DR Ohiorenua Odion Ojo is a Nigerian based in the United States, from where he runs his business. He contested the last gubernatorial elections in Edo State on the platform of the Alliance for Democracy (AD). An interview scheduled with Dr Ojo who was in the country last month couldn’t hold because of the uncertainties generated by the strike action called to protest increases in pump prices of petroleum products. Thanks to modern telecommunication wizardry, a cyber interview sufficed in place of the physical one. Ojo, in the interview below said that he doesn’t think there is a need for sovereign national conference. Excerpts:
Why do you disagree with the calls for a sovereign national conference?
I don’t feel there is any need for it, since we have our assembly todebate issues like these on the floor. If all we want is discussing minorities and everybody’s basic rights, then we can call for national conference. But that can be solved at the National Assembly. If what we really want is breaking up, this also can be solved at the National Assembly.
Do you know what representatives and senators do? This is their job, to make amendments to the Constitution, change laws, and so forth. So why do we need to go and spend money to call a separate assembly or conference ? Each LGA is represented, so all we need to do is for leaders in various communities (obas, chiefs, activists, godfathers and the rest ) to call their various representatives and senators to tell them about their demands. These will in turn table them and debate the issues on the National Assembly floor. For example, if the main issue for the Igbos is getting the presidency in 2007, they will call all the senators and representatives from the region who will then bring it to the assembly.
If the Hausa/Fulanis have their issues, they will do the same. The same goes for all the other ‘nations’. Therefore everybody is involved from the grassroots up. This is how laws are made and countries move forward, not by calling conferences. Since majority of the people want us to have a dialogue, they will have more than the necessary two-third votes to pass. We all know that the military people imposed the new Constitution on us but we can amend it in the Assembly.
Tell me, why do we have these people in the Assembly? Who will be the people present at the NC? Are they going to be chosen, elected or what? Calling for a SNC is implying that the present representatives in the national lower and upper chambers are incompetent in discussing the issues that will be on the agenda of the conference. Some people also think that these representatives presently in Abuja are just there for their own personal agendas. If that is the case, each ‘nation’ needs to impeach all of their representativesin the presentassembly and replace them with people that they want to represent them at the NC.
Why did we elect them in the first place? It does not make any sense. I honestly believe that the present Assembly is capable of handling whatever issues that will come up in the NC. People that are calling for the NC need to call their representatives to table the issues. Some people are saying that their MPs were imposed on them but a lot of the people were so busy with other things like how much money they would make from the politicians instead of this real issue of SNC. You can't elect people that are supposed to make laws then call another set of people entirely to write another law. So who is the boss here? You know the present Assembly will not go for that. This is the reason I say we have to impeach or replace them before we can go forward, if this is what we really want .
Some people disagree with the state of emergency in Plateau state, what do you think?
It was about time. The President should have done that long time ago. I don’t know why he waited that long. Whenever there is an uprising or riot anywhere in the country, where people are getting killed unnecessarily, there is supposed to be anti riot force to put that area in order within reasonable time frame, which should not be more than two hours. We can not wait for days and weeks while people are being burnt or decapitated. It does not make any sense. I believe government waits too long to respond to riots. Also the government needs to fish out all the perpetrators of the clash, charge them to court and prosecute them, no matter their status in the society.
In a lot of the cases, the perpetrators just want to destabilize the country. Some of them are safe in their high-walled houses with security while innocent people get killed and properties destroyed. These people need to learn to tolerate people that are different from them. The government cannot let them get away with it. Nobody feels the agony of lost ones except the families of the deceased.
Do you think it will spread to other states?
I hope not. Now some of the other governors will take quick action whenever there is a clash in their states. We cannot afford to have this all over the country. It will truncate the democracy, thereby giving some people an excuse to subvert the country.
But the governors say that is why they need state police forces.
I can understand that. But what stops them from calling the zone or area commanders where they have the riot and send the forces there? I don’t know, but do they need special permission to stop a riot ?. I believe the governors should have some powers to stop this kind of emergency situation. But the problem is some of the governors may use the state forces to terrorize their opponents, if given the type of latitude they want in controlling forces. At the same time I know it is different in a lot of other countries, where the governors, mayors and heads of local government control the forces in their locale. But with our make up, it is a tough call.
Some of them are also complaining about the publications of fund allocations.
It is sad that they will make themselves look bad in the politics of transparency, especially at this time when everybody is pointing fingers at them of stealing money and stashing it overseas. Foreign governments have even accused them of bringing money to their countries. There is no way the governors can win or back out of this one, because they all campaigned on transparency. If you analyze the situation properly, someone can argue that if the governors don’t have anything to hide there should not be any reason for them to complain. But the ones that are innocent feel insulted. They are in a catch-22 situation.
That brings us to 2007 presidential election…..
It is funny that we are talking about 2007 election in the year 2004 when we have so many things to do before then. What are we doing as far as moving the country forward? What are we doing to make sure the masses get the basic amenities, namely, food, water , power supply, and communication? And I don’t mean GSM phones either. I have said this before, that no civilization in the whole history of the world, has ever thrived without these amenities. These are what we should be discussing now, not who will be the next president in 2007.
But do you agree with the shift to the north?
Left to me, any elective position should be to the best candidate that will better the lives of the people . But because of our makeup, we have to rotate it.
I can understand the Igbos agitating for it. Let us be honest with ourselves, Yorubas, Hausa/Fulanis and Igbos are the three largest groups in the country. A whole lot of fair minded people in the country want an Igbo man to be the next president. But if some of the Igbos want to sell their birthrights away, like some are doing already, because of money, then they have themselves to blame. And the rest of the Igbos know what to do about those people.
The northern people have produced many, and a Yoruba man is there now, so it is only logical to allow the Igbo man to rule. Some people may want to say we should not count those military heads of state. But they ruled and controlled our resources and lives. So we cannot rule out the fact that the northerners have produced these Nigerian rulers. I don’t have anything against anybody but we have to be fair and be on a level playing field.
