By Daniel Kanu
Mazi Sam Ohuabunwa, industrialist, activist, author, columnist, former chairman, Nigeria Economic Summit Group (NESG) and president, Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) is displeased with the current Nigerian condition.
In this encounter with Sunday Sun, he spoke on the storm surrounding e-transmission of result, PIB, restructuring, and why the Southeast should produce the next Nigerian president, which he has offered himself to run for the position. Excerpt:
How would you react to the controversy generated over the e-transmission of election results?
Anybody who loves Nigeria will approve that we have e-transmission, anybody who loves this country who wants the peace of the nation, anybody who fears God and wants to do things righteously will support e-transmission because it is the way to go.
Part of the excuse is that network does not cover the entire country and that may pose another problem?
It’s a lie…don’t they transfer money to and from their villages and to local governments, they send money to all their people and to all parts of the world. Which place can you not transfer money to in Nigeria today? Even if there will be, it will be just a few cases, perhaps, an insignificant, negligible number. It’s a lie, it’s complete impossibility. Even when we started the use of card readers it still did not disenfranchise those who their card reader did not read as they were given an incident form to take care of it. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) knows what to do in cases of such nature. There is always a plan B, they never have one option only, there is always plan A and plan B. Assuming there are areas there is no network it will be a minority, it will be small, the majority would have done the electronic transfer so when they go and do their manipulation in those few places it will not affect the result outcome badly and if any it will be minor. But the truth is that the argument is a lie, all they want is to keep manipulating elections…that’s all, they don’t want a free and fair election in our country. It’s a self-serving decision they have made and I pray that God will help them and open their eyes because they better know that Nigeria has come to the point where all those their evil plans for the nation will fail. God is going to arise in 2023 for the poor, for the weak, for the marginalized, those they have rubbished, God will arise for them, so let them know that all their plans will be thwarted by God’s grace.
What is your take on the latest development with PIB?
I don’t believe that anything we do for the oil communities will be enough. Do you know the level of degradation in that region? I remember when we were at the National Conference in those days when derivation for the region (Niger-Delta) was I think seven or 10 per cent before it moved to 13 per cent and still it was not enough. So, I don’t think it is enough, even the five per cent is not enough although it is well to start because ultimately where Nigeria should be going is on sound diversification in other sectors, agricultural, agro, gas etc, that is the way other parts of the world are driving their economy, it is the way to balance the economy. We have an inverted federation now, one day that federation will be properly constituted in a manner that it will genuinely stand on its base as it should be and we will have a feel of a true federal structure. When we balance the federation as it should be, it becomes stable. For me, I am on the side of those who say they should give more to the region, but I know that one day as long as God lives this country will get to a point where we shall revert to what was going on in the 1963 Constitution, a situation where each region developed their resources and paid a portion, royalty to the centre for maintenance of common services, that is the ultimate destination, so we can delay it, but it will surely come one day by the grace of God.
Dissecting your position, if I can guess correctly, it clearly points to the fact that there is the need to restructure the country for true federalism?
Of course, the need to restructure the country is obvious, it is not something we should be arguing about. This system is not working and, therefore, the way to make a system work is to rejig it, rejuvenate it, re-engineer it, restructure it, what ever name you want to use. Those who don’t want to use the word restructuring can use the word re-engineering, rejiging etc, whatever name, but you keep adapting and changing any structure for it to be current and able to meet the current situation. Every structure needs to be constantly amended, reviewed, re-examined, etc to meet the demands of reality. The structure of our country is not the best for us and for me there is a need to have a second look at it and ensure we adopt something that will be fair to all, something that will not promote injustice, etc. My own advocacy is that the federating units should have more powers than they have now. They should also be given greater autonomy to optimize their resources and contribute to the centre. We should stop focusing on oil. Sell the oil as other countries are doing, invest it, and get returns, but as long as we are focusing on oil as the main source of income and we gather in Abuja to share, it is the way the country will remain corrupt, the way the country will remain indolent and performing below its capacity.
What is your reaction when critics say that Nigeria is on wrong track…?
(Cuts in) Unless you are blind, but if your eyes are open and you still see and feel the dynamics of movement you will see/know that it is obvious we are drifting, we are not acting like a country that is united. People go to the National Assembly and they are behaving like people who are misfits, the way they were arguing on why we shouldn’t have electronic transmission will show you that most of the people there do not know what they are there for. Many of them are just selfish, self-centred and just want to do what will benefit them alone. You could see it, those who are sensible wants e-transmission of results, those who are there for their selfish interest do not want e-transmission and when you put the country on such tender hooks the country becomes unstable and begins to drift. They are doing nothing to unite the country, they are doing nothing to build a nation instead they are everyday widening the divisions, creating more opportunities for conflict and unhappiness. That is what they are doing, so it is clear that the country is drifting. You don’t need eye glasses or a soothsayer to aid you to know that we are on the wrong track.
Talking about 2023 and the president of Southeast extraction, do you think the zone is prepared for the task?
Of course, they are prepared. I hope you are aware I have offered myself to run for the president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in 2023? So, the issue of being prepared does not arise. It is for fairness, equity, justice etc, it should come to the Southeast, it has gone round. It is not a question of preparation again, there is no additional need to prepare. We have very competent people in the Southeast and they are ready like yesterday. With all humility and by the Grace of God, I have offered myself as one of those competent persons who can take Nigeria to its manifest destiny. I have all it takes to fix this country, to make Nigeria an investment haven, investment-attractive to the world. I have the experience, competence, character and the courage needed to do the work. Nigeria is waiting for the Southeast to take the reins of governance and re-arrange the country, restore it to economic buoyancy and bring healing to the nation, bring unity of purpose and hope because we are the ones who love this country more than anybody else. We show it not by just speaking, but by everything that we do, we are the ones in every community in this nation, we are the ones who are building houses everywhere in the country, doing our businesses in all nooks and crannies, making everywhere home, creating and keeping investments everywhere. How do you show that you love a nation? How do you show you want that nation to prosper without these sort of commitments? The Southeast is deeply committed to this nation building and we deserve fairness, equity and justice as others on the issue of governance. There should not be any controversy that 2023 is the turn of the Southeast to produce the next president. I can confidently tell you that Nigeria will regain its pride of place when the clutches of presidential power rest in their hand. Of course, you will expect that there will be no discrimination, you will be sure of economic buoyancy and when the people are gainfully engaged and with proper rejiging of the security architecture, this issue of insecurity will become history. We have enough resources in this country to turn Nigeria to Eldorado, all that we need is the right type of leadership, by extension the right type of knowledgeable president that will identify and engage capable, qualified and patriotic Nigerians who know what it takes to build a strong, virile, peaceful nation that all citizens will be proud to belong. We have patriotic minds, presidential materials if you like, in the Southeast that will take Nigeria out of the wood. I have offered myself as one of those credible materials and if by God’s grace I am given the opportunity I will make Nigeria work. Today, Nigeria is not working for all, but for a few and I know it’s possible to keep the country together with good governance that is all-inclusive.