By Kolawole Ojebisi
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has said Nigeria is not suffering from dearth of policies stressing that what ails the country is failure to implement formulated policies.
Obasanjo noted that Nigeria which ought to be a treasure trove of policies is now a graveyard of innovations the implementation of such policies ought to have birthed.
The former president stressed that this ugly development is evident in the stagnation being witnessed in all sectors of national life.
Obasanjo spoke on Saturday during a lecture and awards ceremony organised by the Nigerian Institution of Space Engineers (NISE) in Abuja.
The theme of the lecture was ‘Nigeria’s 21 years in space: Achievements, challenges, and prospects’.
Obasanjo said many policies, particularly in the area of space technology, remain unimplemented and unexecuted.
“It is not enough to have good policies. Nigeria is not in short supply of good policies,” Obasanjo said.
“In fact, go to our archives, it is a burial ground of unexecuted policies which leave us where we should not be.
“There are many dead policies, unimplemented policies, unexecuted policies.
“What I am trying to say is that it is not enough to have a policy.
“That is why we are where we should not have been. Those who have made progress have not done it on mere wishes. They took active steps.”
Obasanjo criticised what he called the inaction of successive governments in establishing a space programme for the National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA).
According to the former president, his administration had plans to launch Nigeria’s first satellite. Obasanjo regretted that little progress was made.
The former president was among 10 people honoured for their contributions to space technology development in Nigeria.
