The tradition of a 100-day marker to assess
presidential effectiveness was started by
Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR), in 1933, when
he inherited the calamity of a depressed US
economy.
Faced with a collapsing economy, such as we face in
Nigeria today, FDR hit the ground speeding! He
engaged the US congress and eventually secured an
unprecedented FIFTEEN landmark legislation,
between March 8 and June 16, hence the birth of the
“Fifteen legislation in 100 days” yardstick, for
assessing Presidential performance and the
foundation for FDR’s widely successful “New Deal”
programs – which included regulating and reforming
of the banking system, unleashing massive
government stimulus pending package to restart the
economy and putting people back to work, and the
creation of a social services network to support those
who had fallen on hard times.
Several of the programs created during those three
and a half months are still around in the US federal
government today.
The justification for the first 100 day marker is that it
is the period during which a new presidency has its
most goodwill and political capital, with the public
and legislature, to ram through legislation that would
form the foundation for hoisting its reformative
agendas. It is also in keeping with the words of
Shakespeare that, “There is a tide in the affairs of
men. Which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune;
omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in
shallows and in miseries.” Although not perfect by
any means, this 100 day measure has survived the
test of time.
Therefore, any democratically elected President, who
fails to vigorously secure much of its programs’
legislative infrastructure, within the 100-day window,
does so at the risk of administering over a failed
tenure.
While most uninformed political commentators may
confuse the unsuspecting public , by arbitrarily
scoring executive or administrative actions, such as
declaration of assets, appointment of personal aides,
executive pronouncements, etc, not backed by force
of legislation as performance, the truth of the matter
is that the performance measures are not arbitrary,
they are as clear as black and white.
Performance credit is awarded with successful
legislative actions – the bulwark of any reform
agenda.
When Barack Obama took the reins of US
government in 2008, the US and world economy was
cratering at a dizzying speed. Obama hit the ground
racing!
Obama responded promptly and aggressively with
legislative policy actions, within the first 100 days,
which has been described by some as the boldest and
most far-reaching in history, and credited for turning
around the US and global economy.
These legislative actions included; The American
Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) – which
provided $787 billion of fiscal stimulus to jumpstart
the US economy; The Financial Stability Plan- a
comprehensive plan to restart securitized lending,
increase small business lending, create a market for
purchasing toxic assets off bank balance sheets, and
ensure that banks are adequately capitalized, and The
Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan – a $75
billion program to stem the tide of foreclosures and
enable homeowners to refinance at lower interest
rates.
Since adopting the Presidential system of
government, Nigeria has also taken to measuring its
Presidents and Governors with the first 100 day
performance yard stick.
On May 29, 2011, President Goodluck Jonathan of
the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) was sworn in as
Nigeria’s President, during which he reaffirmed that
“the leadership we have pledged is decidedly
transformative. The transformation will be achieved
in all the critical sectors; by harnessing the creative
energies of our people. We must grow the economy,
create jobs, and generate enduring happiness for our
people.”
Other than getting his executive cabinet confirmed
by the National Assembly within his first 100 days,
President Jonathan recorded no other legislative
initiatives or wins, in furtherance of his
transformation agenda – a missed opportunity that
he never recovered from. His supporters would
provide a list of dozens of accomplishments, during
this window, but mostly executive or administrative
actions that don’t count towards the score card.
Saturday, September 5, 2015, today, marks the first
100 day of the Buhari-led All Progressive Congress
(APC) government. Ahead of this day, President
Buhari and his team have strenuously made attempts
to distance the presidency from two documents (‘My
Covenant with Nigerians & What I Will Do In My First
100 Days) which were widely and aggressively
circulated by the APC as its “Change Agenda”, against
which Buhari’s administration performance was to be
assessed.
In an excerpt from one of those documents Buhari
pledged to “Ensure that under my watch, no force,
external or internal, will occupy even an inch of
Nigerian soil. I will give all it takes to ensure that
our girls kidnapped from Chibok are rescued and
reunited with their families. Deliver a Marshal Plan
on insurgency, terrorism, ethnic and religious
violence, kidnapping, rural banditry and ensure that
never again will Nigerian children be slaughtered or
kidnapped at will. Continually acknowledge our
diversity and consciously promote equality and
equity in all government businesses and
activities. Unveil a health sector review policy to
ensure efficient and effective management of our
health systems with focus on prevention, etc.”
Regardless of the denial of ownership of these
documents, President Buhari gave a broad overview
of his domestic agenda during his inaugural speech
when he said “At home we face enormous challenges.
insecurity, pervasive corruption, the hitherto
unending and seemingly impossible fuel and power
shortages are the immediate concerns. We are going
to tackle them head on. Nigerians will not regret that
they have entrusted national responsibility to us. We
must not succumb to hopelessness and defeatism.
We can fix our problems.”
With the exception of the request for approval for
him to appoint 15 special advisers and a couple other
appointments, President Buhari has neither
introduced nor secured any legislation within his first
100 days, leaving him with no legislative
infrastructure to begin to move his “Change Agenda,”
when he is most popular. This performance is worse
than that of Goodluck Jonathan, who ended up with
an unremarkable presidency, but whom at least at
this point of his presidency have had most of his
cabinet confirmed by the Senate and in place.
Without any significant legislative accomplishments in
his first 100 days, Buhari has the makings of another
failed presidency.
