The Nigerian Condition
By
Wada Nas
Never was President Obasanjo so furious with his good American friends. He has good reasons. Inspite of his loyal collaboration with them, doing, for them, most of the time, as it pleases them, allowing free access to our military fields by their military and intelligence personnel, and doing such other things, to put him in their good books, they have constantly been betraying him.
First, they announced, to the world, that never in the history of Nigeria was corruption being conducted in high places as now. This was when they revealed that 56% of corruption in the country was being done in the Presidency, the seat of power, directly under Obasanjo’s charge. As if this was not bad enough, they again revealed to the public that their intelligence agencies submitted a list of the most corrupt ministers and others with fat foreign bank accounts, but that nothing was done. Still, the U.S. based center for strategic and international studies, CSIS, came out with a damning assessment that the 2003 elections have already been rigged, at source, such that no one would have confidence in them. To further worsen matters, Washington issued a warning to its citizens to be aware of traveling to Nigeria, because of violence and also be aware of dealing with the country because of 419 and corruption. Talk about improving Nigeria’s image, through 370 air travels in three years.
And this was why the President was angry when he addressed the Jamaican parliament during his last outing. When he was lecturing them on how beneficial his staying away from Nigeria, for 370 days, out of 1080 days, since he came to power, administrating Nigeria in the air and in “ exile”, the Americans were pulling strings off his fact. So in the Jamaican parliament, he shouted at them, telling them not to judge Nigeria by their own standard.
Yes, Mr. President is right here but so also the Americans. Part of the worse condition of the Nigerian project today is that Obasanjo’s ruling PDP has joined in perpetrating violence as an article of our national life. The destruction that took place virtually throughout the country during its councillorship primaries was unprecedented except for what took place in the southwest during the first republic. According to various, but independent accounts, about 200 partisans lost their lives in the PDP inspired disturbances. Today, many Nigerians see it as platform for destructive partisans’ PDP or peoples destructive party. Could we blame the Americans for warning their citizens not to have business with a country whose ruling party bears the name of violence? The truth is that violence is part of the Nigerian condition today made worse by the attitude of some elected officials of the party who are believed to be the brain behind these ugly episodes. This has been their game especially in the south south and the south-east where state terrorism is conducted against even religious places. If our leaders do not feel worried by what has been happening in these areas, in particular, and the middle belt, then the Americans are only alerting them of the danger ahead. To deny their assessment of the state of violence, in the country, is to be insensitive to what Nigerians have been going through in the hands of violence promoters including their governments at various levels. The mass massacres in Odi and Zaki Biam were enough to scare every one from setting foot on Nigeria. But this is just a fraction of the horror the people have been going through in the last three years. In fact, violence is about the most visible democracy dividend the people have known so far. It has been a daily occurrence, with vigilantes beheading innocent citizens in the presence of the Police! Killing in the name of tribalism and religion has become the order of the day. Worse hit has been Plateau, Taraba/Benue, the Niger Delta and Lagos, but virtually all others have experienced it in varying degrees. It must be said, with pains, that violence and killings are the common name of Nigerians and the sponsorship of state terrorism, part of the preoccupation of some of their elected leaders. We must be ashamed to tell the world this. In any case they know.
We have been doing to ourselves what the racists were doing to South Africans and the Hitlerists to the Jews and mankind generally in terms of killing in the name tribalism, I do not see how the racists and the Hitlerists were worse than us. Tribalism in Nigeria is to me the local name of racism and fascism combined. It has been that bad and no amount of protestations could make it otherwise. In fact, to protest the truism of this matter is to be insensitive to its dangers and Nigerian leaders are known for their insensitiveness to the plight of the people, the current ones been the worse.
