2023: The Nigeria agenda train moves across the country

BY JULIUS OGUNRO

The Saadu Zungur Auditorium, venue of the inaugural launch of The Nigeria Agenda (TNA) project, gradually filled up. The gaily dressed participants came in T-shirts and various costumes, all branded with quotes demonstrating their love for Nigeria and hope that someday the country will fulfil its full potential.

The atmosphere in Kano was one of celebration with the drumming, singing and dancing. But the event was not another political jamboree but one which the organizers believe will change the political trajectory of the country.

The choice of the Saadu Zungur Auditorium for the TNA project launch was deliberate. The auditorium is part of the iconic Mombayya House, the political leadership centre founded by associates of the late Mallam Aminu Kano to preserve his memory through the collection of his speeches and mementoes and then project his political ideology as the incubation centre for radical progressive ideas for Northern Nigeria.

The Nigeria Agenda (TNA) campaign is in sync with the people-centric ideology and focus of Mallam Kano and the Mombayya House. Although primarily a champion of poor people’s (Talakawas) rights in Kano state, the late Mallam Kano’s vision for Nigeria was of a stable and united nation hued out of the many ethnicities, languages and religions that make up the Nigerian state. He believed that from these many complexities would arise a nation united by common goals and purpose as well driven by the shared dream of a greater country.

It is about 39 years since the ideologue from Kano state passed on. Yet, his vision for a stable and prosperous Nigerian state is far from being realized. Why has Nigeria consistently promised so much, but delivered very little? Why has it not fulfilled the vision of its founding fathers such as Mallam Aminu Kano? And even more significantly, what can be done to change the country’s squalid story??

That was the crux of the message taken by the TNA team to Kano. The group is led by Mallam Ahmad Sajoh, a well-known social critic and government functionary, and sometimes Marxist theoretician. Sajoh, a former commissioner for information in Adamawa state, makes a lot of interventions in the Nigerian public space and is a familiar face on TV, providing insight on several important issues.

But this time, in Kano, Sajoh was preaching a different kind of message. That, Nigeria’s redemption is possible and near. A man of action, he was walking the talk and rather than just being a pundit, another face on TV, he threw his hat into the ring, mobilizing Nigerians from all walks of life towards resolving the eternal Nigerian quagmire: the development question. Gone was the academic punditry. Gone too was the somewhat impotent postulations about the different and sometimes contradicting ideas on how to fix the country.

Now, Sajoh was firm and clear about what Nigeria needs to do to survive and succeed. Leadership that works was his prescription. And that is The Nigeria Agenda message. It is that there is a connection between our national aspirations and political leadership and that we cannot hope to rise above the leadership of our country.

The TNA team commended President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration for its great strides, especially for its massive investments in infrastructure and various social investment schemes but insisted that, despite all of these, the country has not reached The Promised Land.

The TNA campaign argues that to transform our national potentials to real growth and development, we must make sure that we get the leadership with the skillset, competence, experience and compassion to unlock the country’s economic growth as well as ensure peace and stability through the promotion of equity and fairness and justice.

These are hardly revolutionary ideas. Scholars throughout history have made a connection between leadership and performance. As with companies, so it is with countries. In fact, all the major leaps that some societies have made in modern times have been linked to the exceptional leadership provided by men such as Lee Kuan Yew of Singapore, Sheikh Mohammed ibn Rashid Al Maktoum of Dubai, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva of Brazil, and Xi Jinping of China. And all of these giant strides have happened under different political circumstances, some of which are not necessarily democratic.

So, in what form is The Nigeria Agenda message different and more urgent?

Sajoh and his TNA team members explained that the 2023 elections offer a unique opportunity to turn the corner via the enthronement of the right quality of leadership across board, especially a president whose vision, skillset and experience match the country’s needs. And, so they called on Nigerians to be very deliberate about the political recruitment process in 2023 because of its serious implications for the peace, unity, economic prosperity of the country and ultimately, its development.

Julius Ogunro, the strategist and consultant to the TNA Project, explained that Nigeria’s seemingly permanent underdevelopment was not a result of a curse or ill luck.

“We understand that the issues are complex and tough. Political leadership is not a magic wand that would just blow away all our problems and turn everything around for good. But it is a good place to start. The right kind of political leadership is more important than all the mineral resources that we have been blessed with in the country,” he said.

He argued that in spite of the well-known leadership and followership conundrum in the country which invariably ensures the recycling of bad leadership since leaders emerge from the followership, there is a way out for Nigeria.

He also explained that we can have an exception with leadership. “What the Chinese call a Sunzi, a person with exceptional attributes and characteristics beyond the average in the society, and who through his moral examples and actions, point the society towards a better way of doing things and conduct.”

The TNA team explained that Nigerians should seek out a Sunzi in 2023, the exceptional Nigerian with remarkable skills and experience to turn the country around and gradually put it on the path of sustainable growth and development. Niyi Akinsiju, the chief advocate and head of public affairs of TNA reiterated this when he encouraged Nigerians to seize the moment in 2023 and enthrone the right leadership so that the country can begin to make the kind of progress that will guarantee growth and development as well peace and stability.

Aside Kano, the TNA campaign team took the message to the capitals of other geopolitical zones of Nigeria. In Bauchi, Port Harcourt, Awka and Minna, the message was received with enthusiasm, demonstrating its timeliness and the country’s readiness for a true change.

In Bauchi, the well-respected Islamic scholar, Sheik Dahiru Bauchi, leader of the Tijaniyyah movement, who received the TNA delegation was excited about the prospect of a new Nigeria, one that would finally achieve the vision of the founding fathers. He prayed for the team to succeed and birth the kind of Nigeria that we would all be proud of.

In Port Harcourt, Kingsley Suaka Nnaa, a retired General of the Nigerian Army, declared his determination to fight for the success of the TNA through the propagation of values that will engineer unity and citizens-driven development in the country. He recalled his time in the Army and how in all his postings locally and overseas, he always fought for and believed in one united Nigeria. “Now, I’m ready to fight for the leadership that will take the country to the next level,” he said.

The group received a similar level of support in Awka and Minna. In Minna, the Governor of Niger state, Sanni Bello, who was represented by the secretary to the state government, Alhaji Ahmed Ibrahim Matane, said the TNA message was timely and called on Nigerians of goodwill to join the TNA train. Over 300 volunteers from across the south-eastern states were inducted as TNA ambassadors, promising to take the message to the nook and corners of the region.

So, what is next for the TNA team? They say they are ready to walk the talk and would not rest until Nigeria gets the kind of leadership that can ensure real growth and development.

Ogunro is a consultant/strategist to The Nigeria Agenda Project