ZIK GBEMRE SPEAKS ON THE COST OF GOVERNANCE IN NIGERIA AND MICHELLE OBAMA’S INSIGHTFUL REVELATIONS
The revelation by former US First Lady, Michelle Obama, on the disciplined cost of governance at the US White House came to me as a surprise.
I had thought all domestic expenses of the US president are paid for by the America’s taxpayers. I never knew the US president and family pay for all the food they consume while leading the US as one of the foremost countries in the world.
The experience shared by Michelle provokes an advice to our Nigeria’s leaders to prune the outrageously bloated cost of governance.
In a viral Oprah Winfrey’s interview with Michelle Obama on the cost of governance at the US White House, the official Office and residence of the US president, the former 1st Lady said, “… but other than that the White House does feel like a home. I always say that a house is a house, what you bring to the home is what makes it a home, and how we lived in that home was what I remembered most.
“People ask do I miss the White House and it’s like no I don’t miss the house because we took what was important in that house with us and it is with us. It’s family, it’s values, it’s the friendship so the house is beautiful and it is historic and it’s an honour to live there but the people in it makes it what it is.
“They tell you, you can order anything and they listen very carefully because everybody listens to every word the President says and I used to tell Barrack, don’t say you want something because then we’ll have like thousands of it and then we’re paying for it.
“If he said he liked some rare fish or happened to say this is delicious then we get the bill at the end of the month and it’s like you flew that fish in from China? It’s like that fish wasn’t that good. Don’t say you like that fish.”
Oprah responded to Michelle, “Everyone just got the book today so I can see the surprise on people’s faces when you said you had to pay for it.”
Michelle: “Yeah, a lot of people think, this is also sort of an interesting thing when people would say that taxpayers are paying for that.
“The truth is yes, you don’t pay rent and you don’t pay for staff but everything, every dish, they would count the number of peanuts that you eat and charge it back.
“So you would get a bill at the end and it’s not a, oh we live in the White House. This is not a complaint; it’s just that people do not understand that you pay for all your guests and the food that they eat. When y’all came and visited and you were thinking let me put this in the purse, we got the bill.”
With this people are now aware that the US as the most powerful and richest country in the world is very prudent in the cost of governance. It is evidence that government is not a place to spend public resources carelessly but here in Nigeria, the cost of governance is the highest in the entire world.
It is so attractive that everything is paid for public officers and their families, including their hangers-on and empty vehicles that accompany the public officers on any tour within and outside. Too many wastages and leakages in the treasury of the states and federal governments.
The legislatures are a big burden. Michelle Obama has told the world that apart from the rent and staff welfare, the US President and family pay for everything, so they were mindful of whatever they consume since they pay for them including meals.
When are we going to learn to avoid wastage and leakages in public offices in Nigeria? Our politicians need to learn from the interview of Michelle Obama. And same goes for too many ignorant elites in Nigeria who believe that public officers are doing us good if they attempt to construct a half-kilometer road.
Is it not their responsibility to provide social amenities? No one placed a gun on their heads to seek to be elected governors, president, council chairmen, ministers, commissioners, lawmakers, and all. No one placed a gun on them to be elected.
It is their responsibility to make governable laws and check on the excesses of governance. It’s always been promises and promises. Six months after, Nigeria is still living in blackout under President Bola Tinubu.
There is a need to prune the cost of governance and concentrate on delivering quality social amenities including quality medical care to the people. Nigerians are tired of promises by politicians.
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