Nigeria: an Experiment in Nation Building

© 2019 Charles Akujieze. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse  09/13/2019

ISBN: 978-1-7283-8645-4 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-7283-8646-1 (e)

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CONTENTS

Acknowledgement

Foreword

Preface

Dedication

SECTION A: BACKGROUND TO NIGERIA`S

POLITICAL EXPERIENCE.

Chapter 1 Nature Of Nigerian Society

(i) Background Studies:

(ii) Nigeria: Physical And Social Geography

(iii) Our Country: Nigeria

* Pre-Colonial Period:

* Colonial Period:

* Post-Colonial Era:

References

Chapter 2 Review of Nigeria’s Political Economy

(i) The Colonial Political Economy

(ii) The Post-Colonial Political Economy – 1 (1960-70)

(iii) The Post-Colonial Political Economy II (1970-1986)

(iv) Post-Colonial Economy III (1986-2016)

References

SECTION B: GOVERNANCE AND DEVELOPMENT IN NIGERIA

Chapter 3 Nigeria: Power In Politics

(i) Background Studies:

(ii) First Republic under Abubarka Tafawa Balewa, 1960-66.

(iii) Military Intervention And Civil War, 1966-76.

(iv) General Johnson Thomas Umunnakwe Aguiyi-Ironsi, 1966-67

(v) Counter-coup and Assassination: The Gowon Regime, 1967-75

(vi) Nigeria under General Murtala Ramat Mohammed, July 29, 1975-February 13, 1976

(vii) From General Obasanjo To President Shagari And The Second Republic, (1976-83)

(viii) Major-General Muhammadu Buhari And The Supreme Military Council, 1983-85

(ix) General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida And The Armed Forces Ruling Council (AFRC) 1985 - 93:

(x) General Sani Abacha And The Provisional Ruling Council (PRC), 1995 - 1998

(xi) Major-General Abdulsalam Abubakar And Transition, 1998-99

RETURN TO CIVILIAN GOVERNMENT

References

Chapter 4 Democratic Transition

(i) Return To Civilian Government Obasanjo and the Fourth Republic, 1999-2007

(ii) Nigeria under the Leadership of Alhaji Umaru Yar’Adua (2007 - 2010)

(iii) Nigeria under President Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan, (May 6, 2010 – May 28, 2015)

(iv) Nigeria under President Muhammadu Buhari May 2015 - ?

References

SECTION C: VALUES, ETHICS AND MORALITY

IN NIGERIA´S PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION

Chapter 5 Corruption: Nigeria’s Second Largest Religion

(i) Background Studies

(ii) Corruption: The Nigerian Experience

(iii) Corruption and Waste: Greatest Cause of Nigeria’s Current Backwardness

(iv) Managerial Failure and the Inevitability of Corruption in Nigeria.

The ´´Executhieves´´

First Republic – (Parliamentary Government) Under Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa 1960 – 1966.

Second Republic – (Presidential System Of Government Under Alhaji Shehu Usman Aliyu Shagari 1979 – 1983

Aborted Third Republic Under Chief Ernest Shonekan 1994

Fourth Republic Under President Olusegun Obasanjo 1999 – 2007

Summary Of Political Corruption Under The Watch Of Yar’ Adua (2007 - 2010)

Goodluck Jonathan Administration (2010–2015)

Corruption And Accountability Under President Muhammadu Buhari 2015 – ?

(v) Military Regimes and Corruption in Nigeria

The First Military Regime under General Thomas Umunnakwe Aguiyi-Ironsi (1966-67)

The Second Military Regime Under General Yakubu Gowon (1967-76)

The Third Military Regime Under Generals Murtala Ramat Muhammed/ Olusegun Obasanjo (1976-79)

The Fourth Military Regime Under General Muhammadu Buhari (1993-94)

The Fifth Military Regime Under General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (1985-93)

The Sixth Military Regime Under General Sani Abacha (1993 - 1998)

The Seventh Military Regime Under General Abdul Salami Abubakar (1999)

(vi) Legislating to Steal (Legislathieves): The Rot in the National Assembly

Endnotes

SECTION D: EXTERNAL DIMENSION

Chapter 6 Islamisation Agenda Of Black Africa

(i) Background Studies:

(ii) The Objectives of Islam in Africa Organization

(iii) Islamic Conspiracy to Take Over Africa: Five Fundamental Propositions

(iv) Strategies Being Employed by the Islamic Movements to Achieve Their Goal

(v) Radical Islamists Owe Allegiance to Islam, Not Their Country of Citizenship Unless It Is Islam

(vi) Sharia And Conflict With Christians

(vii) Sharia Comes in Stages

Sudan – the microcosm of Black Africa`s unacknowledged Arab problem

(i) Islamisation and Arabization of Black Africa

(ii) Is the Khartoum regime Arab? But they look black?

(iii) The Arab Project in Africa

(iv) Darfur: An Example of the Quest for Lebensraun

(v) The Arab Congregation

Islamization Project And The Threat To Nigeria’s Future: The Case Of Boko Haram, Fulani Herdsmen

(i) Boko Haram: Background Studies

(ii) Fulani Herdsmen: The New Face Of Terrorism In Nigeria

(iii) How Some Highly-placed Nigerians Bankroll Boko Haram!

(iv) Process Of Islamization In Nigeria

(v) Buhari’s Islamization Project In Nigeria

➢ Nigeria Constitution Officially Recognizes Islam Only:

➢ Matters Arising! Death, Grief And Tears Across Nigerian Communities: Is President Muhammadu Buhari Incompetent?

