14112020 - How to stop IGP from president's control

20—SATURDAY Vanguard, NOVEMBER 14, 2020
It didn’t start today. In A Man Of The
People, Achebe’s Max and his fellow
idealists tried to fix the rot in the politics
of their country. They knew the problems—
corruption, greed, indolence. They knew
the ideals—patriotism, transparency,
selflessness and imagination. But Max and
his fellow political saints failed woefully.
In the second republic, we had many
Maxes. Soyinka, Achebe, Tunji Braithwaite
and others. They tried to steer the country
towards principled governance and
freedom by immersing themselves in
peripheral parties. That failed too.
In the third republic, we saw Gani
Fawehinmi and company. We saw their
National Conscience Party ( NCP). We saw
how the public never thought it was a real
party. They stayed too clean, too aloof and
practically inconsequential.
After Gani and his NCP, we have seen
other puritanical fringe parties. These
parties were supposed to help set political
agenda and deepen discourse. But even
such theoretical ambitions were rarely met.
They were not seen as feasible alternatives
so their political sermons sounded as if they
were meant for a future generation.
A few weeks ago the nation convulsed.
The youths rose to demand change in
policing and in governance. Since then
there have been talks about the rot in our
politics. How then can politics be fixed?
I think our politics can only be fixed if
good people, idealists inclusive, roll up
their sleeves and do real politics. Yes it’s
important that a few people stay above the
fray and perhaps retain the capacity to claim
to be moral compass but in the main, a
critical mass of good people must take the
risk and get into the stinking, muddy
waters of mainstream third world politics.
That won’t be an easy decision for many in
a community where politicians are seen as
pigs. Many a social critic would rather
retain his holiness and stay at the ineffectual
periphery. But for how long would ego
massage.
Take Sowore and Ezekwesili. They
stepped up in 2019, but they stepped into
small parties. These parties failed to incite
the imagination. If Sowore and Ezekwesili
I
know that immediately some
persons saw the title of this article
all that came into their minds was
nothing but economic indices. Yes, the
economy is important, but it is the result
of several other things. Any nation that
lacks a well-schooled workforce cannot
have a healthy and growing economy.
That country can hardly produce
anything, repair its infrastructure – just
like Nigeria. Yet, the economy alone is
not the thrust of this article, even though
Buhari has failed, just as Goodluck
Jonathan failed and as Olusegun
Obasanjo failed to grow jobs or the
economy. The manufacturing sector has
been contracting since 1999, worsening
unemployment. Inflation has been rising
unchecked, the Naira depreciating daily.
By 2003 Naira to the dollar rate was
N127 to a dollar. 1 USD fetched 199.2570
NGN in 29 May 2015 when President
Buhari was inaugurated President. But
what do we have today? On Wednesday,
28 October 2020, I got this from the
internet: a “¦ 460/US$1 in the parallel
market”. And yet, nobody is apologetic.
Instead, there is a fierce pride among the
members of government, even as Nigeria
manufactures almost nothing, and so
imports almost everything, so the cost of
almost everything, imported and not
imported – whether rice, yam, beans,
orange, banana, petrol, clothing, etc, has
increased over a hundred fold.
What about the pump price of petrol?
How can it be said that Nigeria, after over
five years of the government headed by
a former Minister of Petroleum, under
whose watch in that past government
some three refineries were built in four
years, cannot get a single refinery to be
functional? And to add to the
disappointment, this President, who had
been a former Petroleum Minister, had
also served as a Military Head of State.
So, ordinarily, few Presidents have had
as grand a preparation as President
Buhari. So, why is that under him, so
far, Nigeria has been unable to fully
repair a single petroleum refinery or build
a new one if the old ones have proved to
be obsolete? Under him, all we do is
routinely increase petrol pump prices!
My apologies pLease, because of the
Fixing Our Politics: Saints
must play in the main
streams
had gone into the PDP or the APC they
would have had to discard their
sanctimoniousness but they might have
affected Nigerian
politics in more
significant ways.
Achebe’s Max and
his compatriots failed
because they made
themselves aliens;
they didn’t
understand the
electorate. They
danced to their own
rhythm and not to the
rhythm presented
them by the situation.
They were aloof. They
came with good
intentions but
couldn’t play the
game before them.
Some of them played
the game as if they
were in Sweden.
Gani Fawhenmi
might not have cured
the PDP of political
leprosy but he would
have helped the country better if he
jumped into in the PDP or the AD rather
than the NCP. Idealist and social
Buhari:Have you changed
Nigeria for the better?
promised history of youth uprising
will wait till next week. I set out today
fully convinced that Nigerian
columnists have often failed to see
the big picture because we have been
unduly fascinated by the story of
individual government functionaries.
So, I am more concerned with the state
of the MIND of Nigerians than
individuals who run or ruin the
country … or the economy. That is
why Nigeria has little to offer any one
that is interested in the lessons of
history. That is also why Nigeria
disdains the truth about events, no
matter how heavenly or hellish, no
matter how heroic or courageous or
demeaning and divisive.
State of the mind? How wholesome
is the state of the mind that justifies
murder of non-members of their
religions or ethnic groups? How
excellent is the state of the mind of a
people to whom excellence in the
workplace or in education means
nothing, but to whom prebendalism
and favouritism is everything? How
can the state of the mind of a people
be raised when not even the
government tells the truth?
