Trump Dividend: How Not to Impress Nigerian Politicians_Uthman Qasim

Trump Dividend: How Not to Impress Nigerian Politicians_Uthman Qasim

When President Trump announced a few days ago that if his party wins the midterm elections, he would give every American adult $5,000, Nigerian politicians must have been amused. Here, at last, was democracy at its best, or so they might have thought. Since 1999, they have hardly seen or heard of anything quite like it.

Our own leaders have always understood the principle of acquiring wealth and sharing a little of it with the people while, of course, keeping the larger portion for themselves. From Venezuelan oil to the Strait of Hormuz, and from tariffs on goods from China and Canada, the most powerful man in the world seems to be giving our politicians new ideas about how to make citizens rich.

Our politicians traditionally pay dividends on election day. Trump has now given them a new code: dividends can be paid after elections. If you lose an election, you don't necessarily have to lose money too. Isn't that ingenious?

But there is one important difference between the American president and our leaders here. Our politicians' dividends usually range from N3,000 to N50,000, and where necessary, they may add a little voters' blood to the package. If they decide to be more generous, a bag of rice and some salt may also be included.

For Trump, it does not matter whether Americans are paying $6 a gallon for petrol or facing unprecedented grocery prices. As long as there is more money in government coffers, even with a national debt exceeding $40 trillion, he can claim that he is making America great again.

It is not entirely different in Nigeria. The removal of subsidies and the floating of the naira have made the government considerably richer. There is now more money going to the states, even though more than half the population is poor and many Nigerians struggle to pay for transportation, food and hospital bills. But never mind that. Our leaders assure us that we are firmly on the road to prosperity.

Nigerian politicians now have another question to wrestle with: Can Nigerians wait until after elections for their dividends? Do we have the patience of American citizens?

Trump also attached a caveat to his proposed dividend: the money must be spent in America. Nigerian politicians, on the other hand, place no such restrictions on their dividends. And this is where the American president still has something to learn from us. We are much more liberal.

Nigerians can spend their dividends however they like, including buying mobile data from MTN, a South African company. I seriously doubt President Trump would be comfortable with that.

Whatever the American president intended by proposing dividends for adult citizens at this critical political moment, Nigerian politicians could misunderstand or abuse the idea when they decide to copy him. Trump will be amazed when he sees how his idea turns out in our country.

Mr President, if you really want to inspire our politicians, this is probably not the way to do it.

You may only end up teaching them a new trick.

Uthman Qasim, Abuja

uthmanqasim5@gmail.com