Restructuring: Why Obasanjo must act now!

BY BABS ONABANJO

Chief Olusegun Obasanjo is one of the few Nigerians who will occupy a conspicuous place in the country’s history. His role in the Nigerian Civil War, as military Head of State and two terms civilian president, would be well documented.

He is well respected in the international community and I have the highest respect for him. However, he seems not to have the realistic intellectual or moral indignation to proffer feasible and effective solutions regarding restructuring Nigeria the right way.

In 1998, he came to Atlanta in the United States, to declare his intention to contest for the position of President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. During our interaction, I asked him three fundamental questions: The first and the second questions centered on the structure of the Nigerian state.

I asked: “How would you restructure Nigeria – considering the lopsided allocation of funds to local governments in the north as compared to the South”. His response was: “There is nothing wrong with the Nigerian structure”.

The former president blamed the people for the failure of the Nigerian state. He attributed the problem to corruption, not the structure. He further stated that he would rule Nigeria with an iron hand. Unfortunately, when he held sway as the president for eight years, the former president did not abolish corruption, and other known vices, and failed woefully to embrace restructuring which is the fundamental issue that addresses equity, peace, and justice.

Though the former President will be remembered for a stable government with progressive economic development in the area of telecommunication – mobile phones – which gave way to rapid economic expansion and economic diversification. He embarked on an ambitious electrification project which failed miserably.

However, he promoted politically selected witch-hunting with the EFCC, in pursuit of his third-term agenda. Chief Obasanjo put his personal interest above the collective interest of the Nigerian State. He claimed that he fought gallantly for the unity of Nigeria and that he would always remain a nationalist.

The fact is that the former president’s position was wrong when he responded to my questions in Atlanta. His actions as president and out of office are wrong as well. It is still shocking to know that his position has not changed in spite of the mountainous evidence of a failed Nigerian state which are the resultant effects of the current lopsided inequitable, ineffective, and, Fulani influenced morally bankrupt structure.

As president (1999 – 2003) Chief Obasanjo embraced the dangerous military unitary system for eight years which gave him the absolute power to run Nigeria with an iron hand – this was nothing but self-serving interest. His actions align perfectly with the response to my question as it pertains to how he would rule Nigeria: “I will rule Nigeria with an iron hand,” he said. Absurd! And it happened in a democratic dispensation.

The third question was about the lack of gratitude to the international communities and the pro-democracy movements all over the world who advocated for his release from Abacha jail. I was the President of the Nigerian Alliance for Democracy from 1992 – 1999. During those periods, Professor Wole Soyinka, Chief Enahoro, Commodore Dan Suleman, C O Adebayo, John Oyegun, General Alani Akinriade, Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu and others played a pivotal role in the struggle to restore democracy in Nigeria and to peacefully or by all means necessary remove the brutal corrupt dictator General Abacha.

Chief Obasanjo visited Atlanta at least three times and to my knowledge did not acknowledge those who played an important role towards releasing the prisoners of conscience like himself, General Diya and others.

It seems we are experiencing a deja vu once again. Chief Obasanjo is still on the wrong side of history by inferring that restructuring is not the way forward but other inconsequential factors. I submit that when the foundation of our democracy such as a building is weak, it will eventually crumble. Nigeria is crumbling very fast. The center can no longer hold. What an irony of leadership in Nigeria – the doctors are on strike while the president of the country is in England receiving medical treatment and Nigerians are dying due to a lack of medical infrastructure and good leadership.

The Fulanisation agenda is a serious threat to the peace, justice, and freedom of the Nigerian people. The arrest of Nnamdi Kanu and Sunday Adeyemo, the freedom fighters, and the conscience of the nation must be handled carefully.

Chief Obasanjo should stand with the people of south-west, south-east, south-south and perhaps North Central to demand true federalism and regional autonomy. The 1999 Abacha and Abdulsalam military constitution should be abolished and replaced with the people’s 1963 constitution with amendments to reform it.

Before I round off this piece, I would like to touch on the complicity of the Nigerian government over the trending issues of killings, raping, gagging of the press (ban of Twitter and planned introduction of social media bill), state-sponsored terrorism (alleged killings of peaceful protesters in Lekki toll gate in Lagos during the #ENDSARS protests, Sunday Adeyemo’s house raid-and killings, etc.), nepotism, arbitrary arrests, unprecedented corruption, lawlessness, (kidnapping of Nnamdi Kalu, the Ipob leader), lopsided constitution and Fulanization attempts of the Nigerian state.

The African Renaissance of Advisers (ARA) – a newly formed pressure group I belong to — hereby call on the international community, as a matter of urgency do the following:

1. Impose a visa ban on top officials of the Nigerian government and their family members.

2. Freeze the assets of the top officials of the Nigerian government.

3. Fund NGOs and activists who are committed to free speech and non-violence in Nigeria.

4. Grant asylum to activists who are being victimized by the Nigerian government.

5. Monitor current and future sales of arms to Nigeria (stop further sales temporarily).

6. Charge the government of Nigeria with Human Rights violations and crimes against humanity.

Prof. Babs Onabanjo is the President, Nigerian Alliance for Democracy (1993-1999) and President, AD King Foundation, USA