The limits of governance by helicopter

November last year, the Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo took a helicopter ride to inspect the Apapa traffic gridlock. Thereafter, he presided over a government/private sector meeting on how to resolve the Apapa gridlock. Since then, nothing happened and the traffic situation deteriorate to such an extent that many businesses and companies, unable to cope with the terrible traffic gridlock, closed shop and moved to other parts of town. When the situation became unbearable, Vice President Osinbajo again returned to Apapa, July this year, via helicopter, at the peak of the gridlock, to inspect the damage the gridlock was causing. Again, he directed relevant government agencies to immediately embark on the decongestion of the bridges and roads on which trailers and tankers were indiscriminately and mindlessly parked to allow for free flow of traffic. He specifically directed that the operation should be carried out by collaborative efforts of the Police, Nigeria Navy, Nigeria Army, the Nigeria Air Force, FRSC and the NSCDC, LASTMA, LASEMA, Container truck drivers, National Association of Road Transport Owners, NUPENG, Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria.

Five days later, on July 26, 2018, he returned again, this time, in company of the Lagos state governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, minister of transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, and managing director of the Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA), Hadiza Bala Usman and held a meeting with maritime unions, businesses, residents and other stakeholders at the Western Naval Command, Apapa. By this time, his 72 hour directives to the agencies to clear the traffic has failed and virtually all the roads were still impassable blocked, as usual, by rampaging trailers and tankers. At the meeting the Vice President assured that the anticipated reconstruction of the Apapa-Oshodi Expressway would commence within two weeks as part of the federal government’s resolve to finding a permanent solution to the chaos in the area.

To be fair to the agencies, over 1600 operatives were deployed to Apapa to enforce the vice president’s orders. However, the same government agencies or ministry blocked the outbound lane of the Apapa-Ijora bride, ostensibly for repairs, restricting trucks to the very narrow and pot-holed Leventis exit lane. One would expect that efforts would be done to finish repair works on the bridge and open it up to ensure free flow of traffic. But no, the top layers of the bridge were removed and the job abandoned for more than three months now.

Despite all the promises by the Vice President, nothing has happened on the roads and they continue to deteriorate, stressing out motorists, suffocating resilient businesses and emasculating residents in a degraded environment.

Many now fear that the federal government has no solution to the traffic jigsaw in Apapa, fueling the thinking in some quarters that there are too many vested interests in this truck business that are bent on frustrating efforts at finding sustainable solution to the Apapa problem.

Then came the recent flood disasters across the country and the Vice President, once again, embarked on helicopter trips to inspect the level of damage done to communities. For instance, at Umueze Anam, in Anambra West local government area, an emotionally distressed Vice President witnessed as affected families evacuate their property from their flooded homes. He similarly directed the National Emergency Management Agency to continue to deploy relief materials to the IDP Camps and some homes, where residents have refused to leave.

In Delta state also, the Vice President designated four states, including Anambra and Delta, national disaster zones due to the flooding and said the federal government will work with the affected states to compensate victims who had lost their farmlands and properties to the floods.

Despite the visits and promises, most affected communities continue to suffer the effects of the flood without any form of government assistance.

Both in the Apapa case and the flood disasters, it appears the government is incapable of decisive action beyond mere words and platitudes. But maybe we should be satisfied that the Vice President visited affected areas in the first place, because, like a former president once said, victims should be grateful to him that he visited them because he was not even supposed to be there.