THE "PEOPLE'S GOVERNOR" SETS AN EXAMPLE IN

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 LAGOS 000005 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/31/2029 TAGS: PGOV KCOR KDEM PINR ELAB NI SUBJECT: THE "PEOPLE'S GOVERNOR" SETS AN EXAMPLE IN NIGERIA'S EDO STATE REF: A. 08 LAGOS 477 ¶B. 08 LAGOS 514 ¶C. LAGOS 227 ¶D. LAGOS 285 LAGOS 00000005 001.2 OF 003 Classified By: Consul General Donna M. Blair for Reasons 1.4 (B,D) -------------- SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (C) Governor Adams Oshiomhole (Action Congress - AC) of Edo State believes that because he was popularly elected he must govern differently from those who owe their positions to "Godfathers." Oshiomhole stressed to PolOff in Benin City on December 7 that he remained free of the need to pay favors to power-brokers, yet obliged to deliver on promises and services because he was "hired" and can be "fired" by the electorate. Oshiomhole has kept key election promises, maintains a lively dialogue with the electorate and remains popular. If the former labor leaders continues to deliver responsive and responsible government in Edo, he could at a future date capitalize on his popularity and national following to become a credible opposition leader. END SUMMARY. -------------- FREE FROM FINANCIAL STRINGS -------------- ¶2. (C) Oshiomhole says that because he owes his election to the electorate he does not have to pay back sponsors, show favoritism to or bend the law for anyone. This freedom enables him to increase revenues by enforcing the law uniformly and save money that otherwise would have been spent on patronage, for example, in the form of non-performing contracts. He insisted that, unlike most of his counterparts, he dose not interfere in rigorous tax collection even from elites and adhers to a transparent procurement process. Likewise, Oshiomhole stressed, no one is exempt from environmental laws; so, properties owned by powerful citizens and institutions, such as the Central Bank, were impacted along with the shanties of the poor when his government removed illegal structures that blocked roads and drains. The governor also noted that he had redeployed teachers impartially from superfluous administrative posts in urban areas to rural schools lacking staff despite the protests of many teachers. -------------- FULFILLING RISKY PROMISES -------------- ¶3. (SBU) Oshiomhole is focused on fulfilling his promises to the electorate. Oshiomhole promised to eliminate illegal �A;levies and extortion, to create 10,000 jobs, to fight corruption, cut costs of the bureaucracy and invest in needed infrastructure. Upon taking power, he instructed the police to stop "area boys" from extracting illegal levies at markets, parking lots, schools, and hospitals. Police action, combined with widespread popular refusal to pay, effectively ended this pernicious practice, at least in the capital. More recently, Oshiomhole declared the examination fee paid by students to sit for state exams illegal and refunded 15 million naira (USD 100,000) already collected. ¶4. (SBU) To date, Oshiomhole's administration has created nearly 7,000 public sector jobs, including 1,150 new teaching positions, 1,700 sanitation jobs, 3,300 jobs in "rapid response" road crews (to fill potholes, etc.),437 biometric and point-of-sales technicians, and 250 additional jobs in the Board of Internal Revenue to bolster tax collection and enforcement. In addition, an estimated 500 jobs have been created in the private sector through contracts to waste management firms and an as yet unquantified number of jobs will be created in construction as contracts for infrastructure projects are awarded. The new public service jobs were filled predominantly from the ranks of the unemployed, including 3,000 graduates; some of the new employees had been unemployed for as long as twelve years. ¶5. (SBU) Despite increasing the payroll dramatically, Oshiomhole has cut overall recurring state expenditures 45 LAGOS 00000005 002 OF 003 per cent by eliminating bureaucratic duplication, rigorously reducing bureaucratic waste such as unnecessary travel and expensive perks, improving efficiency, and impeding graft with automation. Oshiomhole claims that his aim was "not to spend two naira if one naira would achieve the same purpose." The state was able to not only operate at lower cost but to save 20 percent of its operating budget and release that money for capital expenditure. (NOTE: We will report on Oshiomhole's anti-corruption efforts and major fiscal policies in septels. END NOTE.) -------------- GOOD GOVERNANCE MEANS GOOD SERVICE -------------- ¶6. (SBU) Oshiomhole describes himself as a "steward" of the people and calls it his duty to deliver good and transparent government. He hired a team of experts predominantly from the private sector (reftels) who have been tasked with "painstaking planning" and developing a "holistic approach" rather than "quick-fixes." He has put emphasis on substance over show and quality over quantity. Rather than embarking on mega-projects Oshiomhole has focused on stopping the hemorrhaging of funds caused by corruption, laying the groundwork for sustainable government by increasing internally generated revenues to reduce dependence on federal allocations, and sought creative solutions involving the private sector to reduce the public burden. For example, state authorities have allowed participating banks to use taxes paid directly to the state's accounts for five working days as an incentive to support the introduction of cash-free tax payments and sold advertizing rights to finance the generators and diesel used to run street-lighting. -------------- LEADING BY EXAMPLE -------------- ¶7. (SBU) Key to Oshiomhole's success is his willingness to lead by example. In contrast to his fellow governors, Oshiomhole does not charter aircraft but books commercial flights. He does not surround himself with a large entourage and multiple cameramen but travels with only one or two aides. He has not invested in his own Local Government Area but has religiously followed the economic priorities laid out by his economic advisory committee. He has not interfered in the decisions taken by his commissioners to award contracts in order to reward friends nor has he moved to exempt friends or powerful elites from unpleasant legal or disciplinary action. -------------- POPULAR BUT SHUNS CULT OF PERSONALITY -------------- ¶8. (SBU) Oshiomhole remains immensely popular with the people of his state, as a spontaneous "bath in the masses" with PolOff on December 7 demonstrated. Oshiomhole took PolOff to former dump cites in residential neighborhoods and to the areas in the city where street-stalls had been bulldozed to improve drainage, sanitation and traffic. Although the visit was unannounced, people soon surrounded the governor, calling out greetings, blessings and reaching out for hand-shakes. Governor Oshiomhole approached market women and motorcycle taxis to draw attention to traffic violations, and spoke to residents at random. Despite -- or because of -- his popularity, Oshiomhole does not run large ads in the media praising his accomplishments as does, for example, the governor of Akwa Ibom State, Godswill Akpabio (People's Democratic Party - PDP). When Oshiomhole's face does appear on billboards, it is to admonish citizens to pay their taxes. -------------- COMMENT -------------- ¶9. (C) Even if Oshiomhole's supporters might exaggerate his accomplishments or bend some statistics, there is no doubt that he is a true star and represents the best of the so-called new generation of Nigerian politicians. He has implemented a commonsense agenda that should be a model for other states, and as a former labor leader, he has a strong LAGOS 00000005 003 OF 003 connection to the poor. Probably more than any other southern governor, he is poised - especially as a member of the opposition - to play a key role in national politics, perhaps as early as 2015. END COMMENT. ¶10. (U) ConGen Lagos coordinated this cable with Embassy Abuja. BLAIR