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Bishop Emmah Isong is National Publicity Secretary, Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria, PFN, and President, Christian Central Chapel International, CCCI, Calabar, Cross River state. In this interview with JUDEX OKORO, he spoke on some national issues ranging from fear of Nigeria’s breakup ahead of 2023, urgent need for another national confab, and security challenges, among others.
There seems to be hues and cries over the state of affairs in the country. This has led to fears that there might not be a country called Nigeria by 2023 if urgent steps are not taken to redress the structural imbalance. What is your reaction to that?
I think we have a problem in the inability of the North, South, East and West to understand one another. The issue is not coming to the round table to find out what we are saying because we may be making the same statements and not understanding ourselves. People say restructuring; people say devolving power to the local governments; people say divide the country and others say regional governments. I maintain, it is the way we interact that poses the problem. We do it through rebellion, bloodshed, anarchy, or coup d’etat. What is simply wrong? There is nothing wrong in Nigeria running into six countries through referendum, all the ethnic nationalities sitting down on a roundtable and if they so wish, we go our separate ways if that will solve the problem of Islamisation, capitalism, other problems or even regional security because Nigeria is presently six zones with six different languages and several other languages; perhaps six different religions, six different modes of dressing, six different grandfathers and six different everything. We are not the same. For instance, we can say the Igbo what do you want? The Ibibio, what do you want? The Fulani, what’s the problem? The Yoruba, why do you want the Amotekun, the regional security force? You cannot force anybody or group of people to stay with you in the house while you lock the door. Neither do you just want to break Nigeria because somebody wants to start Biafra. For instance, the former Soviet Union broke up into several countries and they are even better than the way they were before.
The Nigeria national questions should not be discussed under the atmosphere of enmity and bitterness but under the atmosphere of unity in diversity. We should rather discuss how the six zones should have more power, resource allocation, industrialization and more development. It should be how the six geo-political zones should share power with the centre so that one man does not wake up and close all the borders, one man does not wake up and shut up everybody or send DSS to your house to pick you up. America today is about 54 states and that is why you see those stars in the flag of America. In fact, some countries are offering themselves willingly to join the union. So what’s wrong if we change our name to United States of Nigeria and then have the states being united with a capital in Abuja?
The problem is lack of patriotism. With an open mind, this thing can be discussed. Look at how Britain used referendum to discuss Brexit. Didn’t they change about three prime ministers in the heat of Brexit? Is Scotland not part of the United Kingdom and is it still not living in peace? So, if we follow the way of our colonial masters and other democratic nations, I don’t think Nigerians would be talking of break up. The problem is not with the country, it is lack of nationalism and patriotism among our leaders that have kept us down for decades without meaningful progress. Besides, it is the selfishness of the political class and their clandestine motives that are blinding the general population. With an open mind, these so-called national questions can be discussed. If we talk freely, we would have said something that could reengineer, re-orientate and reinvent our nation. It’s because the founding fathers –– Awolowo, Azikiwe and Ahmadu Bello –– discussed that we are in this Nigeria today, they will be very disappointed that we have not been talking about the future of the country.
But we had a national confab and its report has not been implemented till date. So why call for another one?
The report of that confab has not been implemented because its constitution was originally wrong. They were politically picked; their discussions were controlled by the government and they were running parallel with the National Assembly. There should be three elements of a confab that will affect the future of Nigeria. Firstly, it should be picked based on ethnic nationality. It was not picked by ethnic nationality and there were political undertones. I can tell you that every ethnic group knows their leaders. Secondly, the selection must also include various denominations and professional associations––the clergy, the Christian, Muslim even the Ogboni and the idol worshippers should send representatives. Then you also take people from the traditional institutions because they are part of it. You constitute the confab based on people sending representatives and not you selecting people. Thirdly, National Assembly must go on recess for at least six months. We need this talk because those in the National Assembly are not true representatives of the true nationalities in the country. They are only representatives of the wards and constituencies of the federal government of Nigeria and most of them did not win their nominations and elections by the wishes of the people. They went there by the whims and caprices of their pay-masters and political sponsors. So you can see why they do not naturally and usually speak the minds of the people. Otherwise how can people be inside the national assembly and the system is still heated up because the people inside there are the PAs and staff of former governors. While the national assembly is in session, no one can sit and discuss the affairs of the nation because those duties are the inalienable responsibility of the National Assembly. So, they would indirectly be frustrating the discussions.
