Etcetera Scores Buhari, Five F9s, One A1 Out Of His 100 Days In Office

Controversial writer and singer Etcetera is back again! Read his rants below.

We often use benchmarks as measures of progress. 'How is your
favourite football team doing at the beginning of this season?' 'How
many words does your one-year-old son say in a minute?'

And, of course, there's the time-honoured measure of how well a new
president is doing after 100 days in office. In case you hadn't heard,
that benchmark is here for President Buhari.

You may feel it's a little impertinent for me to issue a report card
for President Buhari on his performance during his first 100 days in
office. Yes, I'm not his teacher, and he's not my student.

But what the heck? It's a free country and everyone else is doing it.
So here it goes:

Confidence:- Buhari has brought back confidence in governance.
Especially in tough times, the confident presence of a leader begets
confidence in those that he or she leads. With his steady demeanour,
optimistic outlook and command, Buhari embodies confidence. The number
of incompetent heads of parastatals he has sacked so far reflects that
sentiment. The percentage of Nigerians who think the country is on the
right track is up. Grade: A1

Pace of Governance:– When the pressure is high, leaders need
perspective. They need swift action. Buhari is working on so many
things all by himself that it's sometimes hard to keep track of all of
them. He has too much on his plate. He should get into perspective and
allow others do the job where he can't. It won't be a surprise to
discover that the president is in charge of his travel itinerary,
meeting schedule and other range of issues on his plate. He runs the
risk of edging toward a burn out. Well, some argue that the president
is keeping a pace that works for him. Grade: F9

Communications:– Effective leadership communication is outcome
oriented and audience specific. President Buhari is clearly not an
articulate communicator and he doesn't do enough to shape his message
to the audience. Hearing Mr. President pronounce APC leaves you lost
and wondering if you heard him correctly. Maybe his media aides should
have used this as an excuse to exonerate him from the hundred things
he promised to have achieved before his first 100 days in office that
has now capped him as a liar. Buhari's tone of voice usually stays
within a fairly narrow range. He could do better here. Grade: F9

Team Player: – There are two major factors on this distinction. The
first is to get a great team in place. The second is to get your ego
out of the way and allow the team to do their job. Buhari has stumbled
here and most people will agree that his failure to appoint ministers
in his first 100 days in office has been a setback to governance.
Whether you agree with me or not, Buhari can't be president and
ministers all by himself. We need competent hands to man the various
ministries. You cannot achieve a lot in three and half months without
the support of a team. Good leaders are the keepers of the what, not
the masters of the how. Assembling a strong team also helps in
establishing an agenda. Buhari needs to realise that he'll likely
never have more momentum than he has now if he doesn't put a team on
the ground. Grade: F9

Accountability and Responsibility: President Buhari has done fairly
well with the campaign for government officials to be held accountable
for their actions or inactions. He has brought a sense of transparency
and has taken some interesting first steps in promoting government
accountability. I think this is an area where there is a lot more to
do however. For instant, there hasn't really been a clear explanation
yet as to how he is going to tackle corruption and how the country
will avoid being ripped apart by government officials in the years to
come. Grade: C

Economy: – This has so far been one of the president's worst subjects.
He may be making a grave mistake focusing all his attention on
recouping looted funds instead of providing the basic needs of the
people. Never in history has this approach successfully led a country
out of recession. This might lead to an unhappy ending, and more
inflation. The continuous drop of the nation's currency is stark
reminder that we are still in the worst slump in 50 years. Grade: F9

National Security:- Nigerians are still not experiencing any sense of
security. People are dying and getting maimed everyday on the streets
by hoodlums and touts. Boko Haram insurgents are still using the yet
to be found Chibok girls for their bombings. Armed robbers are having
a field day carting away properties. The country is still not safe.
Grade: F9

-GistReel