By Nwokedi Nworisara
Election is a function in the process arising from the structure. It is
defined by the structure and serves as a vehicle to achieving the goal. Now
when you have a wrong structure,a distorted goal emerges leading to a
purposeless election which cannot further democracy no matter how you
define it.
Before now I had called for restructuring before the 2019 elections to make
its outcome meaningful. I called on the National Assembly to initiate bills
to ensure true federalism before elections. I called for the states to join
themselves along the three original regions in line with the 1963
Constitution. These are inevitable processes that will make meaningful
restructuring possible before the elections or at least to prepare the
people for what must be. There is nothing like choice about it. We chose
once in 1960 and nothing can change it because we had set up an avalanche
of activities spiritual and physical that is likened to a building and we
can only build upwards! But that does not mean we cannot decide to demolish
this building. What we need to understand is that we cannot remodel this
building at the second floor outside approved plan. The least we can do is
demolish it and obtain another plan ,another name perhaps to start another
building!
So for those who go about hoping for another country out of the parts its
consequences are great and it may not happen. For those who want to remodel
Nigeria midstream,by introducing six geo political zones or middle belt or
the like, it is part of the problem itself because the structure does not
recognise it. For the military with their learning process creating states
every corner and multiplying local councils at will,they need to find
another country or name to sustain it but not Nigeria. The State structure
cannot stand under the 1963 constitution except it is subsumed under the
three regions as were provinces. The states will not have its boundaries
outside the regional boundaries because that nullifies it. The states will
take its authority from regional houses of Assembly resolutions and
edicts. It is only then you can have 50% derivation and all the freedoms to
create and be productive.
The alternative of course is to continue in this blind alley as today. What
do you get? Unviable states with no true federating powers because truly
the state cannot become a federating unit. It also means that the states
cannot have a state police only the original three regions can have such
attribute to federating units. Sorry for the national assembly who just
woke up to my warnings to sponsor a bill for state police. There are other
bills that should have been pushed through by now but you too thought that
election was more important than restructuring until you began to
understand that PVCs may not be Uhuru after all.
Restructuring cannot be given or even debated or is it a token like
fighting corruption. It is either whole or nothing. Not restructuring means
supporting corruption ,sustaining poverty and unemployment. Each election
without restructuring means another 4 years of sustaining these vices and
you cannot say you were not forewarned. What each four years will bring is
decreasing productivity of states,insecurity because the states cannot
secure themselves not being federating units. It means increasing federal
allocation through foreign loans that impoverishes the coming generation.
It means unpaid salaries and increasing inflation. It means land use decree
a.k.a. Acts of National Assembly for want of what else to call it.
And I hear that some Presidential Aspirants are promising to restructure
Nigeria when they get elected into office and many Nigerians are deceived.
In the first place what oat will they take on swearing in? Is it not to
defend the 1999 constitution? How can you defend something and change it?
Let’s get it straight here. Most of these people enamoured by the glitter
of money politics know that you can only play it under this unstructured
polity. Money is only a bridge that keeps this unworkable constitution
working for a while. It was the gun during the charade of military rule but
has to be replaced by another source of impunity cash. Yet you see them
going about saying they are fighting corruption the very fabric that is
keeping them in power! Remove money politics,buying of votes inducement and
nobody will bother to vote in elections under the 1999 constitution!!
So if you want to fight corruption,then you cannot mount the rostrum of
corruption provided by the 1999 constitution and promise to defend it by
oat and still deceive Nigerians and yourself saying you are fighting
corruption. You do not need the recent Ekiti debacle to have known it. So
unless you want to continue for the next four years this system,the time to
change to the original structure that bears the name Nigeria is now not
after the 2019 elections.
So you can understand the dilemma of those who still aspire to be
constrained under this system for another four years, those who have no
qualms joining the money support while ignoring their own healthy legs.
These people are not patriotic and cannot be leaders!
They have defined themselves as not capable of joining the new Nigeria. By
their aspiration alone under such circumstances they inadvertently seek to
further our miseries for another four years. They help extend the expiring
political capital from the international community in the belief that if
such calibre of people have confidence in this system then it can be
reformed. It happened to Shagari,to Obasanjo,to Yar Adua,to Goodluck even
to Buhari …. and now we are 11 trillion Naira in debt for it. But I know
that so many of them have such good heart and mean well and want to help
but it has always been so. What is more important is not array of good men
willing to work an unworkable system only to apologise in four years but a
modicum of them willing to do the right thing.