By Daniel Kanu
Yunusa Salisu Tanko, former national chairman, National Conscience Party (NCP), and the party’s presidential flagbearer in the 2019 elections is today the spokesman for the Labour Party (LP) Presidential Campaign Council.
Tanko in this chat with Sunday Sun, says the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has no solution to Nigeria’s myriad of problems.
He speaks on the economy, 2024 budget proposal, off-cycle election, and the way forward to salvage the country from drift, among other national issues. Excerpts:
What is your assessment of the off-cycle elections that took place in Imo, Bayelsa and Kogi states?
The off-cycle election has been a total disaster on the part of INEC because it has taken its cue from the general elections of 2023, which showcased the incapacity of INEC to conduct a free and fair election. It was characterised by intimidation, vote-buying, manipulation, buying off of electoral officers and even to a point where some of the candidates’ life are being threatened. You can now see that the people have lost trust in the democratic process and you can see that many people did not even bother to come out to vote. Those who came out to vote only did so to exercise their franchise and believing that a miracle can happen to have a free and fair elections in Nigeria. So, as far as we are concerned that election was worse than the earlier 2023 elections. You can read reports of all sorts of atrocities used to manipulate the electoral process. While the INEC is incapacitated, the judiciary did not also help matters as what was coming out from our courts was shocking and disappointing.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is raising the alarm that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) wants to institute a one party state in the country, considering some present controversial court rulings…?
(Cuts in) Exactly, and that is the truth. The target is for them (APC) to take over all states that they can manipulate themselves to take, even without performing. They are already targeting and strategizing for the 2027 general elections. They have bought over the police institution, they have bought over the INEC institution, they have already taken care of some of the political parties too at the same time and also they have taken care of the last hope institution of the common man, which is the judiciary. You can see the kind of ups and downs decisions and judgments that the Supreme Court and the Appeal Court are giving at the moment now, even those elections that have been adjudged to have been won by other political parties they are doing everything that they can to ensure that they are taken away from those parties that won the election and that is totally unacceptable. And, of course, for me, it is dangerous and it portends disaster for our democracy in Nigeria. We must speak out against this plot to turn Nigeria into a one party state.
The recent budget proposal of President Bola Tinubu is said to have the capacity to turn the economy around…?
(Cuts in) Which budget? The budget that you will use borrowing to service. How can you stabilize an economy when 97 per cent of your total revenue earning is being used to service debt? So, you cannot stabilize an economy when a country like Nigeria is not producing anything. That is why the mantra of H.E Peter Gregory Obi is different. Had it been that they are servicing debt for production rather than consumption it could have been understandable. What we are doing in this government is that they are subsidizing expenditure and not production, in that way they keep on giving money for consumption sake without producing anything and there is no way you can stabilize the economy with such frivolity. As we speak today, we are the fourth largest oil generating and distribution country in the world, but at the moment now, we take our crude oil out of the country and those who are in position of it, sell it back to us, what an embarrassment. How can you stabilize such an economy under heavy sleaze? How can you stabilize such an economy where the lowest of the citizens are living under abject poverty in a country that has become the poverty capital nation in the world? There is no way you can encourage the young ones because you are not giving them a stable employment in terms of production, they are only consuming and you think that you can stabilize the economy in that way? It’s absolutely not possible. So, if you ask me, I will tell you sincerely that this government has no solution to our economic problems. But if you ask me under a free consultancy, I will say whatever it is that they generate they should plough it into production and then we export, then probably, we may begin to stabilize the naira. You can see that what they are doing is trial and error. There is no deep, well-thought out plan to develop the country. And you can see that things are getting worse by the day.
Recently the National Assembly purchased SUVs for members which cost not less than N116 million per one…?
(Cuts in) It is one of the most disgusting things that I have heard in recent times. Yes, some people may come up with the defence as regards to why they should buy such costly cars. Well, may be, because I don’t have a jeep and I don’t intend to own one at the moment, and even if I am to own one I will prefer to buy from Innoson motors so as to encourage that particular local production to continue to produce so that we can produce what we can buy. But how can you use such millions to go and buy Toyota cars to enhance their economy when your own economy is in a mess. It does not make sense. Some are saying that Innoson motors may not be as strong as the ones they bought, but my reaction is, let’s start using it first then if we notice a mistake we can then correct the mistake and improve on them. That is how other countries develop in their own economy. I gave an example of KIA motors. At a time, KIA motors was seen as substandard product, but today it is no longer the same. That is also how Toyota started and today they have improved their product. So, we must encourage our own local automobile industry by way of improving our economy. I think that members of the National Assembly did not do Nigerians well by buying such cars even if they call it official vehicles. What they did was wrong in view of the Nigerian condition.
But even members of your party, LP, did not refuse taking their own SUVs contrary to what the majority of Nigerians thought…?
(Cuts in) Our principal (Mr Peter Obi) took that matter up in the meeting he had with our legislators and they explained to him that those particular vehicles were official vehicles. And in that position, he too also echoed to them that he agreed it’s official vehicles, but then we all know what happens to official vehicles when you are in position of office. For him, he gave them an example that when he was the governor of Anambra State, he was given an opportunity to buy bullet proof jeeps, and he said he doesn’t need bullet proof jeep. He went to Peugeot automobile industry in Nigeria, