Nze Chidi Duru
Financial sector billionaire, Michael Bloomberg, may have upped the ante in the sphere of philanthropy. He recently committed the sum of $600 million to the endowment of four historically black medical schools in the United States of America to help secure their future economic stability. This commitment follows an earlier $1 billion pledge Bloomberg made in July to Johns Hopkins University to offset all medical students’ tuition fees at that university.
Now, this, to my mind is one other way to profoundly impact life and lift society and I wish we have individuals that can replicate this philanthropic feats in Nigeria. In truth, it’s not as if we do not have such individuals except that the quantum of their Philanthropies has been of the constricted type.
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In this regard, I recall pleading with Nigeria’s banking stalwarts in an earlier article, to commit to a developmental agenda for both the country and its people so as to have an economically enabled populace that will not only engender a buoyant economy but impact the banking system for the banking chiefs benefits too.
I am not asking bankers to dish out money as Bloomberg had done, essentially, I reason that if bankers commit to best practices to actively engage in making the Naira stronger and facilitating access to credit without the usual exploitative encumbrances that are associated with credits granted customers by Nigerian banks, the economic space will be energised and able to create wealth and better livelihood for the millions of Nigerians that are struggling to make a success of their respective businesses or those that are struggling to survive from one day to the other.
Seriously speaking, this time requires the type of wealthy Nigerians, that can stand up to be counted as developmental champions on the side of the Nigerian people.
Nze Chidi Duru, OON
Chairman, Grand Towers Plc & former member, House of Representatives (1999-2007)