➢ Buhari’s Appointment

➢ Islamic banking:

➢ Islamic Military Alliance

➢ Islamization Via Educational Sector: The Curriculum Issue

References

Chapter 7 Special Issues In Nigeria Politics

(i) (a) The Nationality Question: A Re-Examination

➢ The Petition of Ohaneze Ndigbo

➢ Arewa Consultative Forum

➢ The Yoruba`s Afenifere

➢ Joint Action Committee on the Middle Belt (JACOMB):

➢ South-South Minorities:

(ii) Biafra: The Unanswered Questions

➢ Nnamdi Kanu, Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) & The Rest of Us

➢ The IPOB Challenge: Three Fundamental Problems

(iii) The Doctrine Of Separation Of Powers in Nigeria

References

(iv) Nigeria 2019 – 2023 Developmental Agenda Focus: An Imperative

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

It is chiefly through books that we enjoy intercourse with superior minds. In the best books, great men talk to us, give us their most precious thoughts, and pour their souls into ours. God be thanked for books. They are the voices of the distant and the dead and make us heirs of the spiritual life of past ages. Books are true levellers. They give to all who will faithfully use them, the society, the spiritual presence, of the best and greatest of our race. – William Ellery Channing

The world of books is the most remarkable creation of man; nothing else that he builds ever lasts. Monuments fall; nations perish; civilizations grow old and die out. After an era of darkness, new races build others; but in the world of books are volumes that live on still as young and fresh as the day they were written, still telling men’s hearts of the hearts of men centuries dead. – Clarence Day

He who kills a man kills a reasonable creature, God’s image; but he who destroys a good book, kills reason itself, kills the image of God, as it were in the eye - John Milton in his book The Areopagitica

T he beauty of life is not on the face. It is one’s product that earns him prominence and value in the society – and this value is determined by his relevance and impact in life, which is a product of his creativity.

It is, therefore, in this important sense that every serious writer has a cry in his soul – a cry for mental development and advancement, for something more than the usual and the ordinary. He has a craving to break out from the crowd of writers and become outstanding. If he follows the regular trend, he may die on the queue.

The belief that one person can do something great, singlehandedly, is a myth. As much as we admire solo achievement, the truth is that no lone individual has done something of value. For, one is too small a number to achieve greatness. It is, therefore, in this important sense that I humbly acknowledge the fact that every book I write is an act of teamwork. And this one is no exception. Behind an able man there are always other able men. I am therefore indebted to my team of professionals for the resources, ideas, data and energy used in compiling, collating, analysing and annotating this book which I navigated through for more than five years of writing.

To Juliet, my wife and best friend, I knew it was my time for blessing when we first met. It’s hard to believe we’ve been together for so long already, each day with you is a gift. I cherish your love, your kindness and your companionship. You are the love of my life.

To Shekinah, Shalom, Fortune and David my children, it is difficult to find the words that truly describe how much I love you all. You inspire me to be a better dad and a better person. Thank you for making us a family that reflects God’s goodness and love.

To my highly beloved and acknowledged parents, Mr. Fredrick Nsoegbunam Akujieze of blessed memory (Urukanachukwu Abagana) and my industrious mother, Mrs. Mary Nwakego Akujieze, I owe invaluable and inexplicable gratitude.

To my mother in law – Mrs. Justina Okafor, I appreciate all your efforts towards making sure my family move forward. Akwuete may God bless you!

To my very good, loyal and trusted friends, Cosmos Offordile and Mr. Christopher Anuforo (my childhood friend and confidant), you have always been championing what is good for me in every department of life. May the God I serve reward you mightily.

To Ogom!, Mr. Ifeanyi Apundu (Pukason), because you willingly yielded that God might use you to champion the course He led me into, may God grant you helpers even before any need arises. You shall coast from glory to glory and the blessings of God to you and your family shall be without measures.

To my brothers and sisters, I appreciate all your contributions in championing the course of my life.

And finally, to my friends and well-wishers, I say may God Almighty reward all of you. Shalom! Shalom!! Shalom!!!

If my dream as a professional writer is God-given, then my life in that direction must be God-governed. For, in this business in particular and in my life in general, there is no me without You Lord! Therefore, no matter what I face in this aspiration, no matter what I see, no matter whatever that comes my way, no matter how I cry; one thing I know that is definite in my heart: My tomorrow must be greater than today because God is involved and He alone is my beautifier.

FOREWORD

B arely 6 years after independence, the foundation of Nigeria has been tested and shaken by strong winds of civil war, ethnic insurrections, militancy and religious crisis. Again and again, the foundation has been plummeted in all sides by economic downturns – depression, recession, extreme poverty and appalling living standards. Those foundations have been buffeted by the gale of terrorism, by the floods of mass kidnappings and by the disruptive hurricane of criminal herdsmen and cattle rustlers and for the period of six decades or more, those foundations have been compounded and compromised by the tsunami of corruption.

In spite of all these catalogues of woes, Nigeria has, nonetheless, remained one nation, growing in population and power, for more than a century.

Seen from some angles, Nigeria is a remarkable success at least, for now, she is still a united country. But that so-called unity is constantly being battered by events and conditions that have carried this complex, dynamic and very troubled giant to the brink as she totters in her march to nation building.

In this thoroughly updated edition, Charles AKUJIEZE explains Nigeria’s pre-colonial, colonial and post-colonial history and presents a nuanced explanation of events and condition that constantly threaten the unity and sustainability of Nigeria. Central to this analysis are key issues which are germane and fundamental to building a virile, united, prosperous nation Nigerians pretend to be craving for, issues that undermine Nigeria’s nascent democratic institutions and alienated an increasingly impoverished population.

