Prediction of Nigeria’s breakup is illusory –Senator Kaka September 22, 2013 | Alhaji Adegbenga Sefiu Kaka is a former deputy governor of Ogun State. He is currently representing Ogun East Senatorial District in the Senate. In this interview with Ayo Esan, he speaks about happenings in All Progressives Congress, APC, and argues that the prediction by a US agency that Nigeria would break up in 2015 is unrealistic, among others. Excerpts: •ALL PROGRESSIVES CONGRESS, APC, HAS BEEN REGISTERED AS A POLITICAL PARTY; HOW WOULD ITS EMERGENCE AFFECT THE POLITICAL LANDSCAPE? The registration of the APC has been acknowledged by everyone as a very good thing to happen within the political landscape. One, it would afford the populace the opportunity to have clear-cut competitive alternatives. Unlike before where a single party would pride itself as the largest in Africa, incapable of doing what is right, always after the destabilisation of the nation rather than stabilising the country they claimed to be ruling. To have APC coming in, we are now on the same pedestal with the American polity where they have the Republicans and the Democrats. Similarly, in Britain where they have the Labour Party and the Conservatives. So if a dominant party is not satisfying the yearnings of the people, there is a credible alternative waiting in the wings to take over. It will provide a sort of balance of power, a clear-cut choice and, of course, proper analysis of the national problem and proffering alternative solutions that people would have to take decision upon. It is a very welcome development and in tandem with what General Ibrahim Babangida tried to do in creating though by force, fiat, two political parties, the Social Democratic Party, SDP and the National Republican Convention, NRC. It is also in tandem with what Chief Obafemi Awolowo envisaged in 1983 under the dialectical principle where he envisaged that the best in all political tendencies would come together one day to form the progressives and the other reactionary elements would remain together. It will now be left for the people to choose between the right and left and then know what the direction they want the nation to go. As I said earlier, it is a welcome development and I am sure it will make everybody to sit right. It is even the pointer to what we are now having in the crisis rocking the PDP where the poison which they have been giving to other political parties by creating an unnecessary division among them starting from the AD, APP to APGA and to all that you can think of in terms of all other political parties. They are now taking the dose that had been prescribed to others. How they will end up we would see but it is going to be for the overall wellbeing of the nation. •IN SOME STATES, ESPECIALLY THE SOUTH-WEST, WE LEARN THAT SOME MEMBERS OF THE MERGER PARTIES IN THE APC ARE COMPLAINING OF NOT BEING CARRIED ALONG. THE NATIONAL BODY OF YOUR PARTY HAS SET UP HARMONISATION COMMITTEES IN THE STATES. HOW FAR HAVE THEY GONE IN BRINGING EVERYONE TOGETHER? There are bound to be complaints if you are in a dynamic society. If you are in a country like Nigeria, where greed and selfishness is the order of the day, there are bound to be people who will want to arrogate what belongs to everybody to themselves. There are those who out of their lethargy, inactivity will want to complain that others are riding them. By and large, there is nobody that can oppress another without the consent of the others. If those that are lethargic are ready to come out openly and challenge whoever is trying to oppress them, automatically there will be balance of forces. What is happening is a normal process and I am sure we will be able to get through it over time. On the harmonisation committee, the constitution is so clear about what our party stands for. Then the national interim executive, the guidelines they have given on how we are going to harmonise in the states in line with what was done at national level is also very explicit and is widely acceptable to everybody. It is the nittygritty, the composition of that harmonisation committee, that they are putting finishing touches to. I am so confident that by the end of this week they will give the approved list of all the harmonisation committees for the 36 states of the federation and they will swing into action. From there, we’ll get to the local governments, the wards and the polling units, so that things can get in shape. Nobody should exercise fear, whether somebody is domineering or the others are lethargic, the constitution has been crafted in