Almost the entire human race is scared of the level of corruption in Nigeria. It was not only the Americans that rated that 56% of it is being conducted under the nose of President Obasanjo, the self proclaimed anti corruption crusader. Their British cousins said the same when they rated it 55%. Then there was Transparency International of which Obasanjo was a member of its Board of Trustees. In 2000, it awarded us the gold medal of corruption as the most corrupt country in the whole world, in 1999. In 2001, we took the second position, after our neighbors Cameroon, or is it Kenya? Thus, we have been struggling to earn the dubious distinction of the most corrupt country in the world under the leadership of supposed saints of purity.
These dubious medals are not for nothing. Billions are being spent secretly without the knowledge of the National Assembly. More billions have not been accounted for. Recovered loot were reportedly looted according to accounts by NASS. It has been a war of thieves all along. They have been doing worse things than they have been accusing Abacha of. Their sons are importers of oil for which reasons the refineries do not function. They are eager to purchase the Mint Inspite of protest by all Nigerians. Worse, is lack of accountability and transparency in the conduct of public affairs, marked by expenditure incurement without authorization, a very serious constitutional crime. They have been making it impossible for the National Assembly to monitor them. Each time the lawmakers want to carry out their constitutional duty, primordial forces are mobilized in the media to cover up dirty tracks but which cannot be covered because of its monumental visibility. Those portraying themselves, as angles of purity are the worse devils of corruption this country ever had. It is no longer as usual, but business unusual. This is the other Nigerian condition.
Then take the economy. It has collapsed totally or almost. Eight months in to the year, there is no budget. Things are therefore been done anyhow with the nation grinding to a halt. Which was why the Senate recently hinted that it may be forced to go on indefinite leave until the lords above the rock decide what to do with their subvention. There is hardly anything working in this country today. At a time when they are telling us that NEPA has improved lights go off sometimes for about 12 hours and this is what they call improved power generation which means twelve hours of non availability of light and this is for lucky areas. Others go for days at the pleasure of NEPA.
With the passage of each day, the Naira is becoming more useless. From N82 to the dollar in 1998 it is know hovering N137-140, soon to double its 1998 figure. Prices are going to the rooftops, with things coming to a stand still. Salaries have not been paid for months. We honestly do not know what work is now left for them to do. Before they were working to pay salaries today they are working not to pay it. What then are they doing?
One newsmagazine, a pro Obasanjo one for that matter, recently reported that 14,000 bakeries have closed shop in Lagos alone. It has been equally worse with other industrial establishments and cottage industries in particular, thereby worsening the unemployment situation in the country which has since reached a frightening dimension, in terms of economic performance, Nigeria is now in the red regardless of the propaganda statistics its economists were been feeding us with. Even the blind knows how dangerous red is Nigeria, as at today, and no amount of falsification of figures can paint any different picture. If our leaders appreciate how frustrated, angry and swollen faces the people are, they would hurriedly call for an early election to allow themselves to be eased out as an escape route from the maladies they have visited on the nation. But for some states, the anger of Nigerians, with the hopeless performance at the center, would have exploded. The performance of these states is the only lid keeping this on hold. Now that much of the money is being squandered at the center, with the state unable to pay salaries, we must fear for the worse from the people. With unemployment, poverty, hunger, corruption, misery and such others as their daily companion, when workers join their rank the nation may be sorry. No one would be around to hold back their anger. We are near an explosion to caused by economic woes, poor performance and lack of vision.
There is yet another danger. The democracy order is not on course. We have been operating the project in a purely military style. Can you imaging a president disregarding the orders and rulings of courts including the Supreme Court? At a time of compiling this piece, Police have been drafted to re arrest Muhammad Abacha who has been freed on murder charges by the Supreme Court and granted bail by another. Yet, President Obasanjo said that the next action would depend on a briefing to be made to him. Does it now mean that citizens cannot enjoy court judgments until sanctioned by the President acting as a superior court over even the Supreme Court? Disregarding court orders is the extent we respect the rule of law.
Then, the manipulation of electoral laws. Worse is that the President has now taken over the power to fashion out a revenue formula for the nation in glaring contravention of the constitution, which vests such powers in the National Assembly. Also, he has seized another power of the National Assembly by vesting in himself the power to enact money Bill into Act. These are gradual seizure of legislative powers to consolidate the gradual march back to dictatorship in civilian dress. There was also another power snatched from the civil service commission to discipline civil servants involved in financial crime. Worse is that INEC, the electoral body, which is supposed to be independent of all other authorities, is more or less a department in the Presidency, taking instructions as how to violate the laws establishing it, in order to serve a particular agenda. Consequently, it is not only an electoral body, but a census board as well combining the functions of two distinctive authorities created by law. To achieve this dubious agenda, the voter’s registration form created by law is being set aside in favor of one created for it by its masters.
As at today 14/08/02, nobody is sure whether elections would hold at all. It has been an intent to manipulate the electoral law right from the attempt to smuggle a foreign subsection into the electoral bill. It took the outcry of Nigerians before the dictatorial manager of the democracy project allowed INEC to register more political parties. Still, even as the federal court appeal ruled that some of the association not registered are qualified to be registered, INEC is still playing tricks refusing blatantly to respect the judgment giving flimsy reasons that have no roots in law. Such is the condition of the rule of law in the country one where top officials have no respect for judicial judgments and therefore no consideration for the rules of the democracy process. Under the present Nigerian condition, the rule of law and the practices of democracy have been effectively caged by the executive branch of government which has succeed in equally caging the National Assembly through resort to primordial propaganda, one of the greatest bane’s of the Nigerian society. With tribalism as a philosophy so entrenched in the system of democracy, the rule of law, the war against corruption would never succeed. This why they have resort to them each time they are in trouble.
To further illustrate our contempt for the due process it has been announced that the President has ordered the Auditor General of the federation to audit the accounts of some establishments. While it is the constitutional duty of the Auditor General to do this, the President has no constitutional power to give him directives in the performance of his constitutional duties. The constitution is quite clear on this. If he is to act under such directives, nobody would respect what ever may be the outcome of his findings.
In the war against democracy, the constitution is being violated with impurity, the party system is being killed, the judiciary is being disgraced; the rule of law is being jettisoned, the due process is being ignored; the President is taking over functions of NASS and so democracy is being left naked in the street waiting for one to save it from being buried while still breathing.
As for the future, no one knows where Obasanjo and his PDP are dragging Nigeria to. What do they want to make of Nigeria? This question is valid considering what has been happening since1999, details of which we cannot go into here. All we pray is that after flying in the air for 370 days, in search illusions, they would land Nigeria safely in the hands of patriots of democracy. They must be told frankly; if care is not taken Obasanjo may end up as the Gorbachev of Nigeria. Nobody hopes for it, but one fears so, and not without foundation. Already the nation is astride between unity and disunity arising from bad handling of issues with all the trappings of nepotism.
The duty to ensure that this doesn’t happen rests with Nigerians come 2003. I foresee serious danger ahead should Obasanjo be returned in 2003 for another four years and continue in the same style. There may be a revolt of the people. It is therefore in our collective national interest that we democratically guard against this come 2003.
The Nigerian condition today is one of pity, of sadness, of regret, of lamentation, poor performance, disrespect for the rule of law, dying democracy, poverty, hunger, unemployment, collapsing economy, the auctioning of the nation, violence and destruction, corruption, ethnic hatred, religious chauvinism, armed robbery, vendetta, nepotism, favoritism, brazen discrimination and above all lack of sensitivity by leaders to the condition of the mass of the people. Without sentiment it has never been that bad. Nigeria is in a state of imprisonment searching for a democratic savior to rescue it from the iron grip of dictatorship. This is a challenge to the patriot of democracy and warriors of the rule of law. The ship has been gradually sinking. It needs a new captain, in 2003, to bring it ashore. Nigerians are the collective captains who must hearken to the distress signal coming from the ship in the high seas. If the ship is to be rescued, 2003 is the time to act.