The book is divided into four volumes or sections. Section I looks at the Nature of the Nigerian Society, painstakingly providing details about Nigeria’s Pre-colonial, Colonial and Post-Colonial era. Other issues probed into by this section include a Review of Nigeria’s Political Economy. Section II caption: Governance and Development in Nigeria. Under this section, issues like Nigeria: Power in Politics which chronicle Nigeria’s successive administrations from Independence to date; Section III dissects the hydra-headed disease in Nigeria under the caption Values, Ethics and Morality in Nigeria’s Public Administration. This section painstakingly handles the issue of corruption in Nigeria under the topic: Corruption: Nigeria’s Second Largest Religion. Section IV captioned External Dimension probes into the much-dreaded hidden agenda of a section of the country to Islamize and emasculate others under the title: Islamization Agenda of Black Africa, and finally, in the same section, some special issues are recapitulated and encapsulated in the caption titled: Special Issues in Nigeria

This book offers a unique portrayal of a resilient people living in a country with immense but unrealized potential. It is currently, in my view, the most up-to-date and comprehensive analysis of Africa’s most important and populous nation in decades, with its history – rooted in more than three decades – could instantly be passed as the standard account of Nigeria.

Against this background, I recommend this book, not only to students of political science and Administration, but to all those who cherish freedom of thought and to those others who in their attempt to free their minds from the beaten tracks of thought would dare themselves to have a second look and a second thought, into the multi-dimensional issues which are of interest to the renascent Nigerians in the contemporary milieu.

Juliet Ogechukwu Akujieze

Scholar, Intellectual and Author

UNITED KINGDOM

PREFACE

I pity the people, particularly the masses … my heart bleeds that my country continues to be governed directly or remotely by unrepentant Lucifers’ and obdurate Satan’s revelling in political and money debauchery and belching out falsehood, lies and all forms of distortions to hoodwink the people into believing that what is abnormal is normal, and what is unreal is real – Gani Fawehinmi

´´It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; because there is no credit without error and short comings; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows the great enthusiasm, the great devotion, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement and who at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while doing greatly. So that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat´´

– President Roosevelt

I ntrospection is a widely recommended, self-administered emotional stabilizer for a troubled soul given to counting the grains of sand or the stars. It is credited with great therapeutic benefits. Through it, a troubled soul is purged of its troubles. A soul purged is a soul purified and renewed. But for Nigerian nation, any nation, introspection may conjure up unsightly pictures of things falling apart – bricks falling from the walls, the roof carving in and a feeling of despair, desperation and apprehension among those inside the room. Has something gone wrong? They ask. Is everything alright with the nation? If not, what went wrong? Where did we go wrong? Bewildered and lost in the fear that the roof will cave in, and we will be at the cruel elements of nature.

But come to think of it, in our experiment in nation-building, only few men and women are strangers to something going wrong because something always goes wrong. Oh yes! Something has always been wrong. Probable reason could be found where it was hidden in the pages of Judeo-Christian religious history of creation: The Tower of Babel. This earth, this God-beloved earth originally intended by the Creator as paradise had never been the same since the confusion at the construction site of the tower. We are told that that incident was occasioned and engineered by the Creator Himself who did not want to receive a restive rainbow delegation of the desperate, over-ambitious, the disgruntled, the confused, the disappointed, the poor, the wronged, but united in purpose, which has given the world much to know and yet less to comprehend.

If we must believe everything that religion tells us, the tower gave us a rainbow collection of men and women in designated pigeon holes known as tribes. The tongue as in language is the little trenches that separate one tribe from the rest. The shape of the tongue in men and women may be the same but the sound of the tongue isn`t. Whether advanced or primitive, language is a curse of the Tower of Babel.

Differences in tribes and tongues may not have been intended as a divine punishment for the impolite decision of the builders of the Tower of Babel but they do tend to make strangers of members of human family. These differences have been made permanent with the evolution of customs peculiar to each tribe which anthropologists call culture.

The world is a global village where exigencies in human interactions make it impossible for tribes to exist as islands unto themselves. As a result, it becomes imperative to build bridges between and across all human societies where tribes and tongue differ. That vital bridge is an official language adopted by a country for communication.

Let`s view it from this perspective: if people understand one another through a common language, social frictions and differences are reduced. There is greater peace and harmony because everyone is attuned to the common cause – the cause of the nation. But that reasoning is only a hope. There are intervening variables and therefore, the hope so well nursed is not realized. The tongue is only a means of communication through which the mind expresses itself. A world of difference exists between what the tongue says and what the mind conceives and what the brain thinks. The tongue is as much a weapon of peace as it is of war. ¹

Let`s understand this: the tongue does not build bridges strong enough to withstand the flood of differences in human societies. As a bridge to human understanding the tongue has not been a singular success. Intra tribal as well as inter-tribal difficulties can be attributed to this singular failure of the tongue. Whether as individuals or nations, the problem is the same: when tongue chooses to speak in tongues, the events of the Tower of Babel becomes a worn-out pin in the stylus. When a nation desire to discuss and dialogue about her experiment in nation building, an experiment in which her multi-national status calls naturally for dichotomies within her political set-up – majority/minority, north/south, Christianity/Islam – all of which create their own dilemma within the multi-nationality, she must confront her true condition with sober reflection.

Nations are built by exemplary men and women and sustained by strong institutions that promote good governance and thus socio-economic development. Nations are an important part of modern society. Historically, a retrospective glance reveals the world divided into empires and kingdoms. In the modern period, however, nations or nation-states have replaced empires as the basic unit of human political organization.

Nigeria is an integral part of the modern world; therefore, Nigerians are rightly concerned about nation-building. In a significant sense, nations are not just thrown up by historical accident; they are built by men and women with vision and resolve. Nation-building is therefore the product of conscious statecraft, not happenstance.

Nation-building is always a work-in-progress; a dynamic process in constant need of nurturing and re-invention. Suffice it to say that nation-building is a continuum, not a finished product and men and women who build nations cannot really rest their oars because there are always new challenges constantly being thrown up which nation-builders must confront. Even so, nation-building has many aspects.

