Military coup is nothing other than power armed robbery or put simply, snatching power at gun point. Since it is armed robbery, the penalty is death when the power robbers are caught or when the military incursion fails. Like any other criminal venture, if it succeeds, the perpetrators simply lord their criminality over others because every successful revolution begets its own legality. Revolution is the coming into existence of a legal order in a manner not anticipated by the existing legal order. All violent military incursions came into existence through revolutions because no existing democratic legal order provides for dictatorial leadership.
The impact of disorganising an existing legal order violently often leads to unsavoury circumstances. In Nigeria, the January 1966 coup led by Major Kaduna Nzeogwu led to the killing of some prominent leaders from some sections of the country, which was followed by a July 1966 revenge counter coup, killing some leaders from other sections of the country, which led to the pogrom and killing of innocent Nigerian citizens in the streets of Nigeria, for being perceived to share ancestral relationship with the January 1966 coup plotter, which eventually led to the Nigerian civil war between 1967 to 1970 that inflicted heavy casualties on both sides and claimed millions of lives. The resultant effect of this first revolution tells you how dangerous, slippery and destructive revolutions can be. Revolutions are easily misunderstood, misconstrued and manipulated to suit the power equation of the executors at any point in time. It is hardly done for the general good.
In today Nigeria, there’s no doubt that the economic, political and social conditions are annoying, irritating and very frustrating. It’s unfathomable that a nation blessed as Nigeria will be wallowing in abject poverty. More than 63% of the citizens of the largest oil producer in Africa are suffering from multi dimensional poverty without access to basic nutrition, basic sanitary condition, basic employment, basic education or health care. Naira has degenerated so much that in the 80s, it was $1 to 85k, but today, it is about N850 to $1. We import all our refined petroleum into Nigeria in a country that can boast of four oil refineries for which billions of dollars have been budgeted for their repairs but for which none of them is functioning even with the spending of such fortune. This is corruption at its highest.
Insecurity is everywhere in the country, with non-state actors now boasting of their capacity to overwhelm established state security agencies. Between April to July, more than 340 persons have been murdered by terrorists and bandits in some local government areas of Plateau State alone. Unknown gunmen now declare sit at home in the South-East and those who dared to come out were harassed and killed. Fuel now sells at N617 per litre in urban areas and higher in the hinterlands because of an ill-advised and illegal removal of fuel subsidy without enough safeguards to protect the economy and the poor from the hardship such removal will cause. As we write, the federal executive council has not been formed 73 days after the swearing in of the winner of the presidential election, even when the Constitution provided for 60 days, signifying the willingness of the present regime to trample on the rule of law. This is an obvious display of incompetence and incapability. It is very funny that the leader of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) could not form a government within 73 days of being sworn in while the military junta in Niger Republic he is seeking to overthrow has formed his government within 14 days of taking over power in the country. A regime wants to use force to remove a military government in another country and issued a seven day ultimatum at a time when it does not have a Minister of Defence, a Minister of Foreign Affairs, Minister of Interior and Minister of Finance. How does he want to achieve that? Little wonder everything is falling apart as the exchange rate he met at N450 at official rate is now at about N850 at official rate.
It’s important to note however that as terrible as this regime is turning out to be, the military regime of the past in Nigeria, especially between 1983 to 1999 did not prove to be better prompting Prof Aluko to say that any country that gives its government to the military is finished. Chief Obafemi Awolowo also concluded that the worst civilian government is better than the best military government. We agree, because no matter how benevolent any military regime is, the success of any military coup instantly turns the whole country into a very huge prison yard where every citizen is a prisoner that is not entitled to any basic freedom or human right. I remember how the then Head of State, Muhammadu Buhari took over power and went into the markets forcing the traders to sell their goods at a certain price regardless of their cost price. He made his own decrees and tied three young boys on the stake and killed them by firing squad even when the offence they committed was not a capital offence when they committed it. He sent some politicians, especially the ones outside his ethnic group, to long terms in jail, some to 200 years in prison in a military tribunal that didn’t guarantee them fair trial.
