When the bow-tied Sheriff first appeared on the scene, many bankers went absent without leave, discovered ailments which required trips to foreign-based hospitals and care centres, booked luxury VIP rooms in private hospitals in Nigeria or simply stopped attending parties where the paparrazzi were running rampant.
When someone in the same government establishment as the Sherriff dared to utter words that were not found to be acceptable with regards to the state of the nation’s financial health, he was soon seen scouring throught he pages of the classifieds or thinking hard about what to do in early retirement.It takes guts to stand up to the status quo in Nigeria. Moreso when you are employed or engaged or benefiting from the government of the day.
Central bank Governor, Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi is back in play again.
The most viral quote making the rounds today on the internet, via SMS text messaging and even within the BlackBerry Groups is as follows:
“My name is Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, (my name is) not Central Bank Governor. I enjoy my job but if you want me to quit, I will honourably quit,”
There is nothing unexpected in this statement attributed to Lamido Sanusi. We have come to expect him to come out all guns blazing and leaving no ‘live’ bodies in his wake.
If he could take on the might of the Banking Sector and make previously untouchable Nigerians quiver then a strong statement like this is small fry.
The interesting thing at this moment is not the statement but to whom it was directed.
Mallam Sanusi was requested by the Senate/NASS Committee to explain comments attributed to him where he allegedly disclosed that 25.1%, a quarter, of Nigeria’s budget expenditure was expended by the National Assembly alone.
In a season when Nigerians are fed up of the excessiveness of public officials, un-rationalizable amounts of stolen funds, a long-drawn period of hardship and poor economic performance, strikes, non-payment of salaries, poor roads and infrastructure resulting in loss of life and property, insecurity borne out of rampant kidnappings and armed robberies, 25% or the nation’s budget going out to a few good men and women who seemingly do not do much more than collect inordinate amounts of ‘allowances’, takes the biscuit.
The Central Bank Gvernor should know. The nation’s budget is within his purview. How it is spent is something he whould be aware of and what it is spent on will make up details of his reporting structure.
So if Lamido Sanusi says that the National Assembly is a Black Hole for the nations budget, we have to believe him. If he says the government is wasteful, who are we to argue?
When Lamido Sanusi faced the Senate hearing, he made his now infamous statement directly to the members of the hearing committee.
This is where Lamido Sanusi pitches himself against the status quo and bravely so.
Nigerians have been craving for heroes. Men and women who will stand up for their beliefs, firstly by having beliefs, and seemingly standing up for the people against the status quo.
The impact and import of Lamido Sanusi’s statement apparently resulted in the suspension of the hearing. Someone was better advised not to take on Lamido Sanusi any further or at least in public, on this matter.
There are less people serving in the National Assembly than there are in most underfunded tertiary institutions in Nigeria. However, as has been reported elsewhere, each earns more than the President of the United States of America.
How do we justify public service meant to serve the people if each member of the house, some not more qualified to head your Gardeners’ Union at home, can earn much more than they would ordinarily have if the positions were based on qualifications, merit, excellent policies, experience and all that which makes up the criteria in a meritocratic society?
Lets take a look at the statement again.
“My name is Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, (my name is) not Central Bank Governor. I enjoy my job but if you want me to quit, I will honourably quit,”
There is a bit of higher intellectual causticity in this statement. Lamido Sanusi is educating members of the nation’s assembly on what the name of the Central Bank Governor of their country is.
If they needed to be told or educated on that, you wonder what got them into the positions they are in today.
Lamido Sanusi is pointedly explaining to members of our National Assembly what protocol in addressing people and position holders is.
This makes you wonder those who sit on the other side of this sort of hearing.
The part Nigerians love the most at the moment is the dare.
Lamido Sanusi knows the politics of interference that plagues government work. He dares the committee to move for his sack. He would rather resign.
Now, in the light of what some say happened to the former Minister of State for Finance, Remi Babalola, what has Lamido Sanusi done here?
In the eyes of many, he has raised his profile once again and dared those who many see as ‘enemies of progress’, to replace him as Central Bank Governor.
Where many heads of government agencies and departments have come across as weak and ‘paid for’, Nigerians from all parts of the country, ‘zoning’ not in effect here, seem to have found a hero.
Government largesse and gratitude for having a job in a dire economy, is never a basis for people of integrity to sell their souls and join in the stampede to ruin the lives of 150 million people.
Last year on our Debate and Review.com website we made Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, the Bow-tied Sherriff and Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, our Man of the Year.
This late in the year, the very last month, Sanusi is making a major drive for Nigeria’s Man of the Year again.
Until we reach our conclusions on the nominees and winners of the D&R Awards, Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, remains an epitome of the Original Gangster!
Look out National Assembly,
Here comes the Hotstepper,
Murderer!
Original Gangster!
Murderer!
May his good friends Messrs. Smith & Wesson never stop popping.
What do you think?
