My-take-on-the-2019-national-transport-summit
September 7, 2020 | News
MY TAKE ON THE 2019 NATIONAL TRANSPORT SUMMIT
When my attention was drawn to the recently well publicized 2019 National Transport Summit with the Theme: “Unlocking The Potentials of Transportation For Sustainable Development,” the first thought that ran through my mind was; of what need is the said national transport summit when the three means of transportation in Nigeria, which includes land, water and air, are grossly underdeveloped and lacking in so many things? What is basis of a so-called summit that would only waste public funds to organize, when the “basic transportation infrastructure” like good network of roads, modern day international-standard airports, efficient and reliable railway/train system – all of which are meant to ‘ease all the existing transportation problems’ faced by the Nigerian masses; are either in a deplorable state, or completely absent?
How can a country as blessed as Nigeria not have national modern-standard Sea Ports like we see in other developed countries in Europe, America, Asia and United Arab Emirates (UAE)? Today, there is no standard international-modern airport in Nigeria that one can boast of and be proud about? The airports in Lagos and Abuja, cannot compete in terms of modern infrastructure and service delivery, like their counterparts in developed and some African countries. Even cities like Warri, which happens to be the ‘commercial nerve center’ of Delta State, do not have a standard airport. Yet, the authorities in Federal and State Governments are only more interested in having yearly summits to further waste everyone’s time and public resources. The problems in Nigeria’s road network is even far worse, and this has continued to claim hundreds of innocent lives yearly. Nigeria cannot boast of having a reliable stretch of railway system in the country for ease of transporting passengers, goods and services from parts of the country to another. The few railway lines that exist, are only restricted to some States, and cannot even meet the demands of the populace in these places.
If developed societies like the UK, France, US, Germany, China, UAE, US, Japan, etc., where there are the availability of reliable transport systems from tubes (underground rails), railways, air transport, good road networks - were to organize such a Transport Summit aimed at further improving their already well-established reliable transport systems; then we would understand, and see it as being in order. But we would not understand the essence and basis of such a Transport Summit in Nigeria where, past/successive/present Governments have refused to, and are very unwilling to holistically address the transportation problems across the country. What exactly are they gathering every year to discuss and deliberate about Nigeria’s Transport sector, that Nigerians are yet to witness any change?
Why do we yearly waste precious time and resources on frivolities in the name of Summits on this and that? Why do we have political leaders who waste precious energies in the name of one Summit or the other, when all that is required of the Government and relevant authorities/stakeholders, is the WILL and ACTION-MODE to address all the issues plaguing every sector in the country? Why do our Nigerian Governments love Summits/Conferences more than the actual work of good governance?
Is the said Transport Summit not another jamboree gathering to drink, eat, and make merriments, and that is all? What Transport Summit nonsense are they really talking about? With such developments across the polity every now and then, it is daily becoming apparent that many Nigerian political leaders and elites do not think. When the Nigerian Government at all levels have refused, and are unwilling to heavily invest on basic infrastructure, what magic are they hoping to use to address the issues in the nation’s transport sector, or any other sector for that matter? Rather, all we see them do is to use almost all the available revenues to continually pay and maintain ‘idle and irresponsible politicians’ who do little to nothing to improve the lives of Nigerians.
The major significant difference between places like Lagos/Abuja and places like Dubai, London, New York, Trenton, Annapolis, Toronto, Richmond, Edmonton, Saint Paul, Berlin, Hamburg, Frankfurt, Dusseldorf, Manchester, Paris, Detroit, etc., is the availability of high standard modern infrastructure. Nigerian political leaders and elites/technocrats should be reminded that the country cannot develop, or attain any significant development worth recognizing at the global scale; with mere talk shows, Summits, Conferences, Workshops and the jamborees and merriments that usually go with such gatherings. We have been TALKING and TALKING since we became an independent nation in the last close to six decades. Enough of the talks! It is time to take precise, well-thought-out people-oriented ACTIONS for the good of all Nigerians.
The Nigerian Government at all levels should look at our outdated transportation systems in Nigerian cities and compare them with the ones in some of the cities listed above. The Nigerian railway is just one track, which means only one train can ply the rail at a time. The bottom line is that all these useless summits should stop because they are complete wastes of time and resources. What Nigerians need is a modern and highly modernized transportation system, and not these worthless transportation summits/conferences that will end up achieving nothing. All we need is modern transportation system. How do you manage what you do not have? The bad roads are all over the country. Is that what they want to manage?
Zik Gbemre.
