NATIONAL CONFERENCE: REPRESENTATION NONSENSE

                                                          Okorounmu presenting his committee's report to Jonathan 

In my personal submission to the Presidential Advisory Committee (PAC) on President Jonathan’s proposed National Conference, I did say that the issue of representation to the Conference would most likely pose the greatest challenge to the proposal. A THISDAY report on this matter has heightened my fears in this regard.

On 23 December 2013, a THISDAY report written by Olusegun Adeniyi and James Sowole under the heading, PRESIDENTIAL COMMITTEE RECOMMENDS 545 DELEGATES, contained “snippets” obtained by THISDAY from the Okorounmu Committee recommendations to Mr. President. All the agitators for a National Conference would have been shocked at the disclosures contained in the Report.  They may have to abruptly end their celebration of having achieved success in convincing the Federal Government to grant them their request to convene a National Conference. Their euphoria may have come to a screeching halt. Those who doggedly fought for a National Conference might have just had it approved and then taken away from them by the Federal Government.

THISDAY’s “snippets”, which are yet to be confirmed leakages from the PAC Report, claim as follows:

1.       That only 545 delegates may attend the Conference after all.

2.       That the 545 delegates would be made up as follows:

(a) 1 elected delegate from each of Nigeria’s 360 Federal Constituencies-360

(b) Special interest groups and Federal Government nominees  -185

                                                                                                                                Total -545

3.       That the 185 delegates representing special interest groups and Fed Govt appointees shall be comprised of the following:

A. Government Nominees (43 delegates):

                (a) 1 delegate nominated by each State Govt               -               36

                (b) 1 delegate nominated by the FCT                              -               1

                (c) 2 delegates from each arm of Fed. Govt.

                       (Presidency 2, Judiciary 2, Legislature 2)                 -               6

                                                                Sub-Total                              -               43

                B. Women (41 delegates):

                (a) 1 woman nominated from each State                      -               36

                (b) 1 woman nominated by the FCT                                -               1

                (c) 4 women nominated by the Fed. Govt.                     -               4

                                                                Sub-Total                              -               41

                C. Youth (42 delegates):

                (a) 1 youth nominated by each State                              -               36

                (b) 2 youths nominated by the FCT                                  -               2

                (c) 4 youths nominated by the Fed. Govt.                      -               4

                                                                Sub-Total                              -               42

                D. Traditional Rulers (37 delegates):

                (a) 1 nominated by each State                                         -               36

                (b) 1 by the FCT                                                                  -               1

                                                                Sub-Total                              -               37

                E. Professional Bodies & Faith-based Organisations (10 delegates):

                (a) Professional bodies                                                       -               4

                (b) Christian faith                                                                 -               2

                (c) Islamic faith                                                                   -               2

                (d) Traditionalists                                                                -               2

                                                                Sub-Total                              -               10

                F. Other Delegates (6 delegates):

                (a) Armed Forces & Police                                 -               4

                (b) Diaspora delegates (2)                  -               Male       -               1

                                                                                -               Female   -               1

                                                                Sub-Total                              -               6

                Grand Total                                          -               -               -               179

Thus, 6 delegates have not been accounted for (185 – 179 = 6). The reporters said they disclosed snippets only. We should therefore give them the benefit of the doubt, overlook the missing 6 delegates for now, and allow a small margin for errors.

The following deductions can be made from the above figures:

1.       That the ethnic nationalities that canvassed for the Conference might have been totally overlooked by Sen. Okorounmu’s Committee. They have been declared irrelevant to the process. I thought we were going to have a National Conference of Ethnic Nationalities. But alas, it’s not to be.

2.       That only 545 delegates will be representing Nigeria's over 160 million people at such an important and crucial conference is far too small a representation in my opinion. Many of us were expecting between 1,000 and 2,000 delegates at the conference. Some people even recommended 5,000 delegates.

3.       That 360 delegates (66%) to the Conference will emerge by election along Federal Constituency lines. The delineation, distribution and allocation of Federal Constituencies is one of the most obnoxious and oppressive tools that the Military boys bequeathed us. They are so unequally distributed round the country that one wonders the criteria that they used. For example, while the SE Zone has just 43 Federal Constituencies, the NW Zone has a whopping 92. All the 3 southern Zones have a total of 169 Federal Constituencies while the 3 Northern Zones have 191 including the FCT. This is one of the political structures that the Conference will seek to correct. Federal Constituencies should therefore not form the basis for the emergence of 66% of the Conference delegates at all. The Hausa and Fulani and Muslims of Nigeria are going to be greatly advantaged if Fed Constituencies are used while the NC Zone and southern minorities are going to be highly disadvantaged. For equity and fairness, each of the six geo-political zones should produce an equal number of delegates based on Senatorial Districts.  

