NIGERIA, LEADERSHIP AND A FLAWED FEDERATION
In 1914, when Lord Lugard, Nigeria`s colonial governor at the time, contrived to amalgamate the Northern and Southern regions of Nigeria into one country, perhaps he did not forsee that his contraption of convenience would someday lead to intractable problems for the country.
The country trudged on, finally crossing the line of independence on the 1st of October 1960. The journey was anything but smooth. The ill-timed intervention of the military in the politics of the country largely precipitated the Nigerian Civil War of 1967-70 which shattered the country`s fragile unity, perhaps beyond repair.
Nigerians are unanimous that one of Nigeria`s principal and most pressing problems is the acute dearth of good leadership. This dearth of good leaders has seen people who ordinarily should be in jail take charge and direct the affairs of the country. Because they are incurably incompetent, they continue to steer the ship of the country into stormy seas.
The question of leadership has directly put in issue the system of government in a multi-ethnic country which has seen an unjustifiable concentration of power in the federal government at the expense of the states and local governments.
It was always going to be a difficult arrangement. Under a constitution hurriedly enacted as the military hastily retreated to the barracks under mammoth local and international pressure, chaos was always going to ensue at some point, with critical areas of the constitution blighted by ambiguity and in many cases, sheer narrowness.
So, every Nigerian conversation has featured murmurs of discontent about how the country is set up to fail and what can be done to remedy the situation.
Agitations for secession echo almost across the entire country. Even louder has been the calls for restructuring as the country teethers on the brink of collapse. With insecurity raging and the economy desperately clinging to the dregs of fast shrinking oil reserves, the country indeed faces a critical hour.
The battle lines have been drawn. On one side are those who for the sake of the country`s future insist that things must change in the country. On the other side are the incorrigibles who do not care if the country burns as long as things remain the way they are. This second category of people find themselves in powerful positions of authority. Wielding the power of their offices, they proceed to forcefully shut down any and every conversation about restructuring. Until their dark ends are brought to a screeching halt, the country will only continue to retrogress.
Democracy is about the power of the people. It is not about the concentration of power anywhere. It is about the devolution of power to ordinary people. Because power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely, every society that hopes to grow should watch it lest the power that should belong to the people be usurped and used to crush them.