December 4, 2019
Mobilize Others to Fight for Individual Causes As If Those Were Our Causes
When my attention was drawn to the recently well publicized 2019 National Transport Summit with the Theme: “Unlocking The Potentials of Transportation For Sustainable Development,” the first thought that ran through my mind was; of what need is the said national transport summit when the three means of transportation in Nigeria, which includes land, water and air, are grossly underdeveloped and lacking in so many things? What is basis of a so-called summit that would only waste public funds to organize, when the “basic transportation infrastructure” like good network of roads, modern day international-standard airports, efficient and reliable railway/train system – all of which are meant to ‘ease all the existing transportation problems’ faced by the Nigerian masses; are either in a deplorable state, or completely absent?
How can a country as blessed as Nigeria not have national modern-standard Sea Ports like we see in other developed countries in Europe, America, Asia and United Arab Emirates (UAE)? Today, there is no standard international-modern airport in Nigeria that one can boast of and be proud about? The airports in Lagos and Abuja, cannot compete in terms of modern infrastructure and service delivery, like their counterparts in developed and some African countries. Even cities like Warri, which happens to be the ‘commercial nerve center’ of Delta State, do not have a standard airport. Yet, the authorities in Federal and State Governments are only more interested in having yearly summits to further waste everyone’s time and public resources. The problems in Nigeria’s road network is even far worse, and this has continued to claim hundreds of innocent lives yearly. Nigeria cannot boast of having a reliable stretch of railway system in the country for ease of transporting passengers, goods and services from parts of the country to another. The few railway lines that exist, are only restricted to some States, and cannot even meet the demands of the populace in these places.
If developed societies like the UK, France, US, Germany, China, UAE, US, Japan, etc., where there are the availability of reliable transport systems from tubes (underground rails), railways, air transport, good road networks - were to organize such a Transport Summit aimed at further improving their already well-established reliable transport systems; then we would understand, and see it as being in order. But we would not understand the essence and basis of such a Transport Summit in Nigeria where, past/successive/present Governments have refused to, and are very unwilling to holistically address the transportation problems across the country. What exactly are they gathering every year to discuss and deliberate about Nigeria’s Transport sector, that Nigerians are yet to witness any change?
Why do we yearly waste precious time and resources on frivolities in the name of Summits on this and that? Why do we have political leaders who waste precious energies in the name of one Summit or the other, when all that is required of the Government and relevant authorities/stakeholders, is the WILL and ACTION-MODE to address all the issues plaguing every sector in the country? Why do our Nigerian Governments love Summits/Conferences more than the actual work of good governance?
Is the said Transport Summit not another jamboree gathering to drink, eat, and make merriments, and that is all? What Transport Summit nonsense are they really talking about? With such developments across the polity every now and then, it is daily becoming apparent that many Nigerian political leaders and elites do not think. When the Nigerian Government at all levels have refused, and are unwilling to heavily invest on basic infrastructure, what magic are they hoping to use to address the issues in the nation’s transport sector, or any other sector for that matter? Rather, all we see them do is to use almost all the available revenues to continually pay and maintain ‘idle and irresponsible politicians’ who do little to nothing to improve the lives of Nigerians.
The major significant difference between places like Lagos/Abuja and places like Dubai, London, New York, Trenton, Annapolis, Toronto, Richmond, Edmonton, Saint Paul, Berlin, Hamburg, Frankfurt, Dusseldorf, Manchester, Paris, Detroit, etc., is the availability of high standard modern infrastructure. Nigerian political leaders and elites/technocrats should be reminded that the country cannot develop, or attain any significant development worth recognizing at the global scale; with mere talk shows, Summits, Conferences, Workshops and the jamborees and merriments that usually go with such gatherings. We have been TALKING and TALKING since we became an independent nation in the last close to six decades. Enough of the talks! It is time to take precise, well-thought-out people-oriented ACTIONS for the good of all Nigerians.
The Nigerian Government at all levels should look at our outdated transportation systems in Nigerian cities and compare them with the ones in some of the cities listed above. The Nigerian railway is just one track, which means only one train can ply the rail at a time. The bottom line is that all these useless summits should stop because they are complete wastes of time and resources. What Nigerians need is a modern and highly modernized transportation system, and not these worthless transportation summits/conferences that will end up achieving nothing. All we need is modern transportation system. How do you manage what you do not have? The bad roads are all over the country. Is that what they want to manage?
Zik Gbemre.
December 4, 2019
Mobilize Others to Fight for Individual Causes As If Those Were Our Causes