The Role of the State

There are numerous activities which can ONLY be carried out by governments. Take defence and national security-maintaining disciplined and effective armed forces and intelligence agencies; defending the country and its citizens from external aggression or internal insurrection and protecting its territorial integrity; maintaining security agencies, carrying out covert operations to protect vital national interests; gathering information and “intelligence” regarding matters of military, security or economic interests etc. Intelligence agencies often work in concert with diplomatic services-another activity exclusively undertaken by the state. Governments maintain foreign relations, operate embassies, employ diplomats and ensure protection of the nation’s external interests.

The state ensures law and order, and administration of justice, maintains police forces, civil courts, enforcement of criminal justice, including prosecution of offenders, maintain prisons and rehabilitation centres and employs court bailiffs and other people and processes that ensure the ultimate sanction of law. The court system is maintained by the state, and judicial officers are employees of the state. The state organises the Civil Service-maintaining the continued operations of the state and delivering services to the public-land administration, town and country planning, traffic management etc-supporting elected public officials in executing their agenda and maintaining the integrity of the state.

The state is responsible for most public infrastructure-most roads, rail infrastructure, airports and maritime services are owned by government though services such as airport management or train shuttles may be private sector operated. I am not aware of any country in the world (even the most capitalist) in which up to ten percent of public road network is owned by any interests other than the state. Most social services are delivered by the state-public education and health, urban mass transportation, public libraries, city halls etc. The state is responsible for virtually all aspects of the investment climate and economic competitiveness-registration of companies; registration of title to land; effecting dividend remittances; security and law and order; enforcement of contracts; building approvals etc.

The state controls the entry and exit of goods (customs and excise), people (immigration), capital importation (central bank and banks); public debt management (ministries of finance, budget offices and debt management agencies); narcotics and restricted products; the state even controls entry to the world (birth registration) and exit there from (registration of deaths)!!! In the economic sphere, the state manages macroeconomic stability and fiscal operations, currency, exchange rates, inflation and financial sector supervision, taxation, sovereign savings etc. Indeed the entire job of regulating the private economy can ONLY be carried out by the state-aviation and airlines; banks and financial institutions; telecommunications and utilities; industrial safety and standards, food and drugs, environmental standards, weather and meteorological services, etc. The state is charged with ensuring free competition and absence of monopolies and anti-competitive behaviour. The list of exclusive state services and activities runs long!!!

How has the Nigerian state fared in these EXCLUSIVE and CRITICAL responsibilities it carries out (or is supposed to carry out?) Government’s report card will note that it has been unable to preserve public order or prevent armed robberies, kidnappings, militancy and communal crisis-leading to the deaths of thousands of Nigerians since our return to civil rule. In Warri, Aguleri-Umuleri, Sagamu, Niger-Delta, Jos, Kano, Maiduguri, Bauchi, Kaduna, Kano etc, lives were lost in hundreds and thousands to crises-over elections, Danish cartoons, beauty contests, communal differences, religion, land and other matters that should normally be resolved by a competent state. Administration of justice has basically broken down! Torture, summary executions, bribery and rampant corruption pervade our policing system-the police is NOT your friend, and the courts are slow and ineffective! Most recently our Chief Justice and Court of Appeal President have accused each other of corruption! Our intelligence agencies have demonstrated how easy it is to throw bombs-on Independence Day and at the police and UN headquarters! Niger-Delta militants, Northern Almajiri, Boko Haram and just about anyone who is angry have often fought the state to a stand-still!

Our most important highways-Sagamu-Benin, Lagos-Ibadan are totally derelict; Government abandons major middle-belt highways-Lokoja, Abuja, Nasarawa etc to armed robbers who routinely kill citizens including members of the ruling elite; South-East land is casually lost to erosion; Government could deliver only 470,000 telephone lines and less than 4,000 MW of electricity to 150 million people in fifty years; Ministries and agencies reportedly pay bribes to secure release of statutory allocations; Immigration officers openly beg visitors for bribes and customs officers are the biggest smugglers; The federal and state governments can’t manage their finances; Fake drugs and substandard goods are pervasive; Government has totally destroyed public education, and our Presidents travel abroad for medical treatment; The nation relies on a rail network built by colonialists almost a century ago; The state taxes probably less than ten per cent of its citizens; We send 25 and 28 year-olds to under 17 and 20 football competitions; The state has been subverted by corruption, ethnic and religious bigotry, nepotism and complete absence of altruistic behaviour and sense of common good!!!

Why would anyone want such a dysfunctional state to run airlines, banks, telephone companies, hotels, factories, or businesses of any sort? I may understand if Chinese, Japanese, UAE citizens or Singaporeans ponder the role of the state in business, but Nigerians? We’ve got to be joking…or worse!!!