First and foremost, it is all about building a political entity which corresponds to a given territory, based on some generally accepted rules, norms, and principles, and a common citizenship. Secondly, it essentially has to do with building institutions which symbolize the political entity – institutions such as a bureaucracy, an economy, the judiciary, universities, a civil service, and civil society organizations. Most importantly, nation-building is about building a common sense of purpose, a sense of shared destiny, a collective imagination of belonging. Therefore, nation-building is all about building the tangible and intangible threads that hold a political entity together and gives it a sense of purpose. It is all about building the institutions and values which sustain the collective community in these modern times. ²

Nation-building has to do with leadership and followership. Any nation is made by its leader in his image; the image of his dreams and vision, the image of his policies. A leader is assessed and judged by the policies he formulates and executes geared towards building a virile nation. Put differently, nation-building is about a sense of mission. It is about the celebration of the unfettered spirit of a leader, the ambition to be, the desire to achieve, the determination to conquer. A sense of mission gives nation-building a purpose, a meaning!

No wonder! Each time there is a change of leadership in a nation, some people argue that there is a new beginning for that country. A new man, a new vision, new dreams, new policies! A nation thus gets a new opportunity to be re-made in the image of its new leader. The nation`s politics is re-made. The nation`s economy is re-made. Social services are re-made. Everything is infused with a new breath of life.

A good purposeful and determined leadership in a nation makes all the difference to the fortune of that nation. History, ancient and contemporary, are full of instances of such leaders who turned their impoverished countries into dream lands. Countries on the Pacific Rim are the economic miracle of today. Instances abound too of richly endowed countries impoverished by leaders with fractured vision of the present and the future. The former succeed because they put the right foot forward by making sound policy decisions coupled with abundant faith and sheer will to succeed. The later, however, fail because the heavy investment in hope yields no dividend partly because some visions of their leaders are fractured by personal ambitions and idiosyncrasies out of tune with the collective will and partly because some visions are tainted with the leaders` inability to rise above their own pettiness and incompetence. The result is that a dream becomes a nightmare; a collective feeling of progress is frustrated. Despair overwhelms the nation. But still, we must invest in leadership. ³

No nation has found a formula yet for doing without a leader. Nor has any nation found formula yet to prevent a leader from disappointing it. In choosing our leaders, we gamble. In accepting leaders imposed on us, we gamble. We gamble too when we believe in the promises of our leaders.

Conversely, however, there are those who believe that our problem in building a strong, virile nation is not so much of leadership as it is with the followership. Exponents of this view point to the old saying that a people will always get the sort of leadership it deserves. They agree that we have not been blessed with good leaders but say that that is because we deserve no better. In their opinion, social leadership is not an act of divine imposition of a saviour on an unworthy people, but a matter of social engineering by which a society evolves from within its own ranks those who embody its best qualities and who then lead the rest, as if by hand, to the land of their promise and deserving. Where, as in our own case, a society repeatedly fails to evolve an unambiguous moral and ethical code in which vice in all its forms and no matter its end-product is abhorred and condemned, some individuals will emerge who offer themselves as leaders but whose real aim is to exploit the climate of moral and ethical ambiguity for their selfish ends.

Exponents of this view, for instance, cite the case of someone who commits the vice of stealing government funds, then proceeds to perform the virtue of donating to a community Improvement Union, and is rewarded with a chieftaincy title. And in a heterogeneous society like ours, if he is confronted to answer for his crimes, his community and tribe rise to his defence: He is our illustrious son; therefore, he is our thief. This ownership of thieves is one of the greatest undoing of our society today. A case of a society whose sense of values is warped and confused, they say.

Another related but more disturbing illustration would be that of someone who is put in a leadership position and who, to all intents and purposes, is competent and efficient. But he finds himself torn between two competing sides. One side claims him as one of theirs and will assess and acclaim his performance only by what he can do for their side. On the other hand, the other side will reject and oppose him ab initio, his efficiency notwithstanding, simply because he has not come from their side. Given such a situation, good leadership cannot emerge and, if it does, cannot survive because society is not yet ready for it, this side concludes. ⁴

Nation building is all about story telling – telling our own stories and writing our own history. There are four characteristics of a nation builder: (a) accept responsibility for the wellbeing of the nation; (b) believe not only in the greatness of their nation but in their capacity to birth that greatness; (c) commitment – using scarce resources, valuable time and everything within their disposal to deliver the future of the nation; and (d) do it doggedly; the future of every nation is everything that nation can do but not yet done, everything that nation can become but not yet have become and everything the people of that nation can have but have not yet possessed. Nigerians should understand that the future of Nigeria is not ahead of us but inside of us. We need not walk into the future but deliver the future. The future is not a date in the calendar. Today was created yesterday. Whatever is happening now is the result of some strategies that some people created yesterday and the best time to shape tomorrow is today.

It has been said that Nigeria is a country with great potential. Suffice it to say that potential is not a blessing but a challenge to any nation. It is a challenge to a generation to fulfil and maximize the potential. Potential is an indictment on any generation that does not fulfil that potential.⁵

The human race is a relay race. Every generation must be willing to run their race and at a point pass the baton to the next generation. Every generation has a choice to make – either to become a great generation or a wasted generation. A wasted generation hands over a disadvantage to the next generation and say: it’s up to you to fix. A wasted generation inherited and enjoyed constant power supply from the preceding generation but handed over darkness and the use of generating plant to the succeeding generation. A wasted generation knocks out water from the tap, knocks out qualitative education from the nation’s schools, knock out safety control from our roads. Nigeria ranks 191 out of 192 countries for safety of roads. Today, Nigeria has 1 doctor to 76,000 patients and Nigeria records the highest number of students drop out of school every year, etc. The ratio of our debt to National Gross Domestic Product (NGDP) stands at 24% today. 66% of Nigeria’s revenue is spent servicing the nation’s debt. Oh! Blessed are the Nigerian youths for they shall inherit the national debt. But instead of borrowing, need we not have a proper social contract between the state and her citizens where the citizens are schooled on the need to pay tax and the proceeds judiciously used to build the nation.⁶ (see Charles Akujieze, Nigeria: Challenges Before a Bewildered Nation, revised edition, vol. 2)

