Last Monday 11th December the oldest specialized agency of United Nations, International Labour Organization (ILO) launched the World Social Protection Report 2017-2019 in Abuja, the first of such global launch in Nigeria. Regrettably, out of the 4 billion people worldwide without any form of social protection, significant of them live in Africa mostly Nigeria. In the past two decades Nigeria has been witnessing a free fall to the bottom of Human Development, ranking abysmally 152nd out of 188 countries putting the country on Low Human Development (LHD). Bad statistics. Worse however is the fact that millions who loose out of the persistent underdevelopment lack social floor or any form of social assistance from the state. It is a sad commentary that Nigeria again comes as one of the countries whose 180 million people are left without social protection. Social protection is a set of policies and programs designed to prevent and reduce poverty and the race to the bottom and social anarchy. Social protection is a universal human right. It includes benefits for unemployment, children, health, maternity, youths, students, old age, widows and widowers and the vulnerable in general.
Most Nigerians, old and young, men and women beg to pay for basic but often desperate hospital health bills in the absence of health insurance or free medical services. Students whose parents are unemployed beg to pay fees in the absence of scholarships, grants and loans. Unemployment benefits are non-existent. Job Applicants in their millions are duped, no thanks to absence of robust labour market policies and institutions. The unemployed who have resisted criminality have turned destitute; hunters and gatherers of crumbs. It is unacceptable that as many as 2.5 million Nigerians are internally displaced due to endless violence, being the fall out of bad governance. It is criminal that public officials paid to protect displaced citizens prey on them. The new report by the United Nations Development Programme, UNDP and the National Human Rights Commission, NHRC, covering the period 2015 to 2017, catalogues the spate of thievery and criminal diversion of funds, food and other items meant to alleviate the plight of innocent Nigerians displaced by the Boko Haram insurgents by officials of the Presidential Initiative on the North East, PINE. PINE officials, the report said, “paid less attention to the critical needs of IDPs in the areas of housing, food, education and healthcare, but rather used the bulk of the resources on contracts that were found to have immensely benefited some public officials. A report unveiled by the United Nations Development Programme in partnership with Oxfam Nigeria revealed that 46 per cent of households in Nigeria’s North-East (Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, Taraba, and Yobe) borrow money to eat, while 61 per cent of residents in the region lack access to portable water. If we add delayed and non-payment of miserable salaries and pensions, Nigeria is far from being a caring and kind country. Put better, uncaring care-less Republic!
1999 constitution says the primary purpose of governance is the security and welfare of the citizens. It is a sad commentary that relatively poorer countries like Mauritius, Lesotho, Namibia and Tanzania had achieved universal Contributory and non-Contributory pension schemes unlike Nigeria. Following the global outrage against the nomination of sit-tight Robert Mugabe as a goodwill ambassador , the head of the World Health Organization rescinded the decision. But the truth is that Zimbabwe has in principle universal health coverage which Nigeria lacks. All state and local governments must ensure pension converge for all retirees. Also there must be minimum pension which should not be less than minimum wage.
I salute President Buhari Federal administration for the implementation of its Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) payments in nine pilot States that include Borno, Kwara, Bauchi, Cross River, Niger, Kogi, Oyo, Ogun and Ekiti. State governments should emulate the Federal government and build a kinder caring states. However (CCT) should be universal and made a right not passing interventionist fad. Both the Federal governments and States should also make the cash transfer to the poor as a matter of right not charity. There should be an annual increase of public expenditure on social protection to cover cash transfers to students in forms of bursaries and scholarships and cash for widows. Lack of social protection leaves many Nigerians vulnerable to ill-health, poverty, inequality and social exclusion throughout their lifecycle.
All stakeholders in Nigeria project must work towards a more caring and kinder Nigeria, failing which we are permanently hunted by the perils of anarchy and barbarism manifesting in kidnappings and deaths-for-money. Nigeria’s HDI value for 2016 positioning it at 152 of 188 countries puts the country on Low Human Development (LHD). Few rich are productive who truly earn their means legitimately. With anti-corruption crusade, we know better that the so-called rich Nigerians are truly corrupt. What is worrisome is however that the few rich however defined are getting richer while majority of Nigerians are getting poorer. Nigerian economy can only recover with citizenship social protection for us to achieve the new mantra; Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Nigeria and Nigerians do not need Ministries of Happiness. We need real and sustainable happiness through tangible benefits backed by laws and constitution. Mothers with newborns should receive a maternity benefit, and million new mothers are not covered. There should be legally sanctioned unemployment benefits in a country that privileges its legislators with free expensive cars and housing. Socialism should be for all Nigerians not for few public officials. Let there be prompt consequences of public officials who turn predators of the internally displaced, unemployed, widows and children. There should be social taxation on avarice called weddings of children of public officials or tittle grabbing activities to provide social floor for all.
Issa Aremu, mni
