Matching a market-driven economy with citizens’ welfare

The security and welfare of the people is at the heart of development agendas in most nations. But in practice, development is a struggle especially when it comes to attaining social, economic and political aspirations of the people. It is a struggle between the rich and the poor in any given society. As world economies expand, there are chronic economic crises occasioned by capitalism.

Topmost on the profile of economic crises is poverty. The vast majority of the world live in poverty, while the remaining few are wealthy. Nigeria is not left behind in this poor-rich divide. Anytime the occasion presents itself, I have always asked: why is prosperity and poverty two sides of any capitalist development? Some economists have argued that capitalism generates widespread poverty, engender discrimination, and environmental destruction. That is why it is beneficial that nations which operate “capitalist” economies make deliberate efforts in matching their market-driven economies with citizens’ welfare.

Some scholars have suggested that a free-market is preferable to government intervention in most economic decisions. Adam Smith, a Scottish political economist and moral philosopher, championed the free-market system several years ago. His philosophy presupposes that prices, quantities, and production methods should be governed by the forces of supply and demand. However, it has been observed with time that some nations whose economies are governed by the forces of demand and supply have unemployment, underemployment, inflation, and poor standard of living amongst others, as adverse unintended consequences of economic activities in their climes.

These negative unintended consequences of economic activities show the imperfections of the market. And that is why most governments often step in by creating subsidies, regulations, public-sector industries, and other mechanisms to correct or avoid the malfunction in the economy. To enable governments, meet their obligations to the people, taxes must be paid by those who are employed. While the government is duty-bound to provide intervention in a free-market economy, which comes in the form of tax incentives to encourage certain sectors of the economy to grow.

No pure form of capitalism exists in any part of the world. It is incumbent on governments to take ownership and regulation of their economies no matter how little. That is the reason why the Federal Government (FG) of Nigeria must still play some roles in order to bridge the gap between the rich and the poor. This perhaps, must have propelled those who crafted the 1999 Constitution to expressly state in Chapter 2, Section 14(b) that “the security and welfare of the people of Nigeria shall be the primary purpose of government.” Going by the provisions of the Constitution, the government is obligated to take care of its citizens. And that is why I align myself with development economists who argue strongly that market-driven economy must be matched with citizens’ welfare.

Available data from the National Bureau of Statistics show that almost half, that is 47.4 percent of our youths within the working class group are either unemployed or underemployed. Are we saying that it is our desire to have an engineering graduate sell recharge card only to be categorized as either employed or underemployed? Today, most graduates in our nation are either unemployed or underemployed because of decline in economic activities occasioned by economic recession. Unemployment or underemployment is equally, due to supply of graduates which is far beyond the demand for workers by a few organizations that are still struggling to survive.

Another reason which is well identified by industrialists is that most graduates do not have relevant skills to get them gainfully employed. That is why most men and women of goodwill, are disturbed that the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has gone on indefinite strike because the FG is owing lecturers to the tune of about N800 billion since 2009. As a result, academic activities are disrupted as students and lecturers are on forced holiday when they are to actively engage themselves in supporting businesses in areas of innovation, creation and diffusion of technology, and provision of skilled manpower.

I am aware that those in the government know that prompt payment of salaries and pensions to qualified individuals form part of citizens’ welfare. If the FG cannot pay the debt owed ASUU at once, I suggest that it should phase the payment and ensure that the terms are strictly adhered to. I do not want to agree with critics who feel that the FG cannot honour its promises because it has problems with predictability, credibility and effectiveness in its strategies and policies. If the FG at any given time is not focused on helping its people by promptly paying their salaries and pensions, then the nation is doomed.

Good governance will create an atmosphere of security and welfare for the people. The objective of any good government should be the care of human life and happiness, not their wretchedness. The government should be responsible for the welfare of its citizens because without people there is no government. We elected those in government to represent our best interest in the provision of healthcare, education, transportation, infrastructure, the environment and the ability to develop as human beings.

Surprisingly, I have come across those who argue against the nation taking care of the citizenry. They hinged their argument on the premise that if the government should become our sole provider to all amenities, it makes us at the mercy of all their decisions. Methinks the government should take care of its citizenry because in a free society, the relationship between the state and man is simple. “Man is not made for the state, but the state for man, and it derives its powers from the consent of the governed”.If Nigeria has the challenge of adequately providing welfare schemes for its citizens, it is because those in government feels and reigns supreme above all. As long as Nigeria craves for a free-market economy, it must be matched with citizens’ welfare.

MA JOHNSON