The reality on ground today is that Nigeria’s economy is on life-support with rising debt profile estimated at about N22.7 trillion. A high unemployment rate orchestrated by bad governance has remained a perennial challenge to the economy and even if 50% of our revenue was used to settle its huge debts, Nigerians will continue to groan. Today, the poverty rate is more than 60%, yet increasing the more. More than 30 million Nigerians, mostly young people have no jobs with a growth rate of 3%. On her recent visit to Nigeria, the British Prime Minister, Theresa May, lamentably however, declared that Africa has the largest number of poor people on earth and that Nigeria accounted for 87 million of these unfortunate people who live BELOW poverty level of less than $2 a day. Is it Is it not ironical that the richest black man on earth is a Nigerian, the richest black woman on earth a Nigerian and of the 20 richest pastors on earth, 7 are Nigerians and yet about 90 million Nigerians live below poverty level of less than $2 a day? The United Nations had projected that by 2050 we may have 400 million Nigerians on the planet earth.⁷ (see Charles Akujieze, ibid)

Nigeria’s per capita income stands at $2000. But her population growth is higher than the growth of her gross domestic product (GDP) and it implies that the consequences in the future would be higher than what it is today. When China realized that she had one of the poorest people on earth, she adopted the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and successfully pulled out about four hundred million Chinese from poverty. China invested massively in qualitative education and small scale training and support Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) to overcome economic challenges. But today, the story is different.

In 1980, Malaysia had a per capita of $1,750. Indonesia was $490, South Korea $1,740 and Nigeria was $875. In 2017, Malaysia per capita rose with six percent increase to $10,000. Those of Indonesia also increased by six to seven percent at $4,000 while those of South Korea witnessed a sixteen percent increase to $27,000! But unfortunately and regrettably, Nigeria’s stood under $2000.⁸ (see Charles Akujieze, Change Versus Status Quo: Lessons from Nigeria)

In the area of savings, in 1980, Nigeria had a foreign reserve of $10.5 billion. China had $10 billion, Malaysia’s savings stood at $3 billion; Indonesia $5 billion, South Korea $3 billion. But today China with a population of 16.317 billion has a savings of $3 trillion and Malaysia foreign reserves stand at $125 billion. Indonesia’s reserve stands at $110 billion, South Korea’s $365 billion and Nigeria is merely celebrating $27 billion in her reserve. ⁹(ibid)

Iran has a Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of $438.3 billion with 79 million people and a per capita income of $6,050 and yet Iranians are complaining about a number of things. Nigeria’s per capita income is under $2000. Iran, with 79 million people, generates 74,000 megawatts of electricity whilst Nigeria with 187 million people is generating only 4,000 megawatts. Iran had an unemployment rate of 11% of its population with youth unemployment of 25.93%. Nigeria has about 19% unemployment rate with youth unemployment of about 61%. Yet Iranians protest for better and improved quality of life. Who in his right mind would not expect Nigerian youths to protest and ventilate their anger? The cumulative effect of all these are the evidences of Boko Haram, herdsmen, kidnappings, calls for separation, etc. ¹⁰(ibid)

Juxtaposition Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita with some African countries, Nigeria is still lagging far behind. The richest African country is Seychelles, a tiny nation made up of 116 small islands with a population of just 92,000 (as of 2012) has the largest GDP per capita of $25, 229, closely followed by Equatorial Guinea’s $23, 370. Gabon placed third with $20, 612, followed by Botswana’s $17, 101. Trailing behind Botswana were Mauritius $16, 100 GDP per capita, South Africa with GDP per capita of $11, 914. Libya has a GDP per capita of $11, 497, Tunisia $9, 900, Namibia $8,200 and Algeria $7, 500, etc. ¹¹(ibid)

It suffices to elucidate that the people of Nigeria, and indeed, other Africans, have been cultured into believing in personalities instead of strong institutions and sound ideas. We tend to believe in strong men instead of powerful institutions and laws that must be above all men. We tend to pour our hopes and dreams in the hands of one super man instead of trusting our belief into strong principles, sound ideas and the rule of law. Isn’t it about time we learnt a sobering lesson of history that a man can and will probably fail the people, but sound ideas and principles won’t. Our tendencies to only respond to the stimuli of the senses – and not so much of the intellect – the politics of the stomach, the entertainments of the flesh – at the expense of our values and principles – are the catalysts that make the average Nigerian, indeed, the sub Saharan African man – and culture – so easily vulnerable, corruptible and compromised. We must admit that while it is understandable that a hungry man is more likely to be intrigued and coerced by the delicacies of power, our dignity as human beings, the values and principles that we hold dear must be given a meaning and should be priceless. Nigerians must be committed to the values and principles that we hold dear – Freedom, Equality, Dignity, Fairness, Social Justice, Rule of Law. These should not be compromised.

Three things are needful in any society – ideas, events, and people! People are the authors of ideas. People are the moving spirit behind events. Hence, ideas and events are man’s handmaiden. In a free society, people are entitled to their opinion but not necessarily their own facts. And this will have to be true in the modern Nigeria we all envisioned. But beliefs and ideas must be subjected to public scrutiny. It is, therefore, in this significant sense that the process of Socio-Politico-Philosophical selection of ideas overtime will lead to a classification or categorization of ideas as Mainstream or Extreme. Essentially, mainstream ideas are those ideas that inform our diverse ethos; those ideas that reconcile our diverse culture, ethnicity and lingual origins. In the crucial process of choosing our leaders, mainstream ideas will be a guide. Leaders that Nigerians can trust will commit to the cause and the aspirations of Nigerians of the time. But there is a lacuna here. Given the history of bad governance and mistrust between the citizen and their government, interesting questions suffice: How do we get to know what someone will do when they get into a position of responsibility or power? How can we as a people – with a relative degree of certainty – predict what someone will do once they have been given power and the trust of the people? How can we discern someone’s infallible commitment to the cause or to the change we seek? How can we, as a people, measure someone’s level of integrity and loyalty to the people he is supposed to serve? One idea to get this done is having a formal process of public vetting and scrutiny through the media, public debates and hearing, television, etc. The nominee need to be tested and evaluated to ascertain his understanding of his commitment and the expectation of the responsibilities that he is about to receive. The Nigerian people must discern the character, the loyalty and integrity of the appointee before deciding whether or not to engage him. Nigerians should be able to control and monitor their elected representatives or parliamentarians. We must hold into accountability, our representatives in various forum of governance. Accountability clause checkmates the commitments of our representatives to the expectation of his responsibilities and dissuades him to work contrary to peoples’ expectations. It is a dissuasive factor or the constraint that makes free society and democracy work.

