannatu’s pet dream can not be realised through a strategic partnership and collaboration with this government enabled Commission except, possibly there are other underlying reasons to an ecosystem that could be driven from the regulatory organised platform.
In all we do , both personal and organisational integrity must be highlighted and pursed patriotically to birth, enduring legacy as against personal ego and pride.
The problem of Nigeria are Nigerians who place self above collective interest and herein lies our albatross and shame.
There is nothing in Hannatu’s CTICO that can’t be done by the 14 agencies under her ministry, which if driven by innovation, passion, and dedication to cultural tourism rival in Nigeria, would endear us all to the true values of leadership by madam minister
If you ask me, CTICO is a suspect and won’t solve any infrastructural gaps, but it would rather empower envelope investors to grab government enabled opportunities. Herein, among many others, lies the pitfall of CTICO.
