As Nigeria struggle to overcome numerous challenges threatening it’s unity, the Eze Ndigbo Ghana, HRM Dr Chukwudi Ihenetu has said that only true democracy base on fiscal federation that can pull the country back from brink of destruction.
In interview granted the media and clips of it made available to Daily Sun, Eze Ihenetu lamented that other countries in West Africa are gradually adding value to good governance by promoting democracy in their country whereas Nigeria still struggles with tribalism, ethnicity, and corruption.
According to the royal father who has won several awards as peace ambassador, “Democracy in Ghana allow free speech. When government does what is right people talk about it, When it does what is bad, people also freely talk about it. That is the beauty of democracy.
“In my nation Nigeria, Yes there was a time there was democracy in Nigeria. That was in the first Republic when our founding fathers played real politics. Then, under the parliamentary system of government, each region autonomously control it’s resouces. This beautiful trend continued until the military overthrew the government. Today, the rulling government in Nigeria made the government to be one side and this gives room to agitation for equity. Political class make the government to look as if there is war in Nigeria and indeed there is war in the country but it is not being pronounced. In the North, herdsmen armed with AK47 kidnaping, killing and raping innocent people. Then if you come to the south, groups are agitating for the state of Biafra while the yorubas in the south west are calling for the state of Oduduwa. You can see that the country is seriously shaking. It is pregnant no one knows what it is going to give birth to. Boko Haram is threatening the North East day in day out. So in terms of democracy in Nigeria, I am not going to say all is well.”
Continuing, he said: “When you look at the way the allocation of resources are shared would you say it reflects true federalism? Remember that Nigeria is a federation where each of the federating units suppose to manage their resouces and deliver quota to the Federal Government at the centre but it is not like that today and that is why some people claims that they are marginalized.
Close to the issue of marginalisation is the problem of insecurity. The people are beginning to lack confidences in the ability of the law enforcement agents at the center to protect them. No wonder the south west established, Amotekun, Southeast recently established Ebubeagu. All this measure are geared toward protection of their homelands from attacks from gunmen, herdsmen and bandits operating freely in the country.
On the the effect of socio political instability in Nigeria, Eze Iheanatu said investors are afraid of establishing their presence in the country. The royal father cited example of Twitter which recently established it’s African regional headquarters in Ghana which has only 8000 users instead of Nigeria that has over 25 million twitter users.
On the way forward, the royal father call on the federal government under President Muhammadu Buhari to take the issue of restructuring seriously. He said if the federating units are able to take control of their resources to develop their state, agitations and other problems facing the country would gradually come to an end.