The National Assembly is a platform where the people can stage the fight for change – constitutionally, intellectually, philosophically and politically. In this essence, we need the right people as parliamentarians.

Our leaders should reconcile their beliefs to the fact that for any idea to succeed in Nigeria the thought or idea must speak to the aspiration of all Nigerians, not some. It must transcend and resonate across ethnic and tribal barrier attracting most Nigerians to relate and commit to the idea. How do you make an Ijaw man and the guy from Daura unite behind an idea that transcends ethnicity and tribe? How do you get a man from Anambra to understand that he, too, has a stake in this project, Nigeria? How do we get an Ijebuman and the man from Sokoto to agree that change is not a lingual confrontation but instead about implementing sound principles of good governance that transcends language and ethnic barriers? How do we get Nigerians as a whole – not just from a given tribe, ethnic group or lingual group – to understand that they are stakeholders to the change and to the future of their country? How do we get the guy from Maiduguri to understand that change is not a prosecution, not a condemnation, not retaliation? How do we summon the good people of Nigeria to commit to the cause of our common aspirations of Nigeria? The answers to these questions carry in them the key for any sustainable movement of change to succeed in this multi-ethnic, multi-tribal and multi-creed society.

A modern leader must understand how to strike the balance between foreign and national interests. Some people have argued that Britain (and America too) are the ones who tell our leaders what to do and what not to do, thus, giving the impression that our leaders are not the ones calling the shots. It is important to understand that the colonial Master – French, Britain, America – is really in our shores for business. It is really about economics not necessarily politics. And so, let us not hide under the excuse that it was the western nations to blame for our failures. After all, the US abandoned Mubarak when it realized that the Egyptian people will not yield to the 30 years of dictatorship anymore. Did Italy and Russia hesitate to abandon Ghadaffi when they came to the conclusion that his 42 years old reign of tyranny was no longer sustainable in the country? France conceded to the Tunisia people yearning for Freedom. The question is not whether or not we should do business with them. The correct formulation of the problem is how to do business with them? Do our leaders have the credentials, the understanding and the gravitas to do business with them? Do our leaders have a grasp of the subtleties and implications of the bilateral agreements that are being signed? Do our leaders have enough commitment to the people, the integrity and the love for country at heart at the negotiation table with these foreign entities? Have our Leaders earned the respect and the credibility of the negotiating parties? Do our leaders have the people behind them when negotiating with another Country? Do our leaders know that they would be held accountable if they sign a phony agreement or a deal that do not bear the support or does not have a broad appeal of the people they serve?

Leadership in Nigeria is a series of accidents. Politicians who present themselves for leadership are not really prepared and nurtured for leadership. There is a difference between politicians and leaders. We don’t need politicians in leadership but leadership in politicians. Nigerian politicians are not true leaders. They practice politics without principles. Politicians focus on programs, not vision. Politicians’ priority is securing the next election, not the next generation. Politicians are preoccupied with promises not purpose. Purpose is the foundation of leadership. We depend on too much of accidents in introducing our leaders. And, as long as we depend on accidents, we’ll not make much progress. Periodically, Nigerians elect politicians to solve their problems but ironically, those elected or rigged themselves into offices become the problems the people of Nigeria need to solve. What Nigeria needs are statesmen, not politicians. Statesmen think about the next and succeeding generations, think about posterity and history, think about what affects generations, destiny, positive changes, etc. True leadership is not about control. It is about service. It is not about power but about empowerment of the followers. True leadership is not about manipulation but inspiration. It is not really about people. It is about purpose – it is not about finding a people to follow you but discovering a purpose you’re meant to pursue. True leaders do not seek followers. Followers are naturally attracted to the gifts (talents) and innate dispositions of a true leader. True leadership is about becoming more than doing. It is not necessarily about doing great things but becoming something they discover about themselves. It is essentially the inspiration of true leaders that influences the people (followers) to submit to them. Politics without principles summarizes most of the features in Nigeria’s political arena. Our political culture does not lend itself to producing true leaders. It only produces deal-makers, pleasure without conscience, wealth without effective work, knowledge without character, business without morality, science without conscience and humanity, worship of God without personal sacrifices. ¹²

However, there are (were) certain individuals who did introduce some hygiene in leadership across the African continent and we must appreciate them here. After 24 years in office, Kenneth David Buchizya Kaunda, the man who led Zambia to independence from the British, had a total life savings of $8,000. There is a sense in which he was said to have introduced some hygiene in Zambian politics and governance. Julius Kambarage Nyerere, the sage who led Tanzania to independence was a true African statesman. Nyerere was able to weld together more than 120 ethnic groups into one nation so that Tanzania speaks with one voice. If you ask Tanzanians the ethnicity of Nyerere, you would be surprise that most of them do not know and it does not matter and they do not care. At a point, Nyerere was suggested to be made a saint of the Catholic Church. He was a true African statesman. There is a sense in which Ian Khama of Botswana would also be remembered. It was said that a minister in his cabinet who was indicted for corruption scandal ran to him and begged him to help extricate him from the hook. Being known for his candor and straightforwardness, Ian Seretse Khama declined the request and the following day, the minister was said to have committed suicide. There is a sense in which he was said to have introduced some hygiene in Botswana. Paul Kagamu of Ruanda, Museveni of Uganda and even Robert Mugabe at some point in their stewardship all tried to introduce some measure of hygiene in their respective states. In 1980 when Mugabe took over power in Southern Rhodesia (renamed Zimbabwe), it was said of him that he had the largest number of degrees of any leader in the world and he had them. It was said of him that he was a passionate revolutionary, and he really was. It was said of him that he liberated Rhodesia (renamed Zimbabwe) into a great country and for the first 10 years, he did a good job. But something happened. All the historical dividends he accumulated had been squandered. As time went by he presided over a country with 90% unemployment, a country with no currency but has a central bank. This is unprecedented in the history of modern civilization.¹³ Ghana’s president has a focus and a locus. Of course, one of the greatest sages of the African continent, though arguably, was Nelson Mandela. His contributions need not detain us here.

