Kobena Eyi Acquah remains one of my favorite poets, not only because of his use of language but also because of the ease with which he creates imaginary conflict in the minds of his audience. His poem, “In the Navel of the Soul”, lives rent-free in my head fifteen years after reading the poem for my SSCE. The poem draws on the conflict between two opposition factions confronting different realities. The confrontation led to the wise one, or the old order, condemning the view of the new order with the statement, “If madness nurtures such lucidity, God, make us mad – make us even more mad”. This summarizes the situation in which we found ourselves as a nation at this point in time. Unfortunately, no one holds the monopoly on this “madness,” judging by what you get in the media and in space—X, formerly Twitter, to be precise.
That preludes me to the two major topics on the headline for the past few days: local government autonomy and the proposed protest.
Make no mistake about it, the two issues are intertwined, but it is equally tempting to separate the issue. I will attempt to separate the tissue from the issue for proper clarity. The Supreme Court, on July 11, 2024, irrevocably declared that the governor has no business with the local government funds, in pursuance of Section 162(6) of the 1990 Constitution plus the doctrine of necessity due to the loophole exploited by the various state governors. The court also affirmed that local government holds the prerogative subject to Section 7(1) of the 1999 Constitution. Since the pronouncement, one couldn’t help but notice as the usual Nigerian politics began to take shape across different states within the federation. Governors are hurriedly arranging local government elections, consultation with local government administration, and other political moves associated with Nigerian politics. It is also surprising to witness how funds can be a tool for political maneuvering. I am perplexed by the barrage of attacks on Governor Seyi Makinde on X, formerly twitter, while briefing the people on his consultation with the local government authority. I thought we all agreed that Seyi could do no wrong; I thought he was the poster boy for the PDP. Of course it is expected; this is Nigeria.
The planned protest is also another anecdote within the headlines, but there are more questions about this begging for an answer: protest by who? To be led by who? I listen to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s special adviser on information and strategy, Bayo Onanuga, lambast the progenitor of the planned protest. He blames the protest on a particular section of the opposition party, most especially the Obidient. He labels the protest a coup and an attempt to disrupt Nigeria’s fledgling democracy. In response to his statement, Bayo Onanuga has been labeled as a lapdog and stooge of the administration.
It surprises me how Nigeria goes into political amnesia at will. If Bayo Onanuga is labeled a political lapdog, aren’t we all, the likes of Sheik Gumi and Reno Omokri, including President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, once serve in that ‘capacity’, throwing their weight behind various administrations despite their humongous failure? There is absolutely no difference. The fact is that the Nigerian state is a victim of history, which explains why we continue to grapple within the quagmire of irresponsible political leadership and their praise singers. Nigerians are reactive to political issues rather than proactive. Black lives matter preceded the Endsars protest, while the planned protest is coming amidst the Ruto must go protest in Kenya. The fact remains that the protest is long overdue, right after the 2007 election, which ushers in the late President Musa Yardua and subsequently the Goodluck Jonathan government. The manipulation of the election, abuse of executive office, disregard for judicial pronouncement, and rubber stamp legislature create the current mess we find ourselves in as a nation. This mess pushes every aspect of the polity into survival mode, the state and the subnational unit included. The economy was the next in line, while the basic social fabric became the next victim. Amidst the chaos, a few comprador elites got access to the commonwealth, which they used to demand their share of the political cake. What ensued next was a mad rush for monopolies of power at different levels of government, including high-ranking civil servants? The judiciary then became a pawn in the hands of whoever found himself in office. To consolidate this power of political desperados, praise singers and lapdogs were assigned with the notion that “it will be our turn/wait for your turn”.
There is much to be achieved with the Supreme Court judgment as read by Justice Emmanuel Agim, but Nigeria can make one a doubting Thomas; it can also be used as an opportunity to compensate some lapdogs at the local level, judging by the moves of some governors within their state recently; it can be exploited as another avenue to create another set of elites; give them access to billions; at least they got the keys to the vault now.
So it is not yet Uhuru for the masses; we are in for a long ride. Reactionality must give way to proactionality, and we must begin to hold individuals within our domain accountable for their actions and inaction. With this, we will checkmate the gang up or the conspiracy of the elite before it becomes a cult.
David I. Ogbezode
LORDKÉWÉ
