The great National Image maker of our beloved party ALL PROGRESSIVES CONGRESS, Distinguished Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila ROLE OF THE ELECTORATE IN HOLDING THE ELECTED OFFICIALS’ ACCOUNTABLE Being a Paper Delivered by Femi Gbajabiamila, (Minority Leader, House of Representatives) at Nigeria Dialogue Gala Night Held at Plaisterers Hall, One London Wall, London on Saturday, 18th of January, 2014 Protocol Having thought long and hard about this topic, I decided to come up with a sub text and a theme….GET INVOLVED. Leadership presumes there is a followership as you cannot lead in a vacuum or lead yourself. Therefore if over the years we have continued to complain about leadership in Nigeria and postulate that leadership is the bane of our country and yet nothing has changed, then its important we shine the spotlight on the very group in whom the leadership holds power in trust for, that is, the followership and look at the quality of the followership in Nigeria. I verily believe that it is this group that is wittingly or unwittingly the bane of our country. There are many reasons why I take this position and I hope that at the end of the day, though an indictment on the followership, it will be taken in good faith and serve as a wake up call for change in the attitude of the followership in Nigeria. I remember so well the 2 major crises that had the potential to tear our country apart. The annulment of June 12th election and the tenure elongation crisis. At both critical times, the foreign powers whose help some of us who were deeply involved sought, came up with the usual refrain when we sought their intervention that it was an internal matter and they could not step in until Nigeria and Nigerians had demonstrated sufficient stake and interest in the matter. On the June 12th annulment, the military government got away with the theft of the peoples’ mandate because of the docility and cowardice of Nigerians. However, the issue of tenure elongation and its eventual defeat, manifested in a very clear manner who really holds power and demonstrated that indeed sovereignty as declared in the constitution belongs to the people. The protest against the increase in removal of subsidy and increase in fuel price underscored this truism. John F Kennedy the then US President it was who said ask not what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country. That statement goes deeper than its surface meaning. Best thing you can do for your country is GET INVOLVED. INVOLVEMENT is too important. A country gets the government it deserves. You cannot plant bananas and expect to produce mangos. You cannot sit on the sidelines and continue to criticize, that is not involvement. When I talk involvement I am talking not economic or social involvement, I am talking about political involvement. I believe political involvement is the most important kind of involvement because it is from the political arrangement that the socio-economy and policies and potentials of a nation evolves. It is those that are in political power that shape the socio- economic infrastructure of a nation. Question then becomes what is meant by involvement, or how does one get involved? First I believe the most fundamental human right of all fundamental rights is the franchise and one’s right to vote. It is the reason many fought and died in ancient and modern civilizations. The right to have a say in who or in the case of Nigeria unfortunately what leads me must be sacred. Therefore in getting involved we must from Jump Street participate in the election process at all levels; local, state and federal because our everyday life is affected by those in authority at all levels. Secondly, we must guard and protect our votes jealously because the course of our lives is charted from the day of election for the next 4years and sometimes fortuitously forever. I have seen in recent history where people whose votes were manipulated to achieve results which we commonly refer to as rigging have stood firm and for days in inclement weather protested manipulated results until the correct results were announced. Not so in Nigeria, where leaders and the government believe that the governed and the people are so docile they can be taken for granted and nothing would happen. This oppressive mindset has to change. We must be resolute this time and agree to form a national movement that will ensure the sanctity of our election process. It is only when this is done that we can actually be heard to complain later or have a leg to stand on when elected officials do not perform. It is called accountability. It is only logical that I will not be accountable to you if I do not owe my present or future election to you but only to a group of people. If you do not have a say in my electoral success then I need not do your bidding, neither am i obligated to champion your cause. Its simple logic. I repeat a nation gets the leader or government it deserves. In voting we must also ensure that our votes are properly informed and based on critical issues that will invariably directly or indirectly affect the country one way or the other. We must jettison the very obnoxious predilection of selling our votes for pittance, excuse me, even for a handsome reward and begin to put round pegs in round holes. It is only then we can begin to tap into our fullest potential as a nation fully endowed with human capacity and enormous natural resources. The third stage of involvement is holding the government and its officials accountable throughout their tenure. The followership must at all times hold the feet of leaders to the fire. As stated earlier, the recent protest against fuel price increase and partial reversal of same is indicative of what a people should do in making its government accountable. Democracy is universally described as the government of the people for the people and by the people. In this classic text book definition, the word people is mentioned 3 times in a 10 word sentence. To me this underscores the importance of the people in the any democratic contraption. The people must therefore be INVOLVED. If we take a cursory look at several constitutions the preambles normally start with an allusion and deference to the people in a bid to give the constitution legitimacy. The American constitution after which the Nigerian democratic system is modelled says we the people, the Nigerian Constitution says same. Such is the importance of the people and its power in any