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Obasanjo and the Throne of Egypt By Today, there is a semblance of democracy in Nigeria. We have an elected president with a definite tenure. In four years time, he would present himself for another term and we his employers could renew his tenancy if we are satisfied with his performance. We have an elected parliament whose debates could be listened to and it has to run its business according to law. Even only this week, the former Speaker of the Federal House of Representatives, Salisu Buhari, was convicted for lying about his qualifications to enter the House. In former times, when the military was in power, the only qualification to rule Nigeria was the ability to participate in a successful coup. The golden rule then was stage a successful coup and everything else shall be added unto you. Now, things seem to have changed and we are all filled with pride and expectations.
We know that we deserve more than the little that we have. Ours is a story of betrayed hopes and deferred dreams. But we thank God for the foresight and sacrifices of great men and women with which our country had been blessed. We know that the current atmosphere of freedom and democracy in Nigeria today is the culmination of the struggle and sacrifice of Chief Moshood Olawale Abiola, who was elected the president of the Nigerian people on June 12, 1993, and many great men and women with whom our country is blessed. If Abiola’s victory had not been thwarted, he would by now be serving his second term. But we thank God for Abiola and all the great martyr; the likes of Pa Alfred Rewane, Kudirat Abiola, Shehu Musa Yar’Adua and Ken Saro-Wiwa, who made this great turning in our country’s history possible. We owe a lot to heroes like Papa Adekunle Ajasin, Chief Anthony Enahoro, Professor Wole Soyinka, Chief Gani Fawehinmi, Chief Bola Ige, Lt. General Ipoola Alani Akinrinade, Colonel Abubakar Umar, Comrade Ola Oni and many other great men and women.
I was close to Chief Abiola. I saw him last in 1993 in the aftermath of the annulment of his victory by the disgraced dictator, General Ibrahim Babangida. He came to this country to seek the support of his countrymen and gain succour from the politicians and leaders of the United States. I went with him everywhere, to the Congress and to meet leaders of African-American community whom we believed would be sympathetic to our course. Many of the leaders of the American government, including President Bill Clinton, showed considerable sympathy. Many Nigerians too were having high hopes that, despite the perfidy of Babangida and his cohorts, democracy and the Rule of Law would soon triumph in Nigeria. We never reckoned that the road ahead was long, tortuous and will demand grim sacrifices.
I can still remember the day Abiola left the United Kingdom for home, en route France. Many of us believed that he was going for his coronation, not knowing that he would ultimately be nailed to the cross. We did not know that there were many evil ones within the armed forces and the Nigerian political establishment, including his own elected vice-president, who were ready to work against the mandate of the Nigerian people. Instead of being crowned President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Abiola was led into captivity as political Prisoner-in-Chief. That betrayal of the Nigerian people by Babangida, was to lead to the gruesome tyranny of General Sani Abacha, the horrors and assassinations of those years, the unjustifiable hanging of Ken Saro-Wiwa and his compatriots, the assassination of Kudirat Abiola, the kangaroo tribunals and the concocted coup trials, the arrests and disappearances of prominent Nigerians and the era of darkness that was only to end with the timely death of Abacha last year.
When Abacha died last year, we expected Abiola to be home soon among us to lead the final lap of the race to representative democracy. But Abiola was released to us a dead man; his job left unfinished, the democratic project still far from completed. It is a fact today that despite the facade of elected officials and parliaments, we still have not found the formula for keeping Nigeria as a functioning enterprise where the Rule of Law shall reign and every nationality shall have equal access to equity and justice. Moreover, we have yet to find the formula for living peacefully together. Recent events in Kano, Sagamu and Warri have shown clearly that we are yet to fully accept that we belong to one country.
For us to understand why it was possible to annul Abiola’s victory, we need to understand the nature of the Nigerian federation. Those who are seeking for that understanding should go and study the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999. That constitution is meant to replicate, in a constitutional form, the deformations and distortions of the past 32 years since the military seized power in 1966. That constitution concentrated almost all powers in the President. The states have few powers and fewer responsibilities. It is our responsibility therefore, if we believe that Abiola’s sacrifice and those of other martyrs would not be in vain, to reform that constitution and make Nigeria a proper federation.
