The recent launching and commissioning by the national lottery trust fund of medical equipment and its distributions to the nation’s critical health institutions is a welcome development in the agency’s commitments to fulfilling its mandate.
Kudos goes to the new Minister of special duties and intergovernmental affairs, Hon Zaphaniah Bitrus Jisalo, for reinvigorating in the once slumping agency the renewed hope mantra of the present administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. The era of mere sloganeering is gone and the era of quality service delivery to the people is here to stay.
The Nigerian lottery trust fund was created as an interventionist agency to intervene in the nation’s critical areas of needs mainly by the accrued funds from the federations commissions from the proceeds of gaming. It is very true to say that prior to the appointment of the present management of the fund, many Nigerians seemed not to know of the existence of the agency and those who knew seemed to be confused by the obvious laxity of the agency in fulfilling its mandates. But today, under Dr. Bello Maigari, the agency seems to have rediscovered its magic wand by his changing of the narratives in the agency. The fund is now becoming a household name as many Nigerians are now accepting the agency’s interventionist programmes as a veritable tool of bringing succour to them especially in this period which the country is going through a lot of uncertainties especially in the economic sector. This positives in the present narratives of the agency is due to the vision and new strategies of interventions being implemented by its present managements led by Dr. Bello Maigari.
The agency’s past failures in fulfilling its mandates reflects our nation’s vicious circle of bad choices and failures in the outcomes of many of such agencies in the country and which was prevalent in government. But the renewed hope mantra and disposition of the present Minister of Special Duties and intergovernmental affairs, a ministry which the agency is directly under its supervision, Hon.Zaphaniah Jisalo, whose overarching vision and significant strategy goals makes it mandatory for agencies under him to walk its talk in the fulfilments of it’s mandates rather than the former corrupt system of bamboozling the populace with mere sloganeering without actionable plans.
The Minister and the present management led by the Director-general, Dr. Bello Maigari, seems to be on the same page by their insistence that the agency in this new era must be seen to be doing all it can to intervene in all the critical areas as stated in the enabling laws creating the fund in bringing succour to all Nigerians. No wonder the new narratives about the agency are signalling already the beginning of the end of the former practice where corrupt practices seems to be the order of the day at the agency to a new dawn of judicious usage of the funds for the benefit of all Nigerians and this is very gratifying. The agency today seems to be working again by churning out various programmes that are critical in intervening in the lives of the people and reflecting the needs for the agency’s existence. The launching, commissioning and distribution of medical facilities to selected medical health institutions in the country at the Shehu Musa Yar’adua’s centre in which the representatives of this targeted institutions were all available signalled the renewed hope and commitments of the agency to make better things in the country and fulfilling on it’s mandates. The role intervening in our health sectors around the country by the fund cannot be overemphasized because for so long the equipments in most of our medical institutions around the country seems to be obsolete and not in tune with the present requirements obtainable in the ever advancing field of the medical sector around the world.
With the renewed vigour at the national lottery thrust fund and the Minister of special duties and intergovernmental affairs to make the agency live up to its responsibilities by fulfilling on it’s mandates, the agency seems to have now put in place a clear coherent strategic plan of actions driven by data and evidence on ground about the nation’s critical areas of critical needs and a disciplined transparent consistent execution of programmes templates which have done away with the mere sloganering dispensation prior to this one,the country is really enjoying a new dawn.
The present management led by the able Dr.Bello Maigari have gone beyond manifesto thinking, the bane of the agency,to a period of strategic thinking and plannings on how to execute its mandates of intervening in the various critical sectors of our national life as a country. In the face of the present realities in the country,a lot is expected from the agency and its renewed commitment and synergies with the Minister of special duties,Hon.Zaphaniah Jisalo,we are sure a new dawn of interventions beckons on us.
Musa Wada; Media aide to the minister of special duties and intergovernmental affairs
Abuja
Note: This article is (without any alteration to its original form) completely an opinion of the writer and does not convey or represent the thoughts of, or a shared belief with NIGERIAN TRIBUNE.
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