Nigeria’s democracy on trial - Nigerian Village Square

May

2006

By Bennie Attoh

On my recent visit to Nigeria, I was confronted with what is now popularly referred to as the ‘third term agenda’. A faction of the current ruling party in Nigeria – Peoples Democratic Party is seeking a constitutional change to amend the specified two terms of governance in order to allow them do a third term in office. Party members have been told by the executive committee to support the controversial third term agenda or be booted out of the party.

In an attempt to ensure that the third term agenda materialises, there has been widespread rumours of legislators being bribed with huge sums of money in order to support the controversial bid. If there is one issue that confirms corruption has become the defining currency for social-political interactions in Nigeria, it is the current agitation for a third term for the present government in Nigeria. That there is a proposed constitutional amendment just to actualise this desire is both fraudulent and ill advised. As the Senate President has stated, “our economic posterity and social stability require policy continuity, not necessarily regime continuity”.

Never before has the Federal and State Governments moved further away from finding a solution to the crucial issue of resource development and allocation like we have in the last seven years of democratic rule. Rather, the reliance on oil revenue by all arms of government has continued. The essence of the ongoing struggle for political supremacy and dominance is the intention to control oil resources and the immense power that goes with it. The political players are able to manipulate the populace on account of widespread lack of viable economic choices by the majority such that what should be the main issues in the public realm are swept under the carpet in favour of personality squabbles and private ambitions. The politics of godfatherism is so shamelessly glaring that in some States, self-styled political stakeholders have held innocent people hostage in an attempt to recover their ill-advised investments. Under this dispensation, all institutions of State are involved in a conspiracy to create, or more appropriately reinforce the impression that political legitimacy in Nigeria is founded on the expectation that office holders must share the national cake under and arrangement dictated by political godfathers.

The failure of successive Governments and especially this Government at ending the poverty and misery of citizens from the oil-rich region of the Niger delta in particular and the nation in general is proportional to the development of militia groups, youth unrest and agitation. Government's efforts at solving the problems of underdevelopment of the region have made no appreciable impact on the lives of the people. The President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria has acknowledged himself, that from pre-independence till today, what we must admit is that efforts made have not fully addressed the issues or have not fully satisfied the challenges. There is definitely a relationship between the poverty that is so endemic across Nigeria and the obvious recklessness of politicians in the way and manner our national, state and local treasuries are being looted. They steal and siphon public money with impunity leading young Nigerian citizens to beg for live Aid while their matured siblings fleeing hardship into diaspora are threatened with deportation.

What we have seen is a continuous degeneration of community values and ethos, communal life and spirit. Pen robbery and violence are being propagated in order to foster political and economic interests. Leaders have become handicap and unable to lead the citizenry because their hands are soiled with blood money. Nigerian leaders have been made impotent by immaturity, greed and corruption, big time. Ironically, some foreign Governments and investors have supported the third term agenda in a bid to protect and consolidate their selfish economic interest in the country.

Nigeria belongs to all of us and nobody should sit in Aso rock and run the country from his bedroom like he is running his private business. Nigerians who still have blood and not water flowing in their veins must unite and resist opportunistic politicians who are merely looking for a chance to inscribe their names in the Nigerian history books while helping themselves to billions of USD. Among a population of 150m or more, there are thousands of genuine Nigerians out there who can redirect our collective destinies to the path of peace and prosperity. We do not need the good or evil geniuses! We just need ordinary Nigerians who have the fear of God in their hearts.

What Nigerian leaders should know is that corruption, poverty, disease and a disregard for the rule of law are a panacea to anarchy and a breakdown of law and order.

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Robot

# 1 | 15.05.2006 23:16

	...Read the full article.