What state of the mind does the
government expect its citizens to
have when even the government
itself has refused to acknowledge the
Asaba Massacre and the random
killings that went on throughout the
Anioma area of Delta State during the
Nigerian Civil War?
Many a social
critic would rather
retain his holiness
and stay at the
ineffectual
periphery. But for
how long would
ego massage
crusaders should drop their huge
egos, join the mainstream parties and
help reform them from within.
A few people could
sneer and say
To really understand my stance,
please consider the My Lai
massacre of some 500 South
Vietnamese civilians by U.S. troops
on March 16, 1968. Now we know
that U.S. soldiers from Company C,
1st Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment
and Company
B, 4th Battalion,
3rd Infantry
Regiment, 11th
Brigade, 23rd
(American)
I n f a n t r y
Division carried
that massacre.
Yet, the Asaba
massacre took
place a year
before that and
till today, the
Nigerian
government or
m i l i t a r y
authorities
never asked
questions on it.
The US tried
twenty-six
soldiers charged
with criminal
offenses over it
Professor Utomi
joined the APC and
got lost in the
currents. But that
brings me to the next
point. A critical mass
of good people is
needed in the
mainstream parties.
If the others had
chosen Utomi’s path,
we would have been
nearer the threshold
needed to steer these
parties towards
becoming enduring
moral institutions for
political and
e c o n o m i c
development rather
than mere
contraptions for the
appropriation and
misuse of political
power.
Some would say Aminu Kano
belonged to a bygone era when votebuying
didn’t exist and politicians
Nigeria has been
unable to fully repair a
single petroleum
refinery or build a new
one if the old ones
have proved to be
obsolete? Under him,
all we do is routinely
increase petrol pump
prices!
but Nigeria
charged no one.
Now we are asking questions
about what took place at the Lekki
Toll Gate on Tuesday October 20 this
year, when protesters were allegedly
didn’t have to make provisions for INEC staff
and security officials to win popular support.
That’s not true. Aminu Kano retains the moral
high ground, played by example but went in
deep enough to ward off the money politics of
the NPN in kano and Kaduna—present day
Kano, Kaduna, Katsina and Jigawa.
Others would say they would rather be like
Aminu Kano—avoid the being swallowed up
by the filth of the NPN and seek success with a
cleaner, small party in a small section of the
country. Aminu Kano’s PRP was not such a
small party. It was neither NCP of the recent
past nor today’s AAC. Within its domain, the
Aminu Kano’s PRP didn’t just preach socialism,
it had offices everywhere. The PRP dominated
the grassroots in its territory. They didn’t do
more seminars than community organizing.
Aminu Kano pitched his tent on the streets and
local power brokers joined him.
I have an advice for the EndSars youths, 2023
is at the door. They have to do more politics
than protests. Protests are good. In fact, having
the capacity and willingness to protest against
social injustice is commendable. But finding
the tact to seize political power in a society
where youths have numerical strength must
be their immediate preoccupation. They won’t
achieve anything if they do not strategize. The
rot is systemic.
They can form new parties but they must shed
conceitedness and pour themselves into the
mainstream parties. They won’t win by
espousing ageism. They won’t win by being
insensitive. Their target must be to dominate
the state legislatures. If they take hold of 6 or
more state legislatures in 2023, they would have
seized the country. They have the voice and
energy to dictate the pace from just six
important states. It is tempting to believe they
can wake up one morning, march the streets
long enough, generate a ‘Nigerian Spring’ and
dislodge the old order. That could happen.
But it’s more realistic, more sensible to work
towards an organic capture of political power
through party politics and the polls. In the latter
route, they would be tested by the system.
While they must not become pigs overnight,
they must know that politics is not church. They
must play the game set before them with all
righteousness compatible with a reasonable
chance to win. Fringe parties might work. But
they must learn from history.
mowed down. Has the Army commenced
any investigations? All we hear is that the
Army was not involved in the shooting. Such
sweeping away of crimes against the nation
deaden peoples’ consciences and reduces
the state of peoples’ minds.
Warrant Officer Hugh Thompson, Jr., a
helicopter pilot n, saw dead and wounded
civilians as he was flying over the village of
S¡n Mù, providing close-air support for
ground forces. He played a major role in
ending the Mù Lai Massacre and later
testified against the war criminals
responsible, even though US troops did not
shoot at Americans. That is how the state of
the mind of a country marches from one step
of civilization and development to the next.
Thompson and his crew members Glenn
Andreotta and Lawrence Colburn were
awarded high military decorations. Glenn
Andreotta was awarded his medal
posthumously, as he was killed in Vietnam
on 8 April 1968.
I have been terribly worried about the
kind of Nigeria that will
arise from the ashes of the
#endSARS protest. Would
we become more
dehumanised? That is the
only way to go if those who
killed protesters at Lekki Toll
Gate, Lagos, are allowed to
go unpunished. Hey, who
ordered that military
action,,, against defenceless
Nigerians? Yes, Nigerians,
who were waving the
Nigerian flag and singing
our national anthem. One
social media video has
shown a hooded soldier who
allegedly warned his mates
not to shoot and later
allegedly videoed the
carnage, and the video later
claimed that the soldier
would be court marshalled.
If such a soldier exists, and
released such a video, he
should be applauded. He
is a true and courageous Nigerian. He
deserves high honours and a Presidential
handshake. In such a way, Buhari will taking
Nigeria to the next level and humanising
and Nigerianising our minds.