democracy. The question then is have we tapped such powers to the fullest extent? Yes we are a nation of diverse people. Diverse in tribe, language, culture and religion. However instead of using our diversity to our greatest advantage we allow it to divide us. Our old national anthem emphasizes that though tribe and tongue may differ, in brotherhood we stand. This line should have been employed now more than ever by the followership in developing our great nation. Instead what do we get from the followership? A sharp division on atrocities committed by those in power based on ethnicity and religion. Atrocities and crimes that are patently obvious are defended by followers from the same region as the culprit. Inadvertently, the followership do not realize that they are their own worst enemy. We complain about corruption and the excesses of government on one hand but very quickly justify and defend them when the erring official is from our part of the country. Inadvertently, we are encouraging and celebrating corruption because I know I can count on my people from the South West to defend me should I act in a way not acceptable in a decent society. I do not need to give specific examples as any keen follower of Nigerian politics knows to well what I speak of. If you dont then it is you to whom I speak today and you are the reason for this lecture. GET INVOLVED! IMPUNITY----Has suddenly become the buzzword in our political lexicon in today’s Nigeria. I agree it is true that crimes and illegalities are committed with impunity but more important question is why. Answer is right there. The people allow it. Crimes are committed without consequences and so therefore no deterrent. Even the simple fear that I will lose my election is not there because I do not need the people to win my election. In the chamber, you are often perplexed when some members vote against a Bill that will obviously help and develop their constituents. Or you find some legislators voting against for instances raising the so-called oil benchmark. Oil benchmark. Which would invariably shortchange and give less revenue to the states they represent. I thought we were here to represent the peoples’ interests many of us would wonder aloud. Then very quickly I would wonder do the people actually want their interest represented. I often wonder what the electorate expects of the elected and what they the people consider to be the responsibility of the legislator. In my experience I have seen legislators who hardly come to chamber, however their constituents do not really care and will vote them in during the next round of elections. They are more interested in the money he brings home to them. There is no accountability as regards the legislative work but they are only held accountable for what monies they have given to constituents, something that is outside their legislative function. Indeed the legislator who takes his legislative duties seriously and works assiduously in making sure he protects the interest of his constituents through his core legislative duties and does not go home on a regular basis to dole out money will 9 times out of 10 lose his election. In more advanced democracies, your voting record is used to campaign for or against you and whether or not you stood to be counted when it mattered but not so in Nigeria. Many have heard of the doctrine of checks and balances inherent in a democracy. This doctrine is mostly limited to the operations of the three arms of government, the executive, the legislature and the judiciary. However because power belongs to the people, i believe that the people represent a 4th component and perhaps the most important equation under the doctrine. They remain a veritable arm of government for accountability and for the purposes of checking and balancing the excesses of the other elected and appointed arms. It is for this reason that I have often said maybe primaries though desirable and the ideal are not good for Nigeria at this time. The vast majority of those who will participate at the primary election will not vote based on issues or competence but would rather vote in the highest bidder. His level of education, experience, background and competence is usually irrelevant. For the purposes of illustration I will use someone like Pat Utomi as an example. I think we all agree that Prof. Utomi is a well educated economist and a great thinker. We can also agree that the chances are that he will bring something positive to the table and do well as a senator of the federal republic of Nigeria. Now If Prof Utomi decides to contest for a senatorial seat in Delta state against a carpet bagger who cannot string two English sentences together but comes with a trailer load of money and stupendous wealth and the party decides to throw both candidates into the primaries arena to test their popularity, who do you think would win? Therein lies the problem with primaries. The lack of political maturity. Participation in politics does not necessarily require for you to be a card carrying member of a political party. All it means is that you are involve however tenuous that involvement is. The Nigeria project can be occupied even beyond Nigerian borders. The Arab Spring, # ChildNotBride , # occupynaija events show the extent social media has more than anything raised the bar in public engagement and social dialogue. One can’t overemphasize the importance of electorate involvement in framing national conversations and issues. The National Assembly as an arm of government , in several ways provide the opportunity for the involvement of the electorate not just in framing issues but also in holding the legislature and government accountable. One of such opportunity or platform is through public hearings. Public hearings are a critical part of the lawmaking process where members of the public who are stakeholders and often interested parties are invited to a public hearing to enhance public engagement and involvement. This is why there is the word ‘public’ before the word ‘hearing’. It is for proper integration of public opinion into the lawmaking process and for accountability. Unfortunately, many do not take this phase of legislation serious but would later complain about the Bill after it becomes law. Ladies and Gentlemen, the problems of our country are enormous and very complex but the solution is simple. The solution is to GET INVOLVED.
Posted on: Tue, 28 Jan 2014 06:59:05 +0000
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