Bridging the gap between the government and the governed  

BY DEBORAH ADEOJO

There is no doubt that Nigeria is a sick patient plagued with a lorry load of diseases that have defied a cure despite years of intellectual diagnosis and prescriptions by ‘experts’.

Truthfully, jumping in and out of bed with all manner of policies and policymakers without adequate protection will leave anyone with an incurable mess. Sadly, as the nation’s state of health continues to deteriorate and corruption takes all the blame, no one seems to be paying attention to a killer virus, “information deficit”.

In what is supposed to be a democracy, there exists a gulf between the governed and the government such that policies are developed and implemented based on assumptions or sometimes impractical resolutions of a tiny pool of ‘experts’ who, though have a grasp of theoretical approaches and underpinnings, have lost touch with the daily realities of the average Nigerian.

There seems to be an absence of shared intelligence and synergised efforts between important institutions, thus leaving the people on one side of the spectrum and the government on the other side. This information deficit manifested in the lack and inadequacy of relevant information, and misinformation is evident in the regurgitation of campaign manifestos over the years. While one cannot dismiss the truth that Nigerians still need the basic things they have always needed because no government has been upright enough to successfully address any of these needs per time, these needs no doubt have continued to evolve through time yet these evolutions have never been practically and accurately considered.

Realistically, result-oriented governance in a multiethnic and diverse nation like Nigeria is only achievable when generalisations and assumptions are replaced with specificity that leverages on effective communication media and information exchange. While we cannot toss away the great contributions of the traditional and new media in creating awareness about Nigeria to the Nigerian government, journalism at its best can only churn out reportage.  Though journalism in its operations may effectively build link between the governed and the government, it lacks needful instructive elements needed to guide proper action; meanwhile, governance in Nigeria needs more than awareness, documentation, or facts, for proper guidance toward taking informed actions. Besides, with the proliferation of entertainment, partisan and profit-driven media, there is less journalistic truth telling and diligent investigation. Where then is the hope?

How can the government establish a communication channel between the Nigerian farmer in a remote village of the North and the Minister of Agriculture appointed to serve his interest at the capital? How can the Minister of Health grasp and compare the daily health challenges of the nursing mother in an oil creek in the Niger delta and those of another in a farm settlement in the West for the formation and implementation of effective rural health strategies? How can a state government understand and meet the basic needs of primary school pupils in each local government without wasting tax payers’ money? How do we, despite the evident knowledge gap and technological divide that exists within our borders, realise the goal of inclusive and all-encompassing intelligence sharing for effective governance? Simple. Academic research.

Nigeria is blessed with an increasing number of intellectual foot soldiers who will gladly defy the challenges and rigour of thorough scientific investigation in rugged terrains and under harsh conditions for the sake of a creditworthy research work. Every year, Nigeria’s over 110 universities turn out hundreds of thousands of graduates both at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels who mandatorily undergo valid academic research in various fields as a basic requirement for their certification. This number does not include graduates from other higher institutions of learning.  The University of Ibadan Post Graduate School alone boasts of “ an annual average postgraduate students’ population of 15,000 and an annual doctoral graduation figure of roughly 250” who must undergo approved scientific research work before being awarded their degrees. While we cannot immediately bank on the thoroughness of all these research work and their relevance to the Nigerian society, we cannot ignore that there are gems in the rubble. Too bad the lot winds up on departmental shelves collecting dust.

The Nigerian government and its academic institutions cannot be mutually exclusive if governance must be tangible and effective. Policymakers need to begin to leverage on the familiarity of these researchers with the average Nigerian to govern by facts generated through continuous research procedures and not mere intuition. Beyond dialogues on salary increment and benefits, the government must create a positive and progressive relationship with the academia to access needful information. Now, this is not a call to misappropriate tax payers’ revenues in the guise of establishing research institutes, but to leverage on readily available, affordable and accessible data in the academic world.

Most of these investigations are already privately funded, and besides innovations, these young researchers investigate occurrences and assumptions in their fields of expertise, collect data with valid and reliable instruments, and go beyond presentation of data to analysis and prescription of viable solutions. Perhaps with access to this sort of information, our government officials will get busy with value-adding employment rather than routine office appearances and coffee rounds charged to our collective purse.

One important lesson from the recent tomato scarcity in Nigeria is that our government institutions are not proactive because they are really not paying attention. Yet, it’s difficult to pay attention when there is a communication gap between those on the field and those in the offices. Nevertheless, with the pressure not only to excel but to also meet up with the requirements of an approvable research work, there is simply no way at least one research student would have missed out on the mild the tuta absoluta ant infestation that occurred during the tomato harvest season last year. And if there was an existing communication channel between the researchers and policy formulation officers, proactive measures would have been taken.

Though we may not yet be able to confidently applaud the thoroughness of academic research in Nigeria and its relevance to governance, we cannot discredit the opportunity it presents for effective people-driven and knowledge-driven administration.

Therefore, a communication network must be built between relevant institutions to foster quality information exchange and intelligence sharing. We must leverage on Information and Communications Technology to create a knowledge pool of relevant data categorised for effective access of government parastatals to peculiar reports and recommendations of scientific enquiries. This implementation will also address the needless pain experienced by researchers due to the online shortage of published research works in Nigeria. A database of certified research work will boost progressive research and encourage synergy amongst tertiary institutions and researchers in Nigeria whilst strengthening the education sector for quality and substantial contributions to sustainable development.

Towards bridging the gap between the governed and the government for effective governance in Nigeria, the government must leverage on academic research and institutions as efficient intermediaries to feel the pulse of the people, access affordable yet crucial data and worthwhile recommendations, and take informed decisions. Till then, governance in Nigeria may continue to perish in impotence due to the lack of relevant and progressive knowledge.

Adeojo runs www.shewrites.com.ng