What Should Be Nigeria’s New Year Resolution?

 

As Nigeria rocks in the New Year euphoria, the nation should also not be left out in drafting the annual rite of New Year’s Resolution. New Year’s Resolution is a global trend though it began from the Babylonians in 2000 BC. New Year’s Resolution is the decision to take some actions to achieve a specified goal or to quit some habits in order to attain a different result. Many individuals at the end or dawn of a year swiftly make a New Year’s Resolution that should resonate with their ambition for the next 365 days. New Year Resolution should be goal oriented. It is employed to yield a positive change in one’s life especially when there has been derailment, stagnancy or negative occurrences.

The stunned growth and development in Nigeria for 62 years after independence; demands that the nation cues into the New Year’s Resolution plan. Perhaps, other years, the nation has been running without specified plans to add value to her development. It’s not news that Nigeria is not where it ought to be in rank with other African nations; let alone developed nations. As we wind down the New Year compliments, Nigerians’ which make up Nigeria should embrace these New Year’s Resolutions to awaken the nations’ growth and development from slumber.

Collect Permanent Voters Cards and exercise Voting Right

Nigeria is one month away from matching her citizens to the polling units come February 25th and March 11th 2023. Nigeria needs to resolve this year to display some sense of political participation and shun apathy to political decisions. The lie that ‘Your Vote Doesn’t Count’ should be abolished, ‘Your Vote Counts’.

Nigeria citizens of the voting age should make a New Year Resolution to exercise their franchise this year. There are already complaints that the collection of PVC’s is low across the nations and that portends a gloomy election. Nigeria should resolve to make 2023 the most participatory election history ever recorded. The engagement on social media and the media is encouraging but voting on the D-day remains the hallmark.

Eradicate Insecurity

Nigeria has recorded two life threatening incidents with the boat mishap in Kebbi state and the abduction of many passengers at Ekehen Rail station, Edo state; barely two weeks into 2023. This news is a normalcy in the country but there is still hope to quit these insecurities. Nigeria through the relevant security authorities like the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps, Nigerian Army, Nigerian Airforce, Department of State Services, Nigeria Police Force, Nigerian Navy etc can resolve to fight insecurity in the nation. The prevalence of insecurity rocked 2022 even in the most supposed safe place- the church. Some of the big terrorizing events in 2022 include, the railway terrorist attack of passengers en route from Abuja to Kaduna on March 28th, a massacre at Saint Francis Catholic Church in Owo, Ondo state on june 5th and several flood cases due to the Cameroon Lagdo dam, rainfall and many boat mishaps. At least 603 were killed and 1.3 million persons displaced from their communities because of the flood, the federal government revealed. In September 2022 Nigeria ranked the 2nd most terrorized country after Iraq by the global Terrorism Research Analysis Organisation. This was a worst scenario because as of March 2022, the nation ranked 6th in the same category. This evidence is enough to say that living in Nigeria comes with trepidation. Hence, Nigeria should add; creating a secured environment for lives and properties as a resolution in 2023.

Value Addition to Naira

There is a doubt that the wide discrepancy between foreign currencies and Naira can ever close up. 2022 steadily exposed the porous nature of Naira such that at the moment, Naira is at the verge of hitting N1, 000 in the black market and N800 in the bank.

A top priority of Nigeria should be to resuscitate the value of the Naira. The depreciating nature of Nigeria has skyrocketed the value of goods in the market. It heightened inflation woes in the country to the extent that the nation banked 133 (63 percent) of her population drowning in multi-dimensional poverty according to the National Bureau of Statistics in 2022. Also, the poor Naira dwindled shipping trade both imports and exports as there was no significant increase. International trade remains bleak if there is a far relationship between the value of the domestic currency and foreign currencies. The devaluation of Naira, gave itself off in the recent approval of the 2023 budget by President Mohammadu Buhari on January 3rd 2023. The government still had to borrow to top the proposed N20.51 trillion. N1.32tn was added to the initial sum to set 2023 rolling with a budget of N21.82 trn.

Whatever lucrative and good means please groom the Naira to gain value. Every commodity is like gold in Nigeria. The masses spend like royals yet live paupers. Let Naira gain momentum this 2023

Domestic Refining of Crude oil 

Phases of fuel scarcity occurred in 2022 from the beginning of the year till December despite the assurance by the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylvia; that Nigeria would bid fuel scarcity farewell by the end of 2022. At the moment, fuel scarcity still lingers on and the hope of Nigeria having a functional refinery is still a dream. Fuel scarcity has birthed outrageous prices of the commodity from the official N165 per liter to N500 per liter or more; in the worst scenario. Nigerians are tired of false promises and solicit the government to fix the petroleum sector. Gone are the days of trumpeting ‘diversify the economy’, it’s obvious that the government has played deaf ears to such pleas as they are bent on making crude oil the sole revenue of the country. However, Nigerians implore the federal government to explore her oil prowess to the fullest. Nigeria should not just bear the largest producer of crude oil in Africa title but also largest refiner of petroleum products. Nigeria needs to reflect that when refined fuel is scarce; leading to increase in price, other variables in the economy become poisoned with inflation. 2022 is evidence of the cankerous effect of fuel scarcity and its child- inflation. Nigeria bid goodbye to 2022 with an inflation rate of 21.47 percent in the month November.

Say No to ASUU Strike

Nigeria tertiary institutions and students almost lost a year’s calendar due to the ‘brawl’ between the Academic Staff Union of Universities and the federal government. ASUU commenced a national strike on 14th February and suspended it on October 14th 2022 ; after eight months. Obviously this is not the first long duration of the ASUU strike in the country. In 2013, institutions witnessed a six month ASUU Strike. This strike has caused universities to be behind their academic clock, coupled with the 2020 COVID Era, catching up has become more daunting. We implore Nigeria through the relevant tertiary education stakeholders, ASUU, Ministry of Labour and Employment and Federal government to keep off all ‘squabbles’ that may halt the 2023 academic session. Among the resolutions of the government regarding tertiary education should be to fulfill the agreements between them and ASUU while ASUU should not request any impossible demands because they ought to know the competency of the government that rules over them; by now. This year, keep the education calendar open.