From John Adams, Minna
Former gubernatorial candidate and former House of Representatives Member representing Kaita/Jibaya federal constituency in Katsina state, Dr. Usman Bugage has described the level of corruption in the present administration as “endemic” with high level of impunity, saying that corruption now is worst since the country returned to democratic rule in 1999.
“it was in this government that a snake swallowed N300million, it was in this government that we saw billion of naira expended on cutting of grass and it is this government that we saw a former governor and serving senator, standing trial of billions of naira by EFCC being appointed Minister”.
The political activist and Islamic scholar spoke during the second annual Maitama Sule Leadership lecture series organized by the Coalition of Northern Groups in Minna, the Niger state Capital.
Dr. Bugage equally described the 22 years of democracy in Nigeria as a serious setback for the country, saying that the country is worst under democratic rule even though he maintained that it is the best and most acceptable form of government all over the world.
According to him, “if we ask ourselves what have we gained in the last 22 years of democracy from 1999 to date, the answer is poverty and misery. Poverty is more than double and unemployment is at it pick”.
He however regretted that within this period the revenue that has accrued to the country is unprecedented, adding that “the country has never had such revenue since independence but poverty and underdevelopment is everywhere.
“22 years into democracy, the scale of corruption and poverty is flabbergasting. We ask ourselves, why is democracy not working, why is it not delivering what we want? Something needs to be done urgently.
He argued that the current problem facing Nigeria is not about restructuring, saying that restructuring itself is not the problem, but the absence of national consensus, a need for a change in leadership.
Absence of leadership, he pointed out, is largely responsible to the different agitations in the country today, pointing out that “the government is not telling the people the truth, the trust between the government and the people has broken down. Governance has become more difficult in the last 22 years”.
Bugaje suggested that for the country to get it right, the next group of leaders in 2023 should have knowledge, experience and character which according to him is lacking in the crop of leadership currently leading the nation.
While insisting that those who will lead this country in 2023 regardless of tribe, religion or ethic region must have the capacity, knowledge, character and energy. Nigerians he warned should not allow those with missing certificate to ever rule this country again.
“We must not allow those with missing certificates to rule us again. You have a leader who has no certificate ,what do you expect from such a leader”, he queried
Governance in this 21st century is a scientific business, we can not have a leader who has no knowledge and capacity, who is always sleeping. We can not continue with this type of leadership, a great majority of them don’t have certificate.
“Secondary certificate or it equivalent is not enough for anybody to lead the most populous black nation in the world. Nigeria is currently a disappointment to the black race”.
The former political adviser to former Vice President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar described as “empty” the two main political parties in the country today, arguing that “the two political parties are the same. That is why it is easy for someone to win election in one party today and jump to another party tomorrow.
“In Nigeria today, politics is not stable. The APC and PDP are the same, that is why one would defect from one party to another and be comfortable there. I want you youths not to go into the 2023 elections blindly. We cannot continue with this type of politics, we can’t continue with this kind of democracy.
“The greatest task ahead of us is to elect leaders who have knowledge, experience and character to lead us because the majority of the leaders we have now have no knowledge, experience and character. We should not be fools to allow the same type of people to lead us.
“Our leaders have not solved insecurity, poverty, corruption and unemployment, so it is time for a change. We will not allow political parties to bring the same type of people to rule us. Political parties have to ensure that there are criteria for leadership recruitment, if any party does not have any criteria, they should be forgotten”, Bugaje stated.
In his keynote address, a member of the Northern Elders Forum, Dr Saddiq Umar Abubakar said that for the next election, the north would support any Nigerian that has character, knowledge and leadership qualities irrespective of the state he comes from.
“We are not particular about a northern leader, Muslim or Christian leader, the leader we will support would have character, capacity and knowledge to drive the nation. We will vote any Nigerian of any extraction who has the competence, courage, and knowledge to move Nigeria forward.”