…Calls for amendment of constitution to check ugly behaviour
By Daniel Kanu
Erudite scholar and politician, Prof Tunde Adeniran, was former Minister of Education, and former Ambassador of Nigeria to Germany. He also served as the Chairman of the Directorate for Social Mobilization (MAMSER).
He was also a former member of the Board of Trustees (BoT) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) before his defection to the Social Democratic Party in 2018, where he took over from Chief Olu Falae as the acting national chairman.
In this exclusive interview with Sunday Sun, the renowned academic spoke on the off-cycle elections, revealing the fundamental issues working against Nigeria’s electoral process, the need for a new constitution, the 2014 national conference report and the global danger posed by the Israeli-Hamas war, among other critical issues. Excerpt:
The off-cycle election of November 11, is over, and the exercise was still characterised by violence, killings in some places, vote-buying, electoral manipulation and electronic glitches. Do you think we can ever get our electoral process right because it appears it gets messier despite promises of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), security operatives to conduct free and credible polls?
Well, the way we are going is very worrisome because there is desperation on the part of politicians just to win the office. If it is for service, there wouldn’t be that desperation. I think Nigerians must sit down and re-think the electoral processes, so that something can be done about the constitution because that is what really allows this desperation, the quest for power, raw power to be used to oppress the people. I believe that we need to re-visit our constitution and be given the one that will allow people to genuinely pursue democratic goals. What we have at the moment is worrisome and the orientation of our people is not such that will allow us to improve the way we should. I think we shouldn’t continue to deceive ourselves that all is well. We should respect the law, respect the electoral process and let democracy develop, let it be fully rooted and let people play by the rules. What we have is, disturbing, worrisome and it makes many of us very unhappy that when elections are coming people are preparing as if they are preparing for war. Elections should be a celebration of first choice of representatives, so what we are witnessing this present day is very disturbing. Nigeria’s elections, and the general development of the country will continue to suffer with the present constitution. The country cannot genuinely grow and development with what we have today as our constitution.
You partly mentioned the issue of re-visiting the constitution and this brings to focus the call by most Nigerians that President Tinubu should look into the 2014 constitutional conference report under President Jonathan’s administration. Do you think such calls are necessary as it was ignored by the last regime under Buhari?
Certainly, the 2014 report will be helpful because not only was the composition of the people that sat representatives of Nigerian people, they also came up unanimously on a number of contentious issues and they agreed on the direction that this country should go. I think a look at that document will help a lot, it will help to provide the basis on which you can now have a new constitution which is absolutely necessary for the country now.
When we talk of having a new constitution, as an expert, what are the few things that must be captured in a new constitution?
One of them is the fact that the present one is damn too expensive and we cannot run it the way it is, we need to prune down and then make politics less attractive than it is now. Let the people who are ready to serve, people who are ready to make sacrifices, let them have opportunity to serve and not those that go in for exploitation, for personal aggrandizement. We need to make politics less attractive to discourage those that go into politics for personal enrichment. The second area is that we are still being guided by the unitary mentality of the military. We need to de-centralize, we need to restructure in such a way that there is less rush to the centre. People should be encouraged to show effort and more interest in what happens in their community, in the local areas. In other words, there should be more power de-centralisation, so that people will be able to stay within their states and pursue goals that will promote development and, of course, when there is very positive, creative competition among the various zones of states, it is helpful for our democracy and for national development. We should not be rushing to the centre the way the politicians are rushing there now, that is what promotes this issue of ethnicity, religion, etc, at the detriment of merit, credit and excellence.
There are still complaints trailing President Tinubu’s government as a result of hardship in the land. This is contrary to the view of most Nigerians who thought that with the exit of President Buhari things will get better…?
(Cuts in) I think part of the Nigeria problem is fundamental and I have raised this issue of the constitution as one of them. There is also the belief, which has not been erased from the minds of Nigerians because of the type of constitution that we have and our pattern of politics, people now believe that the only way you can make money is through politics. It is now a do-or-die thing. So, there is no longer the issue of productivity, professionals are not working the way they should work. An enabling environment will need to be really created so that people will be diverted to productive areas and made to be productive rather than just rushing into politics for livelihood and as a means of enriching oneself. These are part of the problems and if we don’t address these fundamental issues, we will not be able to change the orientation re-direction of the country. I believe that much work still needs to be done in that regard. We need to wake up and move to the direction that we should, so as to start getting things right.
Despite the condemnation and alarm raised by Nigerians on the move by the National Assembly to purchase SUVs worth over N100 million for themselves, the leadership of the lawmakers still went ahead to procure it despite the poor state of the economy. How will you react to such action?
Well, I think, it is an unfortunate development. There is no doubt that the Nigerian nation has patriotic people in the National Assembly and I am anxious and waiting to hear them, to see them come out and say, look all these things are unnecessary, we do not need it to do our jobs and do it well, particularly at this time when the country is going through hardship and that they should rather go for alternative. I am still waiting to hear those patriotic ones speak on the issue. I believe that we still have patriotic Nigerians who are there, who still want their integrity intact, those who are not that selfish. Our economy as it is, cannot sustain such loads. I believe the conscience of those who are there will prick them. I expect them not to succumb to such enticement that will work against the Nigerian people.
Where do you think President Tinubu should focus greater attention now in his efforts to salvage the country?
Pay me consultancy fee and I will tell you (laughs), it is a huge document and not what one can just address in this manner. It is a serious and well-articulated document; I do not think this medium will have the space for it. If they need such information, they know how to get across, so as to know exactly what to do. It is not a newspaper interview stuff.
What is your take on the Israeli-Hamas war as it is getting worse by the day?
Yes, it is getting worse and it is not good for global peace. I think many people under-rated the volatile situation there, that is why the Hamas was able to spring that type of surprise and I sincerely believe that the world leaders should look at the situation objectively and then get out of the biases that they hold. Let them find a lasting solution and the solution will have to take into consideration the interest of all the parties involved. We cannot think of the interest of one group and ignore the other and hope that there will be peace. Peace should be based on justice, equity, and common understanding and common appreciation of the need to ensure genuine peaceful resolution. What we have now is very dangerous and if it continues, only God knows where it will end.