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Abstract
The forthcoming April
2007 general elections will be quite crucial
to the future of Nigeria as a fully
democratic and progressive country. While
Nigerians continue to demand the highest
standard of service from those that will be
elected at the elections, it is the view of
this writer that Nigerian citizens have an
active collaborating role to play in the
process through full participation in the
elections. As a way forward, this author
also suggests the introduction of the
Nolan Principles of public service into
governance in Nigeria as it will complement
other ethical codes currently available but
which may be grossly unused.
Introduction
Perhaps this year (2007)
would be Nigeria’s chance or perhaps not. A
humble guess may probably reveal that a
majority of Nigerians would wish that the
outcome of the April 2007 general elections
should consolidate Nigeria’s slow but steady
match towards national rebirth. If we miss
this forthcoming opportunity, we may be
leaping backwards into our darkest past,
unable to finally take our place amongst the
global community of nations as one of the
re-emerging economies and stable democracies
in the world. |
The consequences of such a failed opportunity could only
be imagined, and may even seem more sinister than the
scenarios projected by America’s intelligence agencies
concerning Nigeria’s disintegration within the next 15
years. It is not enough for Nigerians to castigate the
Americans for their prognosis; we should rather aim to
get our acts together using the forthcoming elections as
a litmus test, that way we will not be playing into the
hands of the American intelligence agencies by
fulfilling their prophecies for them.
Citizen Participation
I will urge the Nigerian people to take the forthcoming
elections seriously because it is about time that
Nigeria stepped out of the shadows and claimed its
rightful place on the world stage. We have to endeavour
to capture back our leadership position at least in
Africa, a position that South Africa has since snatched
from us, and rightly too. Apathy would not help and the
days of throwing up our hands in the air and
surrendering to the selfish elements in the polity to
continue to direct our affairs should also be finally
coming to an end. Those who have registered should make
their votes count. This is not only the morally correct
thing to do, but also the most sensible option; the
other option is a retrogressive match to the place we
have been before as a nation, an unfortunate harrowing
place that we don’t want to be in again.
We need the active collaboration of Nigerian citizens,
parents, young adults, men and women, professionals,
market women and men, artisans and students to realise
these dreams. Citizen participation is very important in
this process, not only as voters but also as watchdogs
in our various communities and wards. Technology has now
empowered us to write and report whatever is going on in
our neck of the woods before and during the elections;
we can no longer reserve this watchdog role to the
professional journalists, to international election
monitors and foreign observers. I will enjoin all
Nigerians with access to the internet to become citizen
journalists and reporters, you may wish to register a
blog and write an online election diary. Several
blogging websites such as wordpress.com, blogger.com
etc. offer such services freely on the internet. You can
also network with other like-minded individuals and
share information and best practice on the forthcoming
elections.
This new freedom of expression which empowers citizens
also comes with a responsibility, that of honesty and
truth. In assuming this new role of citizen journalists,
we should avoid crying wolf and making frivolous
allegations of rigging where there is none. If we resort
to such cheap tactics to score political points, we
would not be any different from the same people we are
complaining against. Nigerians could also send in their
election news, stories, tit-bits, reports and pictures
to websites such as
nigeriavillagesquare.com,
gamji.com,
nanka.org,
saharareporters.com,
chatafrikarticles.com,
nigeriansinamerica.com, etc. for publication. These
websites which complement the efforts of the traditional
newspapers and media houses are helping to bridge the
information and communication gap between Nigerians in
the diaspora and those living in the homeland. Every
effort matters because when citizens get involved, those
who plan to rig elections may feel anxious not knowing
who is watching and monitoring their illegal activities.
Perhaps the reason for the near–perfect electoral
process which the developed countries have is as a
result of the active participation of their citizens who
play watchdog roles in their individual capacities. They
build networks and freely share information using
emerging technologies freely available, perhaps we
should borrow a leaf from them.
As we go out to cast our votes, we should vote right and
let our conscience guide and lead us to a better path.
The days of collecting bags of rice, tins of vegetable
oil and snuff money to cast our vote should be over.
Selling our vote will amount to mortgaging our future
and the future of our children once again. We should
vote only for candidates that we think are credible,
candidates that have good intentions, men and women of
integrity who would work for the people rather than for
themselves.
Writing on Democracy and Governance in Nigeria, Dr. Ovo
Oghuvbu advices Nigerians to vote “people
of conviction
who are making themselves available and accountable to
us (there are many about the place even if in the
‘wrong’ party). We should be questioning and
investigating records and make it clear that we will no
longer accept the “short selling” of our dreams and
aspirations for a better life. We should mobilise to
unmask the most dangerous cohort of them all – the
children of these charlatans (biological or adopted).
They are more sophisticated than their “fathers” and
their only agenda is to “finish” what their “fathers”
couldn’t. Some of them are amongst us in various guises;
they have not the interest of our nation at heart”.
Continuing, Dr.
Oghuvbu opined that “April 2007 can be a watershed for
our nation, the enthronement of a paradigm shift in the
evolution of our political and democratic culture. There
are saboteurs, ‘chancers’ and agents of calumny who are
threatened by this potential. They could become an
extinct or neutered breed in our body politic but only
if we want them to be. We can either allow them do what
they have always done or checkmate and rid our
governance space of them”.
He challenged
Nigerians to “take action now” by encouraging
intelligent voting (the candidates are there he says),
and shun primordial voting. “Protect the vote by all
means available and be a part of a revolution that the
giant may yet arise”, he concludes.
