How lack of master plan, absence of political will, others derailed Okowa’s administration
By GbaramatuVoice Editorial Board
As the Senator Ifeanyi Okowa’s led administration in Delta state approaches the exit door, a searchlight on the Governor’s performance in the past seven (7) years reveals one thing; he started off with high moral standards, strong conviction and determination to develop the state but has not lived up to that perceived good intention.
This disappointing performance of the Governor from our observations is largely a function of some factors.
First, the Governor did not meet on ground, any master plan for the state development and he lacked political will to develop one. The strategic implication of this brand failure is that he led the state in the past seven (7) without clear cut vision.
ALSO READ: Dear Governor Okowa, please where is the promised Warri/Uvwie and Environs Development Agency?
In the newspaper’s views, the Governors ‘developmental effort’ in the state without master plan could be likened to flying an air craft without establishing contact with radar or the control tower.
What happened in the state under Governor Okowa qualifies as a directionless form of governance or what analysts refer to as cancer cell philosophy, that is ‘growth without direction’.
As a result of this monumental failure and directionless projection, each time Governor Okowa’s administration is placed side by side with that of his contemporaries from other states of the country, Okowa usually emerges as ‘bottom of the best or top of the worst’.
Using Lagos example, this commentary will cast a glance at what master plan does for any given administration.
The Lagos State Innovation Master plan going by reports, contains Four Pillars to innovate – Access, Funding, Talent and Infrastructure. The management of the state’s resources is also predicated on well thought programmes, plans and policies across the MDAs. The need to harmonize and institutionalize all these programmes, plans and policies necessitated the commissioning of a project that produced what is now call Lagos State Development Plan (LSDP).
According a report, the consolidation of all the previous and existing policies and plans into LSDP suggest a clear indication of visionary leadership that is committed to Lagos State becoming “Africa’s Model Megacity and Global Economic and Financial Hub that is Safe, Secure, Functional and Productive” by 2025.
The LSDP builds upon previous long-term strategic planning exercises such as the Strategic Management Framework (2009) and Vision 20:2020 (2009). It also takes account of the previous shorter-term strategic documents such as the 10-Point Agenda, 2003-2007 and the Lagos State Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy (LASEEDS) 2005-2007.
The preparation of LSDP began by looking at the main issues and challenges facing Lagos today and projecting for a better tomorrow. This equally drew upon previous state reports, current statistics, especially those published by the Lagos Bureau of Statistics and other relevant documents/reports made available by MDAs. The LSDP comprises three key documents: (1) A Main Document divided into three parts: A baseline called Lagos Today; (2) Lagos Tomorrow dealing with the vision, Strategies and Policy Objectives in four broad Development Pillars; and (3) an Implementation Framework.
A similar document also noted that the purpose of the SDP says Lagos state Government, is to provide overall direction for the growth and development of the state. It will provide a framework through which all sectors of the economy – public, private and civil society – can direct their energies and contribute to the improvement of the quality of lives of the people in the state.
The LSDP implementation programme primarily concentrates on how the state administration can effectively integrate the LSDP into its existing planning and budgeting systems. It will also ensure that the performance of the LSDP is monitored on the basis of a comprehensive results framework predicated on clear outcomes, key performance indicators and target.
To be continued.
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