This National Conference Must Work

By John Tosin Ajiboye

According to former opposition leader in the Uganda National Assembly – Paul Ssemogerere,  “Africa must address the ethnic and religious factors in politics in a positive way; but not by suppression or by wishing them away. The development in USSR and Eastern Europe should teach us that nationhood cannot be achieved, let alone sustained by suppression of our different identities.”

To keep Nigeria going as one united country the rights of the entire ethnic groups that make up the federation must be respected and protected without any group or number of groups dominating the other. Failure to adhere to this equitable principle puts the nation at the risk of breaking up the moment the victims decide to redress their marginalisation and oppression and as General TY Danjuma once said,  no nation can ever successfully combat civil war the second time.

All the threat and counter-threats that Nigeria will be ungovernable if Mr. so so and so is not elected should be stopped, because Nigeria is greater than any individual and nobody should be above the law of the land.

Since we are in the era of open letter writing since the beginning of this year therefore any ex-president or important personality that still have any letter to write should write it quickly and anyone that have finished writing his/her own letter should make it public on time so that all the issues bothering us as a nation should be addressed once and for all in the forthcoming National Conference.

In his book Nigeria: Shadow of a Great Nation, Senator Lai Joseph said: “if advanced countries such as USSR, Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia which had endured for over seventy years have broken up at the altar of ethnicity, what chance had Nigeria which has been tottering in the wilderness of tribalism for only three decades to continue to remain as one nation.”

Therefore, for this forthcoming national conference to be effective, one of the major task of the conference is to provide a way of running the country as a true federalism. In the same vein another important issues that should be discuss is the basis of sharing the revenue which should be as much as possible respect the principle of derivation.

The 492 delegates out of  more than 174 million Nigerians must make good use of the opportunity they have at this forthcoming national conference and remember that posterity will judge them if they fail to represent their constituency well at the conference.

It is needless to emphasize the point that leadership opportunity is a double-edged sword which can make or mar a leader. It is noteworthy that if some of our past leaders have made good use of the opportunity they had in the past, Nigeria should have passed the stage where we are now. Unfortunately, some of our past leaders that have misused the opportunity to make Nigeria proud are now engaged in the business of ‘letter writing’ accusing one person or the other while the writer has failed to admit his own mistake while in government house.

The incumbent president of Nigeria, President Goodluck Jonathan has facilitated the conference therefore the participants must see beyond President Goodluck Jonathan because Jonathan will not be president of Nigeria forever but whatever they do with this singular opportunity will never be forgotten in the history of Nigeria.

In the same vein, the National Assembly that will adopt the outcome of the conference and join it with constitution must be patriotic in adopting it even if it will affect them, especially the issue of their jumbo pay. The National Assembly should not forget that if a leader measures up to expectation and performs well, he eventually becomes a hero. On the other hand, if a leader fails to perform and abuses his office either by oppressing his people or by stealing taxpayers’ money, he would of course end up being a tyrant or a looter of the nation’s treasury.

Nobody stands to prosper from the downfall and disintegration of Nigeria which is so richly blessed by nature. On the contrary, from either direct or stray bullets, starvation, diseases and other catastrophes, many will surely perish if Nigeria is allowed to break up. Therefore, all the sponsors of Boko Haram must call their boys to order and allow peace to reign in our country Nigeria.

Another issue that must be addressed is our foreign policy. It was reported that the leader of Boko Haram is from Niger. The rate at which the foreigners are smuggling arms and ammunition into the country with the help of disgruntled elements among our politicians must be curtailed.

Our porous borders in the north must be well guarded and every Tom and Jerry should be prevented from entering our territory with ease. Our traditional rulers must also make useful contribution on how to protect their domain from foreign criminals.

The issue of national security must also be discussed, the traditional rulers in some trouble area where there is insurgency, militancy and kidnapping must come out with useful contribution on how to appeal to some of their subjects that have become criminals.

Lastly, the truth we have to accept and bear in mind is that Nigeria has never really amalgamated into one country because all our political exercise in the past had failed at the altar of tribalism, religious bigotry, dishonesty gross insufficiency and corruption. We must get it right this time so that we will not continue to perambulate on a spot as a nation while other African countries such as Ghana, South Africa are getting it right.

Therefore, Nigerians arise and shine for your light has come.

•Ajiboye,  a public affairs analyst, writes in from Lagos. •E-mail: [email protected].