I do not belong to those school of thought who believe that the only thing you need to run Nigeria very well is good leadership. I believe that far more important than leadership are good political structures. In other words, the structure of a house is far more important than the furniture you keep in it. A good house must be able to withstand inclement weather and the rigour of reasonable existence. It must not constantly be under threat of collapse. Can we say the same thing of our country even now that we have a democratic government? Just imagine if the scenario in Kano, where the Yorubas were being hunted and killed had played itself out to its logical conclusion with Yorubas too staging revenge killings in Osogbo, Ibadan, Lagos, Oyo, Ogbomoso, Ado, Akure and other towns? We would be deceiving ourselves therefore if we think the present constitutional structure of Nigeria is built to last. We have a duty to help build the structure that will last and endure. That is the duty we owe Abiola.
In having this opinion, I am only taking my cues from our own history, not just the history of the June 12 struggle and its aftermath. In 1953, Chief Anthony Enahoro, one of the leaders of the Action Group, AG, had moved a motion calling for the independence of Nigeria by 1956. Alhaji Ahmadu Bello, the leader of the North, would not agree, saying that Nigeria can only be independent "as soon as possible." Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe, in the subsequent crisis, which led to riots and killings of Southerners in Kano and other cities in the North, attempted to make peace between the AG leaders and leaders of Ahmadu Bello’s Northern Peoples Congress, NPC.
"Let us forget our differences," Zik pleaded. Bello however disagreed on this, advising instead: "Let us understand our differences."
We need to know that though we inhabit the same geographical space, the various nationalities in Nigeria are different and it would be futile to think that these differences would disappear. The more we make efforts to understand these differences the better for us. That is why, in agreement with the consistent suggestions of Chief Anthony Enahoro and many other top Nigerian leaders in recent years, I am also calling for proper constitutional reforms in Nigeria. At the heart of this constitutional reform is the nationality question. I believe that every nationality in Nigeria, no matter how small, have the right to a measure of control over its own destiny. I also believe that the proliferation of states is a subversion of the spirit of federalism. Therefore, I am advocating that the Nigerian federation be re-organised to be made up of eight or six regions. Like the pattern all over the world, especially here in the United States, I believe power should devolve from the local to the regional and then to the federal governments.
I am advocating for these reforms for two main reasons. First, I believe it is reasonable to carry out such reforms if Nigeria is to know peace and progress. Second, I am a Yoruba man and I believe that the Yoruba of Nigeria deserve to have their own autonomous region to enable them realise their full potentials as a people. I believe this is our right as well as our duty. A great Yoruba nation will only strengthen the Nigerian estate, not weakens it. Therefore, ladies and gentlemen, we hold it as a duty to Abiola and all the martyrs of democracy to ensure that this freedom for the Nigerian people is realised through proper constitutional reforms.
I have heard some people suggesting that we should accept what we have since Obasanjo is now president and we have our elected governors and state assemblies. I will only plead with such people to be cautious. The present constitution concentrate too much powers in the hands of the Federal government. Obasanjo may rule with sagacity. But a time will come when a king will ascend to the throne of Egypt who does not know Joseph. It is good for us to let the whole world know that the fight for democracy in Nigeria is not just to enthrone an Obasanjo, but to ensure that there is equity in the land. That equity we cannot have until the Yoruba people, like every other nationality in Nigeria, has a measure of control over their own destiny. This cannot be achieved unless they have their own region.
The greatest honour we can do for him, and what he would have demanded from us more than anything else, is to ensure that the new democratic experiment in Nigeria does not fail. If he and Kudirat his wife could make the supreme sacrifice for this, we should be willing to make our own little contributions. Let us start by thinking about Nigeria everyday. Let us resolve that we will not ignore Nigeria nor forget the land of our birth in the temporary comfort of exile in the United States. Lets us remember that Nigeria is the place we can actually call home and that it was to rescue our home from dangerous criminals that Abiola gave his life.
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