4.       To worsen matters, INEC, a government agency that has consistently conducted flawed elections, may just be mandated to organise the elections of the first 360 so-called delegates. Or will the elections be left to the ethnic nationalities to organise? Not a chance.

5.       Another recommendation gleaned by the reporters is that the elections will be according to universal adult suffrage. In other words, it means all adult Nigerians will have the right to vote. Does this mean that INEC’s register of voters will not be required? But we do not yet have a citizens’ identity system in Nigeria. Our identity card schemes are all in the pipeline. How will we be sure that those voting are Nigerians?

6.       That the remaining 185 delegates (34%) will all be Federal/State/FCT Government nominees is totally unacceptable to the ordinary people of Nigeria. Jonathan had better think twice before accepting such nonsense. This is the worst tool inserted in the recommendations by the Okorounmu Committee. It is a deliberate design to hand over the Conference to the dictates, whims and caprices of the Federal and States Governments, and by extension, to the ruling Political Party.  

7.       From the number of delegates to be ‘elected’ or ‘nominated’ by the Federal and States Governments, it is obvious that Government plans to hi-jack the Conference and ensure its wishes are passed as the Conference resolutions. Nigeria's burning issues may not be properly addressed and may continue to burn us. This arrangement will make a mockery of the spirit behind the agitation for a national dialogue.

8.       That 185 of the Conference delegates (34%) will emerge by nomination. This will enable Government to influence the process and government stooges, apologists and 'yes' men will emerge as the Conference delegates. If the other 66% of delegates will emerge via INEC-organized elections, Government influence is feared. Will there be Tribunals to hear complaints of rigging and other untoward practices at the elections? At the end of the ‘election’ and ‘nomination’ processes, State and Federal Governments would have effectively produced all 545 of the Conference delegates, that is, 100% of them. The proposed Conference couldn’t be referred to as a National Conference anymore, but a Conference of the Government by the Government and for the Government.

I can foresee the Ethnic Nationalities who fought hard for a National Conference protesting this method of representation and even boycotting the conference altogether. Should they take this course of action, I will personally side with them.

My advice to President Jonathan is that, if these ‘snippets’ are actually true recommendations of the PAC, he should reject them. Let him personally go through all the submissions of Nigerians to the PAC and, I am certain, he would discover that the preponderance of opinion is that the Conference delegates emerge on the basis of tribes. The truth is that ethnology (tribe), geography (land) and religion (faith) are the three most dearly held identities by Nigerians far above nationalistic feelings. Don’t ask me why. I simply know that this is a fact. If we pretend that it is not so, we only fool ourselves. May be up to 90% of submissions to the PAC were from tribal groups. To suggest that Nigerians should drop their ethnology (tribe) or their land geography (land) or their religion (faith) would be foolhardiness. Every Nigerian, from Mr. President to the homeless destitute, holds tenaciously to these three, above everything else. Make the geo-political Zones Governments (the federating units) and Nigerians would be most pleased. That is, we should restructure in order to achieve fiscal federalism in place of the false political federation we claim to have.

I am also aware that many Nigerians who submitted memos to the PAC recommended that Government, politicians, political parties, legislators and government appointees should not participate in the conference directly. These listed persons and groups are already in governance and so would vote to maintain the status quo and their positions of lordship. Why should they dismantle the system that they are feeding fat on? After all, the Conference agitators want to change that socio-political system, which they perceive a being full of impunity, inequality, oppression, injustice and hopelessness for majority of the populace. After all, the Conference resolutions will still go back to Government - first to the President, then to the National Assembly before they can be enacted into law. Why is Government afraid of a fair and transparent ‘People’s Conference’?

May be the Conference sceptics have a point after all. Opponents of the Conference suddenly became its advocates without clear reason. Could they have cooked up a game plan to hi-jack the entire process, buy cheap popularity in the process and yet mange to recycle themselves in office? I don’t think Nigerians can be so easily hoodwinked.

May be this is why, as reported by Adeniyi and Sowole, the SGF, Pius Anyim Pius, blocked the attempt by Chief Solomon Asemota to submit a minority report. Asemota might have seen the nonsensical recommendations of his colleagues, decided not to resign but continue participate, so that he may be able to submit a ‘One-man Minority Report’ on D-day. Unfortunately, he was check-mated at the last minute by the SGF.

Asemota should not give up the fight for a true National Conference of Ethnic Nationalities by Ethnic nationalities and for Ethnic nationalities. He should go back to his group, the Patriots, which is chaired by constitutional expert, Prof. Ben Nwabueze, and re-strategize. I expect and urge their group and others like the Ohanaeze, Afenifere, Arewa Youth Forum and the various Middle Belt movements to spearhead protests against any representation nonsense offered by Government.