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presidential effectiveness was started by
Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR), in 1933, when
he inherited the calamity of a depressed US
economy.
Faced with a collapsing economy, such as we face in
Nigeria today, FDR hit the ground speeding! He
engaged the US congress and eventually secured an
unprecedented FIFTEEN landmark legislation,
between March 8 and June 16, hence the birth of the
“Fifteen legislation in 100 days” yardstick, for
assessing Presidential performance and the
foundation for FDR’s widely successful “New Deal”
programs – which included regulating and reforming
of the banking system, unleashing massive
government stimulus pending package to restart the
economy and putting people back to work, and the
creation of a social services network to support those
who had fallen on hard times.
Several of the programs created during those three
and a half months are still around in the US federal
government today.
The justification for the first 100 day marker is that it
is the period during which a new presidency has its
most goodwill and political capital, with the public
and legislature, to ram through legislation that would
form the foundation for hoisting its reformative
agendas. It is also in keeping with the words of
Shakespeare that, “There is a tide in the affairs of
men. Which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune;
omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in
shallows and in miseries.” Although not perfect by
any means, this 100 day measure has survived the
test of time.
Therefore, any democratically elected President, who
fails to vigorously secure much of its programs’
legislative infrastructure, within the 100-day window,
does so at the risk of administering over a failed
tenure.
While most uninformed political commentators may
confuse the unsuspecting public , by arbitrarily
scoring executive or administrative actions, such as
declaration of assets, appointment of personal aides,
executive pronouncements, etc, not backed by force
of legislation as performance, the truth of the matter
is that the performance measures are not arbitrary,
they are as clear as black and white.
Performance credit is awarded with successful
legislative actions – the bulwark of any reform
agenda.
When Barack Obama took the reins of US
government in 2008, the US and world economy was
cratering at a dizzying speed. Obama hit the ground
racing!
Obama responded promptly and aggressively with
legislative policy actions, within the first 100 days,
which has been described by some as the boldest and
most far-reaching in history, and credited for turning
around the US and global economy.
These legislative actions included; The American
Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) – which
provided $787 billion of fiscal stimulus to jumpstart
the US economy; The Financial Stability Plan- a
comprehensive plan to restart securitized lending,
increase small business lending, create a market for
purchasing toxic assets off bank balance sheets, and
ensure that banks are adequately capitalized, and The
Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan – a $75
billion program to stem the tide of foreclosures and
enable homeowners to refinance at lower interest
rates.
Since adopting the Presidential system of
government, Nigeria has also taken to measuring its
Presidents and Governors with the first 100 day
performance yard stick.
On May 29, 2011, President Goodluck Jonathan of
the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) was sworn in as
Nigeria’s President, during which he reaffirmed that
“the leadership we have pledged is decidedly
transformative. The transformation will be achieved
in all the critical sectors; by harnessing the creative
energies of our people. We must grow the economy,
create jobs, and generate enduring happiness for our
people.”
Other than getting his executive cabinet confirmed
by the National Assembly within his first 100 days,
President Jonathan recorded no other legislative
initiatives or wins, in furtherance of his
transformation agenda – a missed opportunity that
he never recovered from. His supporters would
provide a list of dozens of accomplishments, during
this window, but mostly executive or administrative
actions that don’t count towards the score card.
Saturday, September 5, 2015, today, marks the first
100 day of the Buhari-led All Progressive Congress
(APC) government. Ahead of this day, President
Buhari and his team have strenuously made attempts
to distance the presidency from two documents (‘My
Covenant with Nigerians & What I Will Do In My First
100 Days) which were widely and aggressively
circulated by the APC as its “Change Agenda”, against
which Buhari’s administration performance was to be
assessed.
In an excerpt from one of those documents Buhari
pledged to “Ensure that under my watch, no force,
external or internal, will occupy even an inch of
Nigerian soil. I will give all it takes to ensure that
our girls kidnapped from Chibok are rescued and
reunited with their families. Deliver a Marshal Plan
on insurgency, terrorism, ethnic and religious
violence, kidnapping, rural banditry and ensure that
never again will Nigerian children be slaughtered or
kidnapped at will. Continually acknowledge our
diversity and consciously promote equality and
equity in all government businesses and
activities. Unveil a health sector review policy to
ensure efficient and effective management of our
health systems with focus on prevention, etc.”
Regardless of the denial of ownership of these
documents, President Buhari gave a broad overview
of his domestic agenda during his inaugural speech
when he said “At home we face enormous challenges.
insecurity, pervasive corruption, the hitherto
unending and seemingly impossible fuel and power
shortages are the immediate concerns. We are going
to tackle them head on. Nigerians will not regret that
they have entrusted national responsibility to us. We
must not succumb to hopelessness and defeatism.
We can fix our problems.”
With the exception of the request for approval for
him to appoint 15 special advisers and a couple other
appointments, President Buhari has neither
introduced nor secured any legislation within his first
100 days, leaving him with no legislative
infrastructure to begin to move his “Change Agenda,”
when he is most popular. This performance is worse
than that of Goodluck Jonathan, who ended up with
an unremarkable presidency, but whom at least at
this point of his presidency have had most of his
cabinet confirmed by the Senate and in place.
Without any significant legislative accomplishments in
his first 100 days, Buhari has the makings of another
failed presidency.
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