gwobezentashi gwobezentashi is offline

# 2 | 16.05.2006 09:34

	Can Obasanjo Yet Redeem Self? By Wonuola Martins, 05.15.2006 Ibrahim Babangida is an unhappy man. He may be a retired president, he may be stupendously wealthy and influential, he may command loyalty among a cross section of Nigerians (remarkable in itself considering that it's well over a decade since he held the reins of power), he may have his opinions cultivated, yet heâ€™s unhappy. His discontent lies not with the state of affairs in Nigeria, but with a rather tetchy subject: history. Babangida is unhappy with his place in it. Rankled that anytime his name is mentioned, June 12 is only a breath away. He is not remembered for the reforms he initiated in Nigeria. The reforms, social, political and economic, he introduced that his successors have in one way or the other fine-tuned. Reforms in the financial sector? He started them. His was the first all-star cabinet, to have arguably the best names in government - a Nobel Lauret served at his governmentâ€™s pleasure. However, still, he's not remembered for any of that, only for the annullement of an election. Over the years, this has rankled and adduces why he has never betrayed his desire to return to the seat he hastily abdicated in 1993, and why he schemes seemingly forever to have one last shot at the presidency. Given a second opportunity, he would rewrite history â€“ this time, on his own terms. Itâ€™s however too late for President Obasanjo now. Way too late. Come May 29, 2007, regardless of any vacancy or otherwise in Aso Rock, his reputation has been tarnished, his stature reduced, his moral authority evaporated. And when a President loses that, thereâ€™s really nothing left. We are not soothsayers but we already can envisage a post-2007 President Obasanjo dwelling inthe peace of the graveyard, extinguishing the fires his inordinate ambition has ensured, expending his energies on perpetuating his rule than the nurturing of his beloved reforms. Despite disdain at comparison, he is no different from Babangida and like the gap toothed retired general, we are sure to be indulged with incessant excuses, explanations, public relations exercises to redeem a tarnished reputation. But there will be no sympathy then, he had his chance, he blew it. We never harboured any illusions. Ruling Nigeria, remaking this country will always be difficult. Juggling the mutual suspicions among our diverse tribes, the distrust between the North and South, the religious tensions and the corruption might seem overwhelming but, certainly, not impossible. And therein lies the opportunity: for a man with an eye for history, Nigeria is there for the taking. Obasanjo could have been that man. He should have been that man. History would be kind to me because I intend to write it, Winston Churchill once said. We already can guess the verdict for Obasanjo; given a blank page to write his name in glory, he chose the footnote. That he would not fulfil what seemed destined is a loss to Nigeria and to us and should, in this season of anger, grieve us all. On the morning of 30 May 29, 1999 after what had been decades of missteps, it was as if we suddenly had the real deal. Obasanjoâ€™s inaugural speech on that day conveyed he understood the dire straits this country was in and if we, scarred by false dawns, doubted his commitment to lead, they were tempered by his near death ordeal under Abacha. Surely a man could not pass through what Obasanjo had undergone without being redefined. If Obasanjo had been to the very abyss and had emerged, what then was the mere task of leading a country? That has been his brief from onset: to lead. More than debt relief, more than pension reform, more than anything else he would count as his â€œnumerousâ€ achievements. To lead us into a new dawn, to provide the leadership and authority we had lacked and yearned for over the years. We longed for him to lay the foundation for a new Nigeria, to draw the line and stand firm over the cancer of corruption eating away at the soul of this country. But where we expected him strong, he weakened. The assassinations, the â€œbusiness as usualâ€ practices, the third term project have followed. That Obasanjo would have no qualms, be unhesitant in amending the constitution to satiate his ambition and adopt a cynical â€œends justify meansâ€ approach reveals the weakness inherent in his character. Not for him, the tension his aspiration is engendering or the resultant steps backward we would take as a country, blinded by greed and messianic ambition, this president is bent on pulling down the roof of this nation. If anyone event could pinpoint where exactly Obasanjo went wrong, and there are many, perhaps the murder of Bola Ige, the late Attorney-General of the country would suffice. We had expected Igeâ€™s death, tragic as it was, would serve as the catalyst in the weeding out of the highly placed murderers and resolution of the various murder cases from the Abacha years. We were wrong. It is a blacker sin when the snuffing of human life can be brazenly executed, and the government of the day has not the character to bring its perpetuators to justice, then all hope is lost surely. Obasanjo would do well to listen to the voices cautioning him on the third term bid. But we suspect, such attempts are futile. The president seems deaf to all voices of reason and crucially, history. Those who donâ€™t learn from history are condemned to repeat it. Already, current events are proving just that. The jockeying in the National Assembly, the call to the trenches by the civil opposition groups, the screaming newspaper headlines of plots and counter-plots, the unification of diverse political ideologies against Aso Rock, and in a ironic reversal of roles, Babangida admonishing Obasanjo not to stay a day longer than necessary. Obasanjo had rendered the same advice to IBB during his (IBB's) own season of madness. Thirteen years later, the then unsolicited favour is returned; we have come full circle. We yet donâ€™t know what next year would bring. Would Obasanjo still preside from Aso Rock, or would he have (been) retired to his farm? We are unsure. We however know this, come what may, this false dawn will pass and as for Obasanjo, this story will have no happy ending. Martins wrote from Bonny Island, Rivers State source: THIS DAY

Steve

# 3 | 16.05.2006 16:01

	"What Nigerian leaders should know is that corruption, poverty, disease and a disregard for the rule of law are a panacea to anarchy and a breakdown of law and order." DOES THIS WRITER KNOW WHAT THE WORD, "PANACEA" MEANS?

Chinedu Nwobu Chinedu Nwobu is offline

# 4 | 16.05.2006 21:26

	Bennie,this is another wonderful piece,kudos.Keep the ball rolling.Cheers

bennie bennie is offline

# 5 | 18.05.2006 20:10

	Dear Steve, Many thanks for that observation. The word 'panacea' was not used in the right context in my article. However, I am sure you got the message. Cheers, Bennie