a way that will accommodate everybody. They should just exercise patience and believe that things are going to be sorted out amicably. •WE LEARNT THAT SOME LEGISLATORS IN OGUN STATE HAVE DUMPED APC AND MOVED TO LABOUR PARTY? There will be the dialectical principle; we pray it will come fully into force whereby the thesis and the anti-thesis will work harmoniously and then the bad elements, we will be able to pack all of them together. If we are not able to pack all of them, let the majority go one way. Those of us who have the interest of the nation at heart, ready to do justice, maintain peace and unity according to the motto of APC will be together. Where there is no justice, there can be no peace. Where there is no peace, there can be no unity and where there is no unity, there can’t be development. •IT IS BEING ALLEGED BY SOME PDP MEMBERS THAT THE OPPOSITION PARTIES, ESPECIALLY THE GOVERNORS, ARE FUELLING THE CRISES IN THE PDP. HOW TRUE IS THAT? Whether it is being fuelled by the opposition or is caused by the PDP itself, the most important thing is that we have the PDP that is over-bloated. We have the PDP that has been messing up the nation and themselves that many people had anticipated an implosion long time, even during Obasanjo’s reign which did not come to materialise; because when they commit atrocities, they’ll tell the nation it is a family affair. This time round, they have realised that it is no longer a family affair. There is a limit to which you can use family affair to oppress your own brethren. If they and their people are reacting, at least they have been in government for the past 14 years and they have been doing what is happening to them now to others, sponsoring cleavages in other political parties. This is an open secret. If the cleavages are happening to them, why are they crying wolf where none exists. Whether there is wolf or not, what is important is that they are taking the bitter pills that they had been administering to others. •THERE IS THIS CRISIS IN RIVERS STATE HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY AND THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY TOOK OVER THE STATE ASSEMBLY. MANY EMINENT LAWYERS HAVE CRITICISED THE TAKING OVER, SAYING IT WAS WRONG. WHAT IS YOUR VIEW ON THIS? Lawyers have a way of arguing pros and cons depending on which side of the divide they find themselves. They can say whatever they like, but what the National Assembly has done is constitutional. The National Assembly has since been vindicated with what is happening in PDP. It has resulted in, only two days ago, the police now sealing off the road to the House of the Chief Security Officer of a state that they are supposed to be subordinate to. The same police that were protecting five members of the assembly and marginalising, leaving 27 unprotected. The National Assembly has done what is right, appropriate to stabilise Rivers State and prevent it from snowballing into a national crisis. Despite that fact, you can still see that the smoke from the flame is still everywhere. Thank God that wisdom prevailed, and the National Assembly displayed rare statesmanship by taking that action. Otherwise, only God knows the number of lives that would have been lost in Rivers. I was watching the television the other day and somebody who claimed to be a youth leader of the PDP was saying that the militants would have taken over the place if the police had not gone to lower down the flag of the new PDP. You keep on wondering which type of nation are we, what character of people are inhabiting this country, that the police are doing what is wrong and you are now saying if you can aggregate, you can come together under the protection of the constitution that guarantees the fundamental human rights, the freedom of association. Then some group of people are now exercising the same right, you say if the police had not gone there, the militants would have taken over the place. Who are the militants? That is where Mr President comes in. He needs to be alert to his responsibility. He needs to see himself as president of Nigeria, and not the president of the PDP. He needs to see himself as president of Nigeria and not as president of the Ijaw nation. Once that is done, he should move straight, do what is right and ensure that we have a peaceful atmosphere where we can record development and growth. That is what we deserve. •SOME NIGER-DELTA INDIGENES, ESPECIALLY ALHAJI ASARI DOKUBO, AND A FORMER INFORMATION MINISTER, CHIEF EDWIN CLARK, ARE THREATENING THAT IF DR JONATHAN IS NOT RETURNED AS PRESIDENT IN 2015, THERE WOULD BE CRISIS; ALSO THE AREWA CONSULTATIVE FORUM IS INSISTING THAT THE NEXT PRESIDENT SHOULD COME FROM THE NORTH. ARE WE NOT HEADING TOWARDS ANARCHY WITH THESE HARDENED POSITIONS? I don’t think we are heading for any anarchy. It is these people that should be called to order by no other person than Mr President. Silence means consent. If Mr President is not enjoying what is going on, if he is not encouraging what is going on, he should be man enough to call the two sides to order. 2015 is still far away, the constitutional provision is there. The freedom for the people to freely elect people of their choice is also guaranteed in the Constitution, so if there are people who feel it is their turn either for a second term, third term or first term to be president, let them throw their hat into the ring and wait for the verdict of the people. They should stop overheating the polity. We need time and peaceful atmosphere for us to develop and for lawmakers to function well and the executive to be ocused. They should come to terms with the reality on ground that it is God who gives power that can take it from anybody. Anyone threatening fire and brimstone should be prepared to be consumed by that fire and brimstone and definitely not innocent Nigerians. If there is going to be anarchy, it is those who are trying to foment it that should pay with their own lives, not innocent Nigerians. •ARE YOU SAYING THAT THE PREDICTION BY AN AMERICAN AGENCY THAT NIGERIA WOULD BREAKUP IN 2015 IS ILLUSORY? I can’t see that one. Much as I don’t see it happening, it is a warning signal. Whether those people have their information wrongly or rightly, or their intelligence is reliable or not, we should be conscious of what we are doing. If for whatever reason you are being warned that something is likely to happen, what we need to do is to take preventive measures. Under the circumstance, we would be conscious, expect to respect the rule of law and fear God. Anarchy would not happen without some lives being lost. The life you cannot create, nobody should attempt to take it. We should heed the US warning, get ourselves together and prevent such things from happening. This is because the unity of the nation is our strength and no matter the difference among us, it should be unity in diversity and not otherwise. •THE RATE OF KIDNAPPING IS ON THE RISE IN THE LAND. RECENTLY, AN ANGLICAN BISHOP WAS KIDNAPPED IN RIVERS STATE AND A HUMAN RIGHTS LAWYER, CHIEF MIKE OZEKHOME, WAS RECENTLY RELEASED AFTER ALMOST THREE WEEKS IN KIDNAPPERS’ DEN. HOW CAN WE CURB THE ACTIVITIES OF KIDNAPPERS? It is simple. One, the police must be alert to their responsibility. We can’t keep on voting a lot of money for security and live under insecurity. Secondly, what we are seeing is a symptom of certain effect: unemployment, hunger, poverty, mismanagement of resources, etc. If those are the root cause, then rather than throwing in money at security where we are not getting result, for God sake why don’t us frontally declare a state of emergency on poverty eradication; unemployment in our environment and tackle them. If you want to tackle unemployment, poverty, again we still have a causative also – electricity. We have been fooling and deluding ourselves for the past 16 years on issue of electricity. Several billions of naira devoted; it is the engine room of our development. It is the main thing that the investors have been wasting our hard-earned money to go and look for in China, America and Europe. No investor will come here who wants to be competitive and rely on generator and diesel. Many of the countries that are producing generators don’t need them because they hardly have power outage. They are using our country as a dumping ground. I am expecting Mr President to wake up one day and say no more importation of generator. To compound it all, year in year out over one million graduates from various tertiary institutions are being churned out and yet the system is not absorbing up to 20,000 of them in a year. What are they going to try their hands on when there is no electricity? As we are talking now, we have diesel sellers bribing PHCN officials to make sure that electricity supply should be off at peak period when people are in dire need of electricity. That is the level to which Nigeria has degenerated and yet the rulers are not doing what is expected of them. ARTICLE in the News: nationalmirroronline.net/new/prediction-of-nigerias-breakup-is-illusory-senator-kaka/
Posted on: Sun, 22 Sep 2013 10:23:27 +0000
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