By Linus Obogo, Assistant Editor
Alhaji Bashir Othman Tofa is a businessman and politician. He was the National Republican Convention presidential candidate in the botched June 12, 1993 presidential election. Ahead of June 12 anniversary next Wednesday, Tofa spoke with Assistant Editor, LINUS OBOGO and reflected on the date, May 29 and October 1, and concluded that he would rather that Nigeria sticks with the Independence Day as Democracy Day. He also faulted President Goodluck Jonathan’s declaration of a state of emergency in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa States, arguing that his decision was rather hasty, among other issues.
Excerpts:
Just last week, May 29, the government held the 14th anniversary of what has come to represent Nigeria’s Democracy Day. What is your general assessment of Nigeria’s 14 years of unbroken civil rule?
First of all, let me say that the worse form a democracy is better than the best form of military dictatorship. Despite my disappointments over the last 14 years of this new democracy, the freedoms we enjoy, even though with some distortions, are preferable. We have benefited a great deal from the criticisms and ideas of Professor Wole Soyinka, Alhaji Balarabe Musa and Mr. Femi Falana. If only our leaders listen, we would have made better progress.
My main complaint about President Goodluck Jonathan has always been the dearth of good and competent advisers around him. My friend, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim, is a very experienced leader. Mrs. Okonjo Iweala, Dr. Shamsuddeen Usman and the Minister of Agriculture are excellent in what they do. But only Pius is a true politician, and people like him are a minority in the government. Many of his other ministers are not an asset to the President, either in the efficient running of their ministries or politically. Many have not done him and will not do him any good politically.
I strongly recommend that the President reshuffles his cabinet as soon as possible to mark two years of his presidency, and appoint a mixture of very competent technocrats and able, experienced and popular politicians into ministries he is convinced they will make a mark. He must also come away from that myopic policy of placing appointed ministers as leaders of the PDP in states where there are elected governors. This exposes the President’s deficit politically.
In all, we have not done as well as Nigeria should have done in the last 14 years. Reason: utter corruption, lack of competent advisers, political chauvinism and general impunity. We must all share in the blame. But the President must take the lion’s share, as the leader.
It is my candid advice that the President should summon a mixture of about five elders and others with unquestionable integrity, from each state to meet for a few days in Abuja and review the situation in the country, and also offer their advice as to the best ways to promote unity and sense of belonging and to repair the damages done in recent times.
Opinions remain divided between those who still question the May 29 date, some who insist it should rather be October 1, and others who feel it should have been June 12. Where do you stand in all of this?
Personally, I would prefer October 1, as everybody can identify with that date. We became independent as a country on that date, and we have to constantly remind ourselves that we are still on the road to becoming a nation.
June 12 is a controversial and a very divisive date.
Beyond the tokenism of transiting from military to civil rule on May 29, is there anything tangibly worth celebrating in your view?
People do celebrate dates and occasions for good reasons. Freedoms are vitally important, as without them, humanity is doomed. We can celebrate these freedoms as I said, but with reservation. That is, without the freedom to be secure, and without the joy we need to celebrate our unity, which is now in tatters, the celebration is meaningless. Most Nigerians have become poorer, but not just as a failure of democracy to produce its so-called dividends, but because the democracy we practise is riddled with corruption and nepotism. These are the ills we have to cure our society of.
I advise that these dates, whether democracy or Independence, should also be days of prayers. But we rather budget billions of naira for bogus ceremonies which in reality which are undeserved. I cannot see what hungry and angry people can celebrate. I looked at the President’s face during his broadcast, and he did not look at all happy. Something was clearly worrying him, and we all know what it was!
Much as you have tried in some of your public comments to convince Nigerians not to go on crying over spilled milk and rather move on with regards to June 12, 1993 debacle, the issue has continued to stick out like a sore thumb. As a prime participant in the election process which was subsequently annulled, what collateral damage would you say it has had on our politics 20 years after?
A sore thumb, indeed! And it stinks. Anyway, I had promised not to discuss June 12 again because it does not help anything. It is now a subject for those who lack the intellect to help this country with anything positive that will move us forward. If any lesson had been learnt from it, let those lessons guide us to plot a better political culture for this country. But those who have nothing better to say or do can continue talking about it. I suggest that the elections we rig at every level, in every election, allowing “unelected” people to represent or lead us, is an equally serious matter, if not worse. People should focus more on current issues that will make our electoral process and governance better. What matters to young people who were toddlers in 1993, is education and employment, not June 12.
Those who have followed your evolution as a politician would attest to the fact that you are of a conservative stock. But today, you are counted among the liberal political elements in the country?
I am only conservative in keeping and nurturing our collective values. We are a very decent and traditional society, in both our individual make ups and histories. I think, our diversity should have been our greatest asset, if we had bothered to appreciate them and use them for our collective good. I am not a liberal in the sense of Western Liberalism, where every sin goes. I am a good Muslim and do relate very well with good Christians. My liberalism is only in the sense that I believe everyone should be free to pursue his or her innate desire to improve himself or herself and the community generally, so long as these are done in accordance with the laws of the land. That is one reason we named the political association I formed and led: The Liberal Convention, which joined the National Republican Convention NRC, of which I was the presidential candidate in 1993.
You once spoke against those who called on President Goodluck Jonathan to resign over alleged leadership ineptitude as well as his handling of the security crises in the country. You even went ahead to praise him for not being a dictator. What are your thoughts on the imposition of state of emergency in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa States?
