Construction workers build platforms. Those platforms can serve bricklayers, carpenters, painters and anyone working in the project. In internet business,  great companies engineer products with duality: products which are also platforms. Facebook is a product and also a platform. The most valued top 10 tech companies in the world have products with platform duality. With platforms, you have CUSTOMERS; products deliver consumers.

Interestingly, we can use the same construct we use in building companies to build and rebuild a nation. Platforms for economic growth include constant electricity, security, decent road networks, supply chain systems and those basic amenities you expect from governments. When you build them, you turn your citizens from Consumers to Producers because they will have platforms to operate on. If you do not, they remain mere consumers, feeding on imports because they have zero platform to tinker or do things.

The greatness of America comes from its platforms which include interstate roads, airports, good universities, etc. Upon those platforms, great companies are then built. Remove those platforms, everything fades.

Nigeria needs to build economic platforms to bring shared prosperity to its citizens. Nigeria does not need to build companies and join in free enterprises; it simply needs to provide platforms and We The People will then build and unlock opportunities on top of those platforms.

Because of Facebook platform, we see Like buttons and Comment sections to like, share and comment using Facebook on this blog. Just like we use construction platforms when building houses, when you mount them, you never know everyone who will use them. But you know that no matter who, the platform will help in the house construction. The platform supports the bricklayers, carpenters, painters and plumbers. Simply, it makes it possible for you to build on top of one project phase to another; from bricklaying to plastering to painting. Digital platforms do similar works: you begin with texts but over time, you have messaging, video, etc as products all integrated as one.

On Thursday, Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu inaugurated the National Economic Council (NEC), expressing his commitment to sustaining the revitalization of the nation’s economy.

In his address to the council, Tinubu urged its members, the governors of the federation, to collaborate and support his administration’s efforts in transforming the country’s economy. He reminded them of the eight priority areas outlined in his inaugural speech, which include security, economy, job creation, agriculture, and infrastructure, among others.

Tinubu acknowledged the enormity of the task of growing the economy but emphasized that he and the governors should not complain, instead highlighting the importance of harnessing the nation’s potential to drive substantial growth. The NEC’s inauguration took place one week after President Tinubu directed the council to convene and devise interventions to mitigate the impact of petroleum subsidies.

Concluding his remarks, the president reiterated that collaboration among NEC members is essential and should not be seen as a crime. The meeting began with the presence of several governors from various states, including Kwara, Osun, Kogi, Ekiti, Nasarawa, Akwa Ibom, Enugu, Cross River, Plateau, Kebbi, Katsina, and Benue, among others.

Additionally, key figures in attendance included the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, the Chief of Staff, the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), the Acting Accountant General of the Federation, the Acting Governor of the Central Bank, and Permanent Secretaries from the Budget and National Planning and Federal Capital Territory Administration departments.

The president also approved on Thursday, the appointment of the following as Special Advisers:

 Mr. Dele Alake Special Adviser, Special Duties, Communications and Strategy 

Mr. Yau Darazo Special Adviser, Political and Intergovernmental Affairs 

Mr. Wale Edun Special Adviser, Monetary Policies 

Mrs. Olu Verheijen Special Adviser, Energy 

Mr. Zachaeus Adedeji Special Adviser, Revenue 

Mr. Nuhu Ribadu Special Adviser, Security 

Mr. John Ugochukwu Uwajumogu Special Adviser, Industry, Trade and Investment. 

Dr (Mrs.) Salma Ibrahim Anas Special Adviser, Health.

The Ribadu’s surprise

However, the appointment of Ribadu has raised eyebrows. In 2007, Ribadu as the Chairman of the Economic Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), declared before the Senate that Tinubu, the then Lagos State governor, was among the top five stealing governors.

Other governors mentioned by Ribadu included Orji Uzor Kalu, Ahmed Sani yerima, George Akume, and Abudulahi Adamu. He told the Senate that Tinubu’s corruption was so deep that it had an international dimension to it.

Thus, it’s surprising to see Ribadu, who was revered as an anticorruption czar during his time as the head of Nigeria’s anti-graft agency, support, and work for Tinubu, who he indicted and declared “not fit to hold public positions.”