There are complaints that the National Assembly has been emasculated and as such finds it difficult to carry out its constitutional duties in a way that could lead to redressing some national issues
When I hear or read these things it makes me sick. Who is in charge of holding the executive to ransom? Who is in charge of performing oversight functions? Who is in charge of approving the budget? Who is in charge of impeachment? What did Trump do that led to his impeachment at the House of Representatives, pending the judicial commission at the Senate? The only thing he did was to take the phone and call Ukraine President and he is accused of trying to sabotage the national security of America. African Presidents do three million times what Trump did and they are not impeached. So what are we talking about? I should pity the man who holds the yam and the knife. I pity no one in the national assembly who has sold his birth right in order to sustain his political ambition. I pity him not because he holds the yam as well as the knife and then comes to shed crocodile tears. The only thing they know how to do is buy wrappers, rice, cars and tricycles to share among their constituents in the name of constituency projects. I think it is high time our representatives change the language of what we call empowerment. Empowerment should never be sharing of rice and Keke Napep to poor unemployed Nigerian youths and widows but rather transforming the rural and abandoned areas to macro areas where small businesses, infrastructure and transportation are prominent through the activities of representation, that is what should be called empowerment. Empowerment is building capacity, increasing intelligence quotient through credible educational scholarship and economic transformation through industrialization, sustainable changes that lead to a paradigm shift for the people’s economy. The next thing these lawmakers do is to become very elusive. I cannot remember when I met the person or spoke with my representative at the national assembly. You may never have his attention throughout the four years.
CAN and the presidency seem to be on a war path on the issue of security. What’s your take?
CAN are not enemies of the President. They are seeking the security of the people including the Muslims. A good government will work with both Christian and Muslim associations to take advices to run the government. These are religious leaders, who are closer to the people than you. You are not closer to the people but only your government people whereas the others speak the minds of Nigerians. So it is right to listen to them. They are not in opposition neither is anybody sponsoring them. You cannot expect a CAN to be quiet when their members are being slaughtered like chickens. There is so much security challenge across the country and they are begging their own government who they voted for. Most of those CAN people, they voted for this government. The CAN president is from the West, and the West is APC. So it is contradictory to say that they are against the country. They voted en masse for this government. CAN is saying please tackle security issues which you promised and the government says we are winning the war against insurgency. If government is winning the war, why clamour for regional security? However, the Amotekun security outfit is a clear indication that security has collapsed in the country and so people and various ethnic groups are now resorting to self-defence which is allowed in the constitution. It is an eye opener or pacesetter for other regions. Criminals have continually killed, maimed, raped and beheaded Nigerians and the federal government is saying they are not aware and so we should bear with the criminals. Farmers are shouting that their farms are being destroyed and their crops gone and no rescue from anywhere. Then there is something wrong in the system. It is either government is deceiving itself on this herdsmen menace or they are deliberately looking the other way and later give them protection. I have never seen this type of hypocrisy. With what is happening, Nigeria is quickly sliding into anarchy. Even Miyeti Allah is speaking with stronger voice than the federal security agents. It is like when they cough you catch cold, when they sneeze, you vomit. So we have come to the level that the six regions in Nigeria should have their own Amotekun .
Ahead of 2023, the Ohaneze Ndigbo has sent a delegation to the North, how do you see the move?
Every Nigerian is entitled to become president in 2023, but tradition has taught us that both in the APC and in the PDP, there is rotation even though it’s not constitutional. Dr. Goodluck Jonathan was removed basically because he did not allow the North to finish their tenure. And the North that should have done five years to finish Jonathan’s eight years are doing eight years, so the South is being very generous to the North for asking Buhari to complete the Katsina man’s tenure that was not completed before Jonathan interrupted it.
Therefore, after eight years in office, common sense should now tell the North that for the sake of unity and togetherness of the country, allow the South to take back power and continue the gentleman’s agreement because what is sauce for the goose is also sauce for the gander. So there is no need for Ohaneze to go to the North. It’s a simple thing, just sit on the table and find out who ate last. In the village while growing up, when the garri and soup was not much, we ate by rotation in bits until everybody ate. You mold your garri put in the soup and ate, the next person follows until the soup is exhausted and we know everybody has eaten instead of ‘on your marks, go.’ It will help the polity and also maintain the tradition of rotation which is an unwritten agreement, yet very beautiful. The politicians started the discussion and we are just joining them to discuss. For me, I state again that I will tip someone from the South East to occupy Aso Rock in 2023. But like I always ask my Igbo brothers, are you ready because you cannot hold Biafra on one hand and seek the presidency on the other hand. You cannot be President of Nigeria and also President of Biafra or do you want to be president of two countries?
Recently the Supreme Court delivered judgment on Imo and PDP has gone back to the same court for redress. What is your impression of the ruling?
The Supreme Court is like referees in a world cup, but I think they are playing on our intelligence where you loose and win because of the technicalities of law. It is disheartening that having gone through six or seven processes and while you are still as a governor, they come and throw you out. It’s not palatable again. I will not delve into the rightness or wrongness of a Supreme Court judgment, but my only proposal is that the Supreme Court conduct elections because it will be cheaper rather than wasting precious time and money going through primaries to win elections. It is no longer whether INEC has declared you after passing through the process, it is whether court would allow you to sit there as an elected officer. So for me, the Supreme Court should conduct 2023 presidential and governorship elections rather than wasting tax payers’ money. As we speak, INEC has stated that they stand by the results they declared on Imo governorship election in spite of the ruling. INEC is saying this is not our figure, Supreme Court said no, you forgot to add this one, so we have added it and declared somebody winner.