Of the current African leaders who preside over the affairs of their countries, President John Magufuli (the Bulldozer) of Tanzania stands out. Magufuli was said to have imposed measures towards curbing government spending such as unnecessary foreign travel by government officials, preferred buying cheaper vehicles for transportation amongst government officials and the use of board rooms for conferences and meetings. Tanzanian delegation to Commonwealth which was usually fifty in number was drastically reduced by Magufuli to four. He drastically reduced the cost of budget of inaugurating new parliament state dinner. The Bulldozer drastically reduced own salary from $15,000 to $4,000 per month. He suspended Independent Day festivities in favour of a national clean-up exercise and personally actively participated in same. He substantially improved the health condition of the Tanzanians, including well-equipped hospitals and general sanitation of the country. He also banned shisha smoking because of its health hazards in July 2016. And, in January, 2018, he issued a presidential directive ordering the suspension of registration for foreign merchant ships, following recent incidents surrounding the seizure of overseas shipments of illegal goods like drugs and weapon.¹⁴ Etc. But, Magufuli is not without his weaknesses which included amongst others: high-handedness, speech against birth control and his remarks not to re-admit girl-students who got unwanted pregnancy while in school.

Nigeria is not blessed with good leaders in the cast of John Magufuli of Tanzania and Abiy Ahmed of Ethiopia. Apart from the founding fathers who did their best for the nation, one of the very few notable politicians in the approximation of Magufuli/Ahmed but unbeknown by most Nigerians is arguably Dr. Peter Obi, the former governor of Anambra State of Nigeria. We need not be detained in this instance. But suffice it to say that the cumulative effect of leadership failure as well as the cost of governance has been the greatest bane to our development as a nation. A senator in Nigeria earns N13.5 million – ($ 37, 520.4) monthly whilst his counterpart in America earns $4,000 monthly and $174,000 per annum. For the period of 16 years, Nigeria had expended at least N1.3 trillion on the National Assembly alone. The Central Bank of Nigeria gets N400 billion whilst the House of Representatives get N115 billion annually.¹⁵ This is in spite the fact that the National Assembly sits for a minimum number of 181 days out of 366 days in a year (offering part-time job but receive full-time pay); a country in which the legislature gets $43 million of tax payers’ money for ward-rope allowance, buys NGN 6.1 billion worth of exotic cars whilst Nigerians are groaning. Insightful report says that the law makers are blackmailing the Minister of Finance, Kemi Adeosun into releasing billions because they have something on her (certificate issue).¹⁶ In one of such reports, Adeosun allegedly released the sum of NGN 120 billion to the law makers for pet projects. Another report has it that NGN 11 billion approved by the Minister was used to fund unapproved projects of the law makers contrary to presidential orders against the projects. Do we really need a bi-cameral legislature in Nigeria? In what important sense do we need the office of the President of Senate? In the United States of America, the Vice-President doubles as the President of Senate. He goes to Senate only when the need arises in vote casting and other issues of national importance. From 1999, we have problems in that office, either in terms of cost or power exercise. In the US, there is no office of the Deputy Senate President, only the Majority Leader who is from the ruling party which is entirely a party affair not entire Senate affair. The Minority appoint their own Leader. These two offices – Senate President and the Deputy are two big ticket offices as far as the resources of the country are concerned. We must be prepared to cut down not too necessary offices and the salaries of certain public officers. When President Macky Sall of Senegal realized that the country’s economy was fragile and that the country could no longer comfortably afford two chambers of the national assembly, he approached the Senators, painstakingly and bluntly explained the reality to them, they bought into his idea and decided to remove the Senate, leaving only the House of Representatives (which is added 15 more seats only for Senegalese in diaspora) and then cut down the tenure of the president from seven years to five. In United Kingdom, the only allowance for the House of Lords is the sitting allowance which was formerly £300 but now owing to recession has been slashed to £150; and if a senator is absent, he doesn’t get it. This is a good lesson Nigeria refuses to learn.¹⁶ (see Charles Akujieze, Change versus Status Quo: Lessons from Nigeria, op. cit.)

America, the richest country on earth presently, has a Gross Domestic Product (GDP) rate of $18.5 trillion and her per capita stands at $50,000. Those of Nigeria stands at a pitiable $2,640.29 and that means that those of America are 75 times over and above the Nigeria’s! A professor in American university earns about $180,000 per annum. In some states like Stanford, a professor earns about $300,000 per annum while states like Harvard, more than $200,000 per annum. A professor in US who earns $13,000 monthly remuneration would be glad to comfortably relax and do research to improve the quality of life. But his Nigerian counterpart earns between N 4,580,349 – N 6,020,163 (about $12,500 - $17,800) annually which is about N380, 000 – N500, 000 monthly ($840 - $1,389.66). A judge in America earns about $180,000 per annum.¹⁷