During President Ibrahim Babangida’s regime as Head of State after overthrowing Buhari, he promised to leave power by 1990 just to get the support of the Nigerian people but refused to quit power on that day and even refused to peacefully quit power by 1993 when he unjustifiably annulled the freest and fairest presidential election in Nigeria won by MKO Abiola without reason, until he was forced to step aside through popular mass uprising. It was his regime that started floating the naira which started the gradual decline of the naira. Journalists were inexplicably killed by letter bombs during his regime in an attempt to cow the independent and free press. His regime was believed to have encouraged corruption and none of his loyal officials were brought to justice for it. Abacha cajoled the Interim Government of Ernest Shonekan after about 82 days in office as a stop gap between him and the Babangida’s regime. MKO Abiola, the winner of June 12 election was detained by Abacha, which regime was believed to have engineered the assassination of Kudirat Abiola, MKO Abiola’s wife, Pa Alfred Rewane and others whose only sin is the agitation for the deannullment of the victory of MKO Abiola at the election. Most agitators that were not killed, were jailed or pushed into self exile. Abacha even set up the brilliant military officers under him and condemned them to be shot by firing squad. Both the civilians and the military officers are at risk during military regime because military regime is the government of only one man, the Head of State, not the entire military institution. At the end of Abacha’s regime, no politician had the guts to challenge him in the polls as the entire five political parties were already planning to adopt him as a consensus candidate prompting the former Minister of Power, Bola Ige, to describe them as the five fingers of a leprous hand.
Abacha suddenly died in office prompting General Abdulsalami to take over power. He came in appearing like a dove but his regime witnessed the sudden death of MKO Abiola in prison and witnessed the magical drop in our foreign reserves withot any corresponding infrastructures to show for it. It’s obvious that all the military rulers that came into power after overthrowing the democratically elected government didn’t do better. The most dangerous thing about the military government is that it has no tenure attached to it. Can you imagine if Buhari is still our President and you do not know when he will leave office? Can you imagine having this present terrible regime without knowing when it will leave office? The mere fact that in a democracy, regimes are tenured makes it more endurable and preferable to military regimes. Are you aware that if this regime were a military regime, we would have started fighting a war in Niger Republic by now because it will not need the approval of the National Assembly to take Nigeria into war? For the avoidance of doubt, Babangida single-handedly drafted Nigeria to fight wars in Liberia just to assist his friend Samuel Doe who was being threatened to be overthrown by rebels. Samuel Doe was eventually killed even on arrival of the ECOWAS Monitoring Group (ECOMOG). Nigerians were also sent to fight in Sierra Leone without approval from any quarters. In military regimes, there are no checks and balance as there’s no Legislature. The military makes laws and execute them and even outs the powers of the courts to review their actions. This makes military regimes dangerous and not fit for the modern society.
Recall in Uganda, during the reign of Idi Amin as Head of State, how he assured his people that he will guarantee them freedom of speech but cannot guarantee them freedom after speech. This was a stern warning to every citizen that the Head of State will severely punish any citizen that embarrassed him with speeches no matter how truthful or not the speeches were. The People’s interests and opinions are irrelevant. The military junta is the all knowing Lord of the Manor whose words must be obeyed no matter how dangerous and egregious they may be. This is why the news of a flurry of coups across Africa, recently, is troubling. If you are embarrassed that this regime is very tribalistic and it’s indeed very embarrassing to see him appoint three ministers from a state in his Geo-Political Zone, Abacha appointed five from his own state, Kano, alone and heaven didn’t fall. Nigerians must not be tempted to follow suit in the demand for a military coup in Nigeria because of the obvious irritation this regime has become.
The present leaders must however understand that there’s no silver bullet that can stop military coups where the leaders in power frustrates peaceful transition of power from one leader to another through rigged elections. Democracy without development will soon lose its taste and risks overthrown by revolution. Trampling on rule of law and the fundamental human rights of Nigeria is a recipe for military intervention. Lack of vigilance by the people which checks the excesses of government also contributes to the temptation for military takeover. Failure of justice by the judiciary is an invitation to the military. As we await the judgement of the Presidential Election Petition Court, everyone involved in the justice of the case must understand that those who make peaceful change impossible make violent change inevitable.