Muiz Banire
A former Chairman of the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), Dr. Muiz Banire (SAN) has called on technocrats in the public service to persistently interact with the legal community if they are to survive the muddy water of politics in the in the discharge of thier expertise to thier mother land.
The Senior Advocate of Nigeria ,SAN, sounds the words of caution today while delivering a lecture tagged “Navigating the Delicate Balance Between Politics, Law, Media Pressure and Public Perception; The Burden of Nigerian Technocrats in Public Office” organised by the National Association of Judiciary Correspondent (NAJUC), Lagos chapter.
Enumerating several factors that constitute burden on technocrats in public offices, and inhibit their performances at the event held at the MUSON Center, Lagos, Banire said technocrats must be conscious of the environmental and legal restrictions that limits thier ability to perform while in office.
Some of the hindrances he highlighted include, due process, administrative bottleneck, cultural and religious considerations, public perception, legislative interference, and media pressure.
The former commissioner for Environment and Transport in Lagos State said all these factors place great burden on technocrats in Nigeria and hinders thier performances while in public office
Citing the case of in-house technocrats (Civil Servants), Banire said these specie of technocrats are now in more precarious situation.
He said “ln-house technocrats are now in more precarious situation. They are not only demoralised by insecurity of tenure; terminal growth for them is becoming an illusion. They therefore hardly have much to look up to again. Worse still is their renumeration package that has pushed them into penury.
“Politicians treat them as dregs, affording them no serious recognition. Consequently, not the best in recent times is derivable from the in-house technocrats who have now joined the bandwagons of politicians to scoop whatever they can access while in office. This is the country’s story.
To overcome these challenges, Banire said technocrats must be vigilant and make sure that they ‘put their nose, and inputs when laws concerning their areas of jurisdictions are being enacted.
In doing this, technocrats must work and collaborate with the legal community, be above board and ensure that their dealings are ethical and transparent.
Earlier in his remarks, the Chairman of the occasion, George Etomi, said for democracy to thrive, the country needs strong and vibrant media and the judiciary.
Etomi said looking at Nigeria today, the level of patriotism is very low, adding that hardly can you see an American or a European running down their countries in the social media, while the contrary is the case in Nigeria.
He added that “it is Nigerians that can build the country, and that we can’t built is by running it down through the media”.
Etomi added that the media, politics and the judiciary are interwoven and interface in the development of a strong democracy.
At the event, human rights lawyer, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa (SAN) was honoured with an an Award of Excellence for his outstanding contributions and dedication to legal practice, media freedom, and human rights enforcement in Nigeria.
Also honoured at the event are two versatile journalists, Joseph Jibueze of The Nation Newspaper and Joseph Onyekwere of The Guardian Newspaper, both editors in their respective organisations.
They were honoured for their contributions to the media profession and the association.