Echoing similar
views,
Victor Dike, author of
Democracy and Political
Life in Nigeria,
also places the onus on the Nigerian people, the
citizens and the common man on the street for the
impending change in our polity. He wrote that
for Nigeria to build a strong
foundation for true democracy, “There is need for the
society to promote ethical standards in politics, good
social and moral values, accountability and transparency
in governance”. According to Dike, for this to be
possible, “the people should be politically educated and
mature. This would enable the people to begin to
question the sources of the wealth of the politicians’
who become “very rich” immediately they step into
political office”. Dike also quotes Mahatma Gandhi who
said that “politics without ethical principles is among
the social sins of humankind” to buttress his point.
He however reiterates that
“it is not too late for the politicians (and the people)
to modify their political behavior and learn to play
ethical politics that add values to the system”. He
concluded that “If Nigeria wants to transit peacefully
from the democracy-experiment to democratic
consolidation the politicians (and the people) should
adhere strictly to the code of ethics and any person
that goes contrary to the rules (operate outside the
law) should be punished without fear or favor”.
It is very important that
Nigerians de-focus on the federal government a little in
the coming dispensation, they should re-direct their
attention to the states and most importantly the local
governments whose governors and chairmen have struggled
in the past to justify their monthly allocations from
the centre, which usually run into millions and billions
of Naira. Part of the thinking in the creation of a
local government system of government in Nigeria and the
continuous carving out of new local government
authorities from existing ones is to bring government
closer to the people. This objective has remained
unfulfilled. It is therefore very important that people
being voted into these positions pass certain standards
and tests set by the people. Truly, development could
also occur bottom-up as is the case in the United
Kingdom where the boroughs have responsibilities for
basic services such as roads, housing, education,
health, welfare, and so on. This frees up the central
government’s time which could then be devoted to more
strategic issues and projects.
Nigerians should demand a
service charter from the next local government
chairpersons; these chairpersons should also on their
own create one not only as a token but as a symbol of
their commitment to improving the lives of the people
living within their jurisdiction. State governors should
do the same; they should even go a step further by
emulating the examples set by the likes of Governor
Donald Duke of Cross River state who has put his state
on the world tourism map with the Tinapa project as well
as other developmental initiatives. The new set of
governors should work hard to clean up the image of the
state governor as a criminal and treasury looter
epitomized by the likes of former governor of Bayelsa
state J.S.P Alamiesegha, Rivers state governor Dr Peter
Odili amongst many others. Some of these governors have
been indicted by the Economic and Financial Crimes
Commision (EFCC)
for corrupt practices.
Service delivery should be
made more efficient at the state and local government
levels, borrowing from the activities of SERVICOM at the
federal level, the incoming government should promote
accountability, service, honesty and integrity at all
times. This is the only way the confidence and trust of
the citizens can be won back, and the only way they can
receive the support and cooperation from the citizens
which they desperately need in order to function.
The Obasanjo government may have laid the foundation for
a new Nigeria, rescuing it from the claws of military
oligarchs in 1999, but now is the time to move on. We
have to build on the institutions and good intentioned
reforms of the last 8 years. The race is not yet over
and has just begun. The incoming leaders should
consolidate on the debt relief as well as debt repayment
efforts of the outgoing government. They should also
build on the achievements recorded in both the
financial, education and other sectors. They should not
drag Nigeria back into the Paris and London clubs
through frivolous borrowings. Enough of playing politics
and Russian roulette with our collective future.
Perhaps this may be the best time to incorporate the
Nolan Principles into governance in addition to other
codes that may already exist. The Nolan Principles of
public life which originated in the United Kingdom is
preferred because of its simplicity and because it
covers the key areas that have remained the bane of
successive governments in Nigeria. The principles which
are reproduced here could be hung in offices as
reminders of the people’s expectations. Abbreviated
pocket-sized versions could also be produced and given
to civil servants who sometimes function as clogs in the
wheels of progress and development.
The
Nolan Principles of Public Service
Selflessness:
Holders of public office should take decisions solely in
terms of the public interest. They should not do so in
order to gain financial or other material benefits for
themselves, their family, or their friends.
Integrity:
Holders of public office should not place themselves
under any financial or other obligation to outside
individuals or organisations that might influence them
in the performance of their official duties.
Objectivity:
In carrying out public business, including making public
appointments, awarding contracts, or recommending
individuals for rewards and benefits, holders of public
office should make choices on merit.
Accountability:
Holders of public office are accountable for their
decisions and actions to the public and must submit
themselves to whatever scrutiny is appropriate to their
office.
Openness:
Holders of public office should be as open as possible
about all the decisions and actions that they take. They
should give reasons for their decisions and restrict
information only when the wider public interest clearly
demands.
Honesty:
Holders of public office have a duty to declare any
private interests relating to their public duties and to
take steps to resolve any conflicts arising in a way
that protects the public interest.
Leadership:
Holders of public office should promote and support
these principles by leadership and example.
Perhaps the time
has come for Nigerians to shun the ‘Nigerian factor’
psyche and expression. This expression seems to have
provided a ready excuse for us in the past to justify
our misdeeds and poor judgements. There should be
nothing ‘Nigerian’ about selflessness, integrity,
objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty and
leadership. These are all universal principles and
virtues without any black or white flavourings and
colourings. If we indeed want to come out of our
socio-economic doldrums, then we should all rise to the
challenge knowing that there is no compromise to these
principles.
Conclusion
Finally, we need the vigilance of all collaborating
agencies and institutions for this process to work, if
indeed this will be our chance, the Independent
Electoral Commission (INEC) must play an impartial role
and ensure that elections are free and fair. The onus is
on them to conduct an election that will rekindle the
trust of Nigerians in government agencies.
The emerging leaders post- April 2007 and the entire
citizens of Nigeria should not let this opportunity pass
us by. This may indeed be our last chance.
posted 16 March 2007 |