In Nigeria, after salary review by the Buhari government, the salaries of civil and public servants were scaled downwards but still high. Currently, the basic monthly salary of a Nigerian Governor is N2.22 million (£4.736.01 or $6.140.74) or N26.64 million (£56,861.83 or $73,688.87) per annum at official rate. The cost of maintaining a Nigerian governor is simply scandalous. Nobody can really quantify the real cost of maintaining a Nigerian governor which really is far well beyond those of a senator. The cost of maintaining convoys alone, maintaining government vehicles, creating and maintaining the offices of so-called first ladies and funding same, building and maintaining government guest houses and lodges, having and maintaining government houses outside of their states and building and maintaining presidential lodges, maintain fuel dumps, having medical vans who follows Mr. Governor on his trips in case he gets into accidents, and so on and yet, most state governors are owing salaries for months and yet they are celebrating birthdays with the peoples’ money. In spite of the huge debts owed the civil servants in his state, Governor Rochas Owelle Okorocha of Imo State expended millions of naira erecting status of Jacob Zuma (a man thoroughly discredited by his kinsmen in South Africa and later disgraced from office) and spent N600 million to put in place Imo Christmas tree, said to be the tallest Christmas tree in Nigeria.¹⁸ Nigeria is a country where little, little drops of follies make a mighty idiot. The cost of running government in Nigeria is simply scandalous and unacceptable. Nowhere in the entire world do public servants behave as irresponsible as they do in Nigeria.

Foreign Exchange Reserves in Nigeria decreased to 45909 USD Million in August from 47250 USD Million in July of 2018. Foreign Exchange Reserves in Nigeria averaged 11272.18 USD Million from 1960 until 2018, reaching an all-time high of 62081.86 USD Million in September of 2008 and a record low of 63.22 USD Million in June of 1968. External Debt in Nigeria increased to 22083.44 USD Million in the second quarter of 2018 from 22071.91 USD Million in the first quarter of 2018. External Debt in Nigeria averaged 8486.04 USD Million from 2008 until 2018, reaching an all-time high of 22083.44 USD Million in the second quarter of 2018 and a record low of 3627.50 USD Million in the first quarter of 2009. ¹⁹

Yet, the Federal Government under Buhari has borrowed between N10 – N11 trillion (NGN) over the past three and half years. International Monetary Fund has issued a warning to Nigeria to watch its rising debt, a call that has been ridiculed by those at the helm of affairs. Nigeria’s Total Capital Expenditure in 2016 was only N1.5 trillion (NGN). The budget for 2017 was N2.3 trillion (NGN) but only N1.5 trillion was disbursed. Yet, in spite of the huge debt the nation is sunk into, the present administration has presented a bill to the National Assembly to ratify her to borrow even more.

Not only was the Federal Government heavily indebted, not even one out of the 36 states including the Federal Capital Territory is debt-free. A perusal of the states’ indebtedness would shock even the most ardent optimist as follows:

Charles Akujieze, Change Versus Status Quo: Lessons from Nigeria, op. cit.

In spite of our huge debt, the political leaders continue to ravel in squander-mania and corruption and indiscipline continues to prolifferate public appointments in complete disregard to our stark economic reality. Let’s look at the issue of security votes for instance.

The idea of handing millions of naira to unaccountable politicians, in the name of addressing security problems is a recipe for pervasive corruption.

Investigations have revealed a huge amount of money provided monthly to the Nigerian president and state governors, ostensibly for security purposes that is un-appropriated, unaudited and unaccounted for. Although at present the amount of security money voted monthly for the Nigerian president is undisclosed, those of the governors are now in public domain. The use of security votes offers a virtual carte blanche to the country’s President as well as state governors to squander billions of naira in state allocation without scrutiny, accountability, and without providing security for everyone save the executive’s pockets and/or their bank account. A perusal of the monthly and yearly security votes appropriation of state governors will suffice here.

Monthly/ Yearly Security Votes Appropriation of State Governors

²¹ibid.

The former governor of Rivers State, Rotimi Amaechi spoke my mind as well as the minds of most Nigerians when he revealed that political office holders steal state funds because Nigerians do not stone them. Amaechi disclosed this in Lagos during an event organized to pay tribute to Nelson Mandela challenged Nigerians to hold their leaders accountable. He said:

• …. If you see a thief and you allow him to be stealing, what have you done? You have stoned nobody; that is why we are stealing. Who have you stoned? They came out and started dancing oil subsidy. They told you that they stole N 2.3 trillion, what did you do?²²

Nigerian police are the least paid in Africa. Not only is Nigerian police poorly paid and equipped, the ratio of police to the citizens of Nigeria is 1 policeman to about 800 Nigerians. In spite of this, some vested interests cornered and usurped the larger percentage of the security of the nation for their private interests, leaving the already inadequate and disproportionate number to the entire greater percentage of Nigerians. The security architecture in Nigeria appears to have virtually collapsed. Life has no value in Nigeria of today anymore. According to reports, between 2018 and 2019, 43 countries of the world would be facing starvation and Nigeria is rated number 9 among them. And recently, the British Prime Minister, Theresa May lamentably, however, declared that Africa has the highest number of poor people on earth and that Nigeria accounted for 87 million who live below poverty level under less than $2 a day. Insultingly, though, Nigeria is rated as the poverty capital on earth. Nigeria is now a long-term patient in the intensive care unit of the universe in dire need of round-the- clock care ahead of the journey into our great future!

The number of orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) in Nigeria is estimated at 17.5 million out of which 7.3 million are orphaned by HIV/AIDS particularly in states with high prevalence. The House of Representative Committee investigating alleged diversion of funds and materials meant for the internally displaced persons (IDPs) especially the use of NGN 270 million²² just to cut grass by the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal had submitted its report which found him wanting. After much pressure by Nigerians to have him prosecuted, the Buhari administration reluctantly fired him but decided not to prosecute him. And according to an informed report, the Fulani herdsmen are six times deadlier than Boko Haram in 2018, even as Boko Haram, in recent times, has resumed outrageous hostility against the Nigerian people. In the recent attack of the military