Former Nigerian leader in an Interim National Government, Ernest Shonekan, has Charged President Goodluck Jonathan to work towards the realisation of the required political stability in the country in order to surmount the present economic decadence.
Mr. Shonekan who expressed disappointment over the messy state of things had stated that until the Presidency becomes determined enough with all political wills to fight the present anomalies, the country’s infrastructural decay would continue.
Mr. Shonekan made this statement at the State House in Abuja during a presentation of the 2011 annual report and audited financial statement of the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission to the presidency.
As the chairman of the commission, Shonekan had warned against continuous and unreasonable withdrawal from projects once the development process is on.
He asserted that in such situation, the credibility of the Nigerian public and private participation program is tainted.
He highlighted the challenges currently being faced by the commission while trying to meet up with its objectives.
According to the former leader, the challenges include the failure to mobilize sustaining funding for project development, inability to involve ministries, departments and parastatals in partnership.
He said “Addressing these challenges is critical to the success of ICRC and the attainment of the infrastructure component of your transformation agenda,” he said. Mr. Shonekan added: “It will require the political will of the Presidency and all the others to make sure that the country’s infrastructure is developed.” He warned that, without infrastructures, Nigeria won’t see much progress.
“With all these disasters that have been happening round the world, even western countries which started their infrastructural development well before us are now thinking of doing fresh infrastructures because the infrastructures they had in the last century are becoming antiquated.
“We have an opportunity now to be able to do our own infrastructures. I think the best thing is to get people who are interested in the development of infrastructures to assist us in doing our own.
“That is why we said we will need the political will of the Presidency and all the others. Each and every one of us must contribute our quota to make sure that we developed our own. Without infrastructures, there will not be much progress.”
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