Zan rattaba!!

“I do not believe in running cap in hand begging people or organizations for money to run our humble union. We must have a source of raising our revenue so as to truly make us independent to pursue our goal of equity and justice for all our members”
Muhammad Garba , N.U.J president.
Any organization that is not capable of generating its revenue internally and running itself at least for survival is not considered by business administrators to be an establishment deserving to maintain its name for much longer.
A good leader is suppose to be an innovator, creative and dynamic, not in terms of sweet begging the rich money bag politicians or elder state people; but in terms of being able to utilize revenue internally generated to put forth simple little achievements for their humble union.
A good leader ought to be a good manager and use funds and fund raising material at his disposal to churn out money for well defined projects.
The most prestigious N.AK.S.S is Bayero chapter. But even they put their vehicle to tread the equivalent of “accada to complex” generating nothing less than 15,000 naira monthly, which will be enough for fueling and general maintenance over time. Sometimes I wonder how show off on campus with public property could bring some cadre of people supposed happiness, while the masses are generally grumbling against unfair marginalization.
We are generally meant to believe that the essence of taking our unions vehicle home was to chase money bag politicians around for funds or their equivalent, visiting sick or bereaved congress members, attending their weddings and events e.t.c , yaeh!. So?, ideally under such arrangement the use of the vehicle should have been restricted within the bounds of this venture and not too much inclined towards personal gratification. Yes the vehicle serves as a personal as well as an official car to Mr. president! Agreed!, but how personal? There are and should be restraints. Ideally, personal engagement should be 30% and union issues take up 70%, in its absence, let the vehicle sleep and rest.
Almost everybody back at home, maid student or not will tell you where they saw your unions vehicle, Kaduna- Abuja express way, bachirawa, hotoro,shagari quarters e.t.c and in almost every unguwa within the metropolis , one thing I live to ask you and I is, are we the only union with a car or it’s just that we have a leadership with no screws in them?
Trust is burden and every one of us is but a Sheppard that will be called upon to account for their flock on the day of recompense. Public property is too sensitive to be employed for personal gratification. I remember we used to have a business centre that is decaying out of empty promises, if only the money making tools within the leadership had been put to effective use? Sometimes I look back and I say what if?
Thus we do not believe in a system that is so dependent on external support to survive. Going cap in hand, begging money bag politicians for dimes and pennies will no develop vibrant future leaders with a zeal for creativity and success which is independent of external support, at least not until it becomes an absolute necessity.
An ce “wai daga na gaba akan ga zurfin ruwa”, I hope the next cadre of leaders will learn from the blunders of history and steer us to greater heights.
Muhammad Tijjani Nakande is a freelance writer, a neo panafricanist. You can reach him on www.muhammadnakandesworld.blogspot.com or email him at memzycool@yahoo.com .