Nigerian leaders have lost count of many things that
even the ordinary one, two, three, means nothing to them now. Or even when they
realize it should matter they prefer to stand logic on its head in the face of
political expediency to ensure their survival. This is particular so when they
have no popular mandate and the casualty has always been the material
conditions of the ordinary citizen or the integrity and sanity of a people
among who are supposed to be men of letters and knowledge in relatively
influential positions. Instances abound of the aberrations that have resulted
from the warped logic inspired by the ignorance or more likely, mischief of
these political traders.
One of
such was aptly raised by Mike Ikhariale in his article in Sunday Independent of
June 20, 2004, titled: Is Nigeria Really In the Fourth Republic? It is always
soul-lifting to get to realize that some others are thinking in the same
direction with you on an issue that has been agitating your mind. Ikhariale
took on this issue of how our self-styled political messiahs curiously muddled
up the numbering of the nation’s republics since we achieved republican
status in 1963. Specifically, they inserted number 3 where none existed.
Like
politically conscious analysts should know, a republic by democratic and even
dictionary standards provides for the existence of democratically elected
officers in all tiers of government, including the sovereign head of the
country. That being the case on what grounds would the military government of
Gen. Ibrahim Babangida be styled the Third Republic?There were elected governors and local government councils
but the head of the government himself was not. It could as well have been the
Queen of England still there. So, no republic.
It is
such a simple matter that one is amazed at how the political elite allowed the
aberration to sail through. Even if a military government forced its way to
powered with guns and armoured tanks and freedom of _expression was very costly,
the exit of that same government would have untied the mouths of those who
should know. They would not have been executed for saying it loud that the new
dawn is actually the Third Republic.
Sure,
the military midwifed the current republic but should they also force down our
throats an appellation that is clearly out of place and makes mockery of the
intelligence of the political class? After forcefully lording themselves over
us for years, the military dictators still wanted to teach us how to number our
democracy. What do they know? Can they count? Unfortunately, the Nigerian press
was used to do that ignominious counting and perpetrate such a lie.
For
those who argue that Chief M.K.O. Abiola was elected, do they also recall that
he was never sworn in as recognized by the constitution? He never ruled Nigeria
and that is fact. Yet when the cabal that ensured that he never exercised his
presidential mandate chose to subsume their atrocity against Nigerians they
used the media that ironically fought a hard battle for Abiola to skew the
simplest numbering system. Alas, the media acquiesced, wittingly or
unwittingly. How sad.
Would
newspapers have lost readership if they had rightly tagged the Obasanjo
presidency the Third Republic? Not really. Every broadcast medium, maybe except
the NTA and FRCN, could have labeled it correctly. Columnists, writers,
broadcasters, reporters, analysts and most importantly, editors could have set
the agenda. They should not have allowed themselves to be conned by the military
and the political class that had appeared ready to be willing collaborators at
that point.
The
National Assembly is another institution that could have corrected the anomaly
if the members were not more preoccupied with personal political interests than
with the integrity of the nation’s democracy. Of course, the official
documents of the current Assembly proudly recognize itself as the legislature
of the “fourth republic”.Still, it is not too late to prove itself really distinguished and
honourable by heeding a call to return us to the republic where we belong. The
executive, as presently constituted does no offer much hope in this regard, so,
the legislature can make a lot happen if it chooses to act now.
Of the
two theories suggested by Ikhariale as being responsible for the deliberate
misnumbering of our republics, the first more likely drives the point home.
That is, it was an effort to bury the ghost of June 12 by making us believe
that the “Abiola Republic” had come and gone, so he nation can “move
forward”. Why move forward dragging behind us a bag of lies and
illegalities?
One
would not be too surprised if those who shared a part of that aborted republic
do not want to align with this position, that is a reverse to the correct
numbering order. Many of them just feel they would lose relevance by it because
they want to be remembered as a senator or governor (there even was a military
president) of a third republic that never really was. They only want to fit
into where they do not belong. Their peculiar interests should not however
override the collective sensibilities of the majority of citizens.
As
Ikhariale and some others have continued to raise this issue, it is not out of
place to keep it on the front burner until we all do the right thing. It is one
anomaly that ought to be corrected as soon as we can so that our political
history is not forever distorted. It is all for our collective good even as we
also need to get some respect from the parts of the world whose democracy we
choose to copy. If France numbers its republics well why should we do same?
An Abuja
based constitutional lawyer, Kashim Ibrahim, agrees that a fundamental error
has been made in the numbering of the republics but that it is essentially what
the politicians, especially the political elite, and history chroniclers could
take care of if they mean to. Another lawyer and politician, in fact a serving
senator, Victor Ndoma-Egba, equally agrees although he said he never really
gave much thought to the debate because he believes it would get us nowhere.
The more important thing he believes the average Nigerian would give more
attention to right now is how to put food on his table and improve his standard
of living; and not really which republic that the country claims to be
operating. In other words, the debate is not a priority.
Well, some
have argued outrightly that the issue has been overtaken by events and time. I
opt to disagree. And those who equally disagree can speak up now.
• Chesa is on the staff of Daily Independent
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2004. All Rights Reserved.
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