President decries Igbo's apathy to privatisation
From Lawrence Njoku, (Enugu)
THE apparent lack of interest by Igbo businessmen in the Federal Government's privatisation programme is giving President Olusegun Obasanjo some concern.
In a message he sent to a three-day South East zonal forum on privatisation yesterday, the President described the attitude of the Igbo to the programme as "paradoxical and totally inexplicable given the enterprising spirit and business acumen of the people".
According to him, records available to him show that the South East zone, which is associated with entrepreneurship, inventiveness and commercial ingenuity, is trailing other parts of the country in their participation in the scheme.
The President, who was represented by his Special Assistant on Bureau of Public Enterprises, Rev. Sunday Onuoha said the forum illustrated government's determination to encourage South East businessmen to be part of the reform agenda through active participation in the privatisation programme.
He challenged participants at the forum to contribute meaningfully to the deliberations and assist government in identifying all inhibiting factors, social obstacles and other constraints which might combine to hinder the full involvement and participation of the South East zone in the privatisation programme.
He said: " I wish to express my deep concern with the discomforting reports of apparent disinterestedness of Ndi Igbo in the privatisation programme. It is paradoxical and totally inexplicable that the enterprising spirit and business acumen, hallmarks of Ndi Igbo, have not been brought to bear on the programme."
He further stated that the committed prosecution of the Federal Government's reform agenda had yielded quantifiable results as evidenced in the increased direct foreign investment, reactivation and revitalisation of newly privatised enterprises as well as the noticeable growth in the agricultural, banking and telecommunications sectors of the economy.
The President noted that more noticeable positive impacts of the reforms would become evident when the mega sectors of the economy, such as power, oil and gas, solid minerals and the Nigerian Ports Authority undergo full restructuring.
He said: "While it gladdens my heart that Nigerians have embraced the cardinal objectives of government in instituting policy changes as well as structural and institutional reforms, it has been my honest hope and desire to ensure the total mobilisation of all Nigerians for effective participation in the implementation process".
In his speech, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Chief Chukwuemeka Chikelu enumerated the advantages of privatisation as including encouraging the spirit of competition, curbing corruption and the looting of public enterprises.
He said that the aim of privatisation was to systematically harness, and harmonise the country's economic and human resources and channel them to more purposeful and productive uses.
"Such a circumspective planning anchored on sound management will eliminate wasteful spending of public funds", he said.
The Minister said that the transfer of public enterprises to the private sector was the best way to curb corruption in public concerns and would also ensure better management of the enterprises and more efficient utilisation of resources. He added that privatisation would serve as a vehicle for the economic development of the country.
The three-day forum kicked off yesterday without the presence of the South East governors and their elected political office holders.`