I personally believe that President Jonathan is not a bad person as an individual, and did not start out with evil intentions. His basic misfortune is that he lacks good advisers, and some of his tribesmen have almost reduced him to a tribal leader. Secondly, the unnecessary debate immediately before and after President Umar Yar’Adua’s death as to whether he should be sworn in or not as a full President, plus the result of the 2011 elections, as well as the utterances of some people, somehow indicated to him that a section of our society loathes him. These negatives have stuck in his mind and have seriously confused him. The current debate about where the presidency must come from neither helps matters. My opinion is that such noises are unnecessary in a democracy. People will elect whoever they like, and whoever it is must be allowed to rule.
Again, in a democracy, where someone is elected, you cannot call upon him to resign. Either organise his recall, or he loses an election that will return him to office, if you have the wherewithal. He was not appointed, so why would you call upon a president of a country to resign? Don’t elect him next time. That’s democracy.
With regards to the state of emergency imposed on Borno, Yobe and Adamawa States, I was not in total support of it, because at the stage we were in before the declaration, when a Reconciliation Committee was inaugurated by the President, it should have been allowed to run its course. And if it fails, then the imposition of the state of emergency would be justified. Having said that, however, my opinion, which I expressed before, is that we should pray for our country and also for the success of the action taken in the interest of all concerned.
You appear not to be favourably disposed to the zoning of the presidency as a political arrangement. What will be your position should the APC decide to zone its presidency?
It will be a serious mistake for the APC to zone the presidency at this early stage of its development. If any section/zone of this country is axed from this aspiration, it will be fatal. A national convention must be held, and all aspiring members of the party must be allowed to present themselves for election.
I have always advocated that what Nigeria needs is a Nigerian president, not a sectional or zonal or tribal leader as president. While rotation makes some people comfortable, I am sure Nigerians will much prefer a president that cares for all the people, listens to them and acts on their needs with dispatch, equity and fairness; a president who will make Nigeria a country of “know how”, instead of “know who”; a country where all Nigerians will feel equal sense of belonging and security wherever they choose to live in their country.
What zoning has done most is to ingrain in our psyche the false notion that with our own at the helm, we will be better off. This has been shown not to be the case, except for the few thieves around the seat of power. If that has been the case, then the others will be worse off.
This situation draws us further apart into our tribal and sectional cocoons. And, when you talk of a zone, you later find that there is so much rivalry within the zone, as most would want the benefits or appointments to go to their states. And, within the state, you degenerate into the local government, and then the clan. We are damaging our unity by refusing to learn to be one; by not doing much to appreciate who is just and honest, but who is our own. This is a major problem in this country, and we have to make a serious u-turn to the direction of reality, if we want to survive as a united country.
Now, with regards to the APC, this party to be has some other serious issues to be careful about. These are internal and external sabotage. Some bad people are up to something very sinister. If APC is sabotaged, we will have very serious problems managing this democracy. That may be the beginning of the end of it. Whether or not APC will win any election, the fact that the opposition may become stronger, is in itself good for our democracy.
You were quoted in your response to Asari Dokubo’s threat as saying that the North will be better off as an entity than the South South, should the latter break away from Nigeria. How exactly did you mean?
The North truly cares for the unity and integrity of this country. There is no section of the country that truly cares for the unity and integrity of this country than the North. But this nationalistic stand is taken by some pools as a weakness, or as lack of an independent and prosperous future for the North. Far from it. I will be the last person to call for the dismemberment of our dear country. But, I will also be the last person to admit that the North cannot stand on its own, if necessary. I love this potentially great country, but I hate some of the rascals, from whatever section they are, that seek to promote disunity and the destruction of our country for clearly myopic and utterly selfish reasons. Many of these people are ignorant of history, or are just mischievous. I hope, Mr. Dokubo and others who made similar utterances will have the good sense to apologise.
The North will never consider the option to dissolve this country. But if some irresponsible people steer the country in that direction, my only advice is that there must not be any war to keep the country as one. Another civil war will be futile and it will destroy everything. We will all be the losers, as no single viable country will arise from the ashes of the old one. So, it is better for us to manage what we have. President Nixon, when resigning from the US Presidency after the Watergate scandal said something like this: ‘You will never appreciate how glorious it was when you were on top of the mountain, until you find yourself at abyss of a deep hole’. But if we cannot find a way to stay together, even after a national conference, then we must sit and negotiate separation as we have seen done successfully in some parts of Europe. But, we must pray to the Almighty not to bring that moment. May we be forgiven by Him in whose hand lie our destinies. May He cause us to come to our senses and resolve to revive our unity and live in justice and peace.
Nobody wishes to see any war to force this country to be one. The next war will destroy everything everywhere. So, what’s the point? We better negotiate and separate peacefully. That way, we can still have some dealings with one another. But, may the Almighty God forgive us and forbid this tragedy.
What is your comment on the crisis rocking the Governors’ Forum?
The President is already the President. He should not have bothered with the governors electing whoever they so wish. If I were the President, I will never interfere with such elections, like those of the leaderships of the National Assembly, the NGF etc. If I were the President, I will let them elect whoever they wish, and I will get him/her by my side. If I were the President, I must know how to do that easily and without rancor. But when a President or a governor has some sinister agenda, he resorts to this types of interferences. The President should work for the country, and should get the support of everyone concerned.
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