The word Accountability particularly strikes me as some sort of phenomenon that depicts deep-rooted form of compliance to ethics, principles, policy, and morals.
Accountability is mentioned almost everyday in Nigeria but unfortunately, it is not put to practice. Accountability to whom and for what? Is a critical question to be thrown open to the teeming population in the country.
At the mention of the word accountability, our first point of call is typically the government followed by corporate organizations in the country. Unfortunately, very little attention is paid to the citizens. This is a pathetic notion.
The most organized societies of the world thrive on tenets of the word accountability. Its simple definition is "the collective compliance of Laws, Principles, policies, morals, procedures and regulations". This precept has been the secret to the success of these organized societies.
If you have been outside this country and have watched how our citizens readily comply with the rule of law in organized societies, then, you will begin to wonder what the problem is with these individuals who come back to the country and fail to comply with the rule of laws.
A ready example to illustrate this phenomenon was my experience a few months ago. I was leaving the Heathrow airport in London for Nigeria and watched as Nigerians organized themselves in an orderly manner through the airport procedures. However, as we arrived Nigeria, I watched as the same set of Nigerians behave in the most unruly manner and I began to wonder "what went wrong? If it was possible to comply with simple procedures obtainable in other countries, then why not at home, here in Nigeria?
The echoes of the regime of the duo of Gen. Mohammed Buhari and Gen. Tunde Idiagbon begin to come to mind. Enforcement was the name of the game but did it yield the much needed result? I won't be the judge of that but at least, there was compliance.
One quality I have admired in truly-great leaders has been their ability to build more leaders. By 'leaders', I do not mean leadership by appointment or by position. No leaders will enforce compliance but instead, a true leader will inspire followers to see reasons to comply.
Everyone can not be a leader but everyone has a spark of leadership. Inspiration, integrity, self-awareness and self-control are key ingredients for leadership and leadership is a catalyst in achieving accountability.
In Nigeria today, every little chance we get, we always blame our governors for our woes without putting into consideration that governance is a collective responsibility of both the governed and the governors. To every criticism, there must be a justification. Have you ever asked yourself each time you criticize government if you have been accountable to the same for which you are criticizing the governmental.
I watched with dismay recently as Lagosians lamented and criticized government for the woes in the aftermath of the heavy down pour in the state and I wondered "have they been accountable to the same?
It is speculated that at least, 60% of Lagosians dispose their refuse illegally everyday. This indiscriminate dump of refuse has contributed immensely to the poor state of our drainage system.
We should ask ourselves, "Have we been accountable?" Remember, Democracy means the GOVERNMENT of the PEOPLE, by the PEOPLE and for the PEOPLE. Note "the people" is explicitly stressed in this universal definition thereby emphasizing the significance of the people in governance.
Another poignant example is the attitude of many government workers their work. Most government workers are ghost workers and this has led to the slow pace of service to the citizens.
However, when we get the opportunity to criticize government, we become hasty in conclusion without asking ourselves if we have truly been accountable. How many times have we handled our duties and our obligations with utmost faithfulness? How diligently have we handled government's property? These are sincere questions we must ask ourselves.
Corporate organisations on the other hand have been involved actively in the system with full-scale consciousness of making profit forgetting the fact that each entity that makes up the organisation also belongs to the society; whether directly or indirectly.
Everyday, we watch our major roads in the country as they deteriorate and our corporate organisations sited in such areas watch also with their arms folded.
Have they all forgotten the danger, cost and other precarious implications that these deteriorated roads will bring to both the citizenry and their organization?
Those plying the Benin-Ore road can attest to the danger they are exposed to as a result of the terrible state of the road. Must we all die before we begin to realize that we all need to ensure that we have a system that works?
We have the resources that can adequately meet the task of making our system work but our attitude to compliance of rules, principles, morals, public system, resource allocations, programs, service and ethics that affect our lives is very pathetic.
Imagine if all our teachers, government officials and our parents have been accountable to the generations that are presently known as "Area boys" (social miscreants), would we currently be facing the threats created by their existence? No, if the miscreants themselves have been accountable to their development.
Accountability extends democracy and creates checks and balances that ensure that less powerful can challenge and re-shape the decision and choices that affect our lives. Accountability is an important step in advancing the larger human project of creating more democratic, equitable and just societies.
A crucial point I will mention in my closing is that of our ability to pay attention to hold someone to account when our roads are bad, when our hospitals are in bad conditions or when our security agents are not as effective as they ought to but, we pay no attention to recognize those who are responsible for a service behave accountably. That in essence is tantamount to taking for granted accountable use of power.
This is a crucial point because in order to promote good accountability, we need to take a positive view, not a negative one. We need to study and learn pro-actively from both failure and success. Enhancing our accountability enables us to be the change we want to see in our society.
If we live accountably as citizens, our government will leverage on it and will build on it to increase the accountability of our public systems- economic, social, political, and cultural.
Let's liberate ourselves today by being accountable in our everyday activity in order to see our system work. Rome was not built in a day, but it was built and the people made it possible. Accountability was a key factor in the success story. It was the pivot of their development.
A word is enough for a wise one to absorb to enable him become whole.
Olukayode Ajayi-Smith
Reference:
Answer for ourselves: Accountability for citizen organization by David Bonbright with Srilatha Batliwala
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