By Chukwudi Nweje
Former presidential candidate on the platform of the National Conscience Party (NCP), Martins Onovo, in this interview, discussees how direct primaries could be manipulated, why the presidency should go to the South East in 2023 and other national issues.
As the 2023 general elections approach, many of the aspirants jostling to succeed President Buhari are mainly the same crop of politicians who were in government in the last 23 years of democracy; how do you feel seeing these people declaring their aspirations?
If we want good governance, we must work for it. We must accept our democratic responsibility and respect the right of a politician to aspire as long as he meets the constitutional requirements. According to our constitution, the people are sovereign and will have to choose from all candidates that emerge at party primaries the leader that they prefer. We must ensure that all the aspirants meet the constitutional requirements and emerge from party primaries. Thereafter, we must choose the most suitable candidate by voting and monitoring the elections to ensure that our votes count. We must accept this responsibility because vigilance is the price of liberty. If we truly want good governance, we must then vote for a strong and healthy candidate of outstanding moral integrity, realistic vision and comprehensive competence.
What, in your view are the major challenges facing Nigeria’s democracy?
The two major pillars of democracy are the rule of law and the integrity of the ballot. These two are not present in the pseudo-democracy that is practised in Nigeria. Nigeria remains a maximum dictatorship that pretends to be a democracy. Fraudulent elections and lawlessness are the principal challenges facing democracy in Nigeria. Electoral fraud is foundational in Nigeria because even the pre-independence elections conducted by the colonial power were fraudulent. According to Oxford University-trained former colonial officer in Nigeria, Mr Harold Smith, the plan was for the Northern region to hold power and so the election was fixed by the colonial power. This was also confirmed by Oxford University Professor of African Studies, David Anderson who stated that in almost every single colony, the British attempted to manipulate the result to their advantage. So, it can be seen that the colonial power founded democracy in Nigeria on a fraud. Since then, elections have remained fraudulent in the country. With the new Electoral Bill, we expect that there will be improved elections in Nigeria.
The President Buhari administration came into office in 2015 on the strength of three major promises, to end insecurity, build the economy and fight corruption. Eight years later, these issues seem to have taken a turn for the worst from what it was when the administration came in. What do you think are responsible for the administration’s failure in addressing these issues?
One word explains the failure of the Buhari regime to address these issues, which is Corruption. Corruption is responsible for the catastrophic failure of the regime. The Gen. Buhari regime is the most corrupt administration ever in the history of Nigeria. The corruption of the regime is in many dimensions – mass deceit, nepotism, violations of constitutional and massive financial corruption. The extent of the unprecedented level of corruption can be seen from the pervasiveness of corruption in this regime, the quantum of funds involved in corruption cases and the impunity associated with corrupt officers of this regime. We must remember the $25 billion, about N10 trillion Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) contracts scam; the road construction rates that are one hundred times higher than the median rates of the African Development Bank (AfDB); the phantom school feeding programme during the lockdown; the fraudulent conditional cash transfer; the N10 billion converted by the Brigadier in charge of accounts in the office of the National Security Adviser (NSA); the unjustifiable amount of about $2.7b claimed to be for the maintenance of only two refineries, among others. The situation is one of massive and uncontrolled corruption.
You can also remember the recent 2021 Corruption Perception Index (CPI), Report of Transparency International (TI); the report clearly confirms our position that this regime is the most corrupt in the history of Nigeria. The report ranked Nigeria 154th position compared to the ranking of 136th in 2014 and 149th in 2020, it can clearly be seen that corruption continuously gets worse in the Buhari regime. So, we can conclude that the Buhari regime is the most corrupt regime ever in the history of Nigeria. The consequences of the corruption in this regime are clearly seen in the unprecedented levels of mass poverty and insecurity. Nigerian and international analysts have concluded that this is the worst regime ever in Nigeria since 1914.
The way things are, whoever comes into office in 2023 will have to deal with rising insecurity, failing economy and rising corruption. How do you think these should be handled?
It will be difficult but not impossible to handle. The first step is to emphasize and exhibit integrity. The second is to apply appropriate strategies and management systems to control corruption, tackle insecurity and grow the economy. Nigeria has the human and material resources required to handle all these.
What do you think of the third force some groups are putting together to ensure neither the APC nor the PDP gets into power in 2023?
Nigeria most definitely needs alternative platforms that are stronger than the two failed political parties. The PDP is very bad and APC is much worse. We must ensure that neither the APC nor the PDP gets power in 2023. There are many different groups trying to build alternative platforms. We are working hard to build an alternative platform that will defeat both parties. God help us.
How do you think the South East should strategise to actualise the agitation for a Nigerian president of Igbo extraction in 2023?
In 1999, there was a consensus that power should go to the South West region to compensate for the June 12, 1993 election. Therefore, the two parties had to each present a candidate from the South West in line with the consensus. So, we had Chief Olusegun Obasanjo and Chief Olu Falae both from the South West as the two presidential candidates of the two parties. Those like us at the Movement for Fundamental Change, that believe that power should come to the South East must develop the justifications for our belief and present them to all our compatriots and then persuade them to accept our position based on superior logic. For us, the case is very clear. First, power rotation is an established democratic norm in Nigeria at all levels. It was actually included in the draft Constitution of Gen. Sani Abacha. Second, democracy requires representation and the South East is clearly under-represented at the level of the Head of the Federal Government. Since independence, a South Easterner has been Head of the Federal Government for less than one per cent of the time. Comparatively, North Westerners have been Head of the Federal Government for about thirty-five per cent of the time. Third, to prevent domination of political power and sectionalism considering that Gen. Buhari, a Northerner has been in power for two terms now. Fourth, to promote cohesion and national unity. Fifth, to ensure equity and synergy for national development.
What is your opinion about the recent importation of adulterated fuel into the country?
It is clearly the normal Nigerian corruption arrangement. It is not possible to import such off-spec fuel into the country without corruption because the standard procedures prevent such. There are too many routine requirements that make it impossible to import off-spec fuel. First, the DPR specification is known and the contract specifies the quality of the product to be supplied by the refinery, so the refinery will supply the right quality to avoid any liability. Second, the refinery tests and certifies its product. Third, at the loading port, the two parties and the independent inspector all test and certify the product. Then, at the discharge port, all parties and the independent inspector test and certify the product before discharge. You can see that it is impossible to import off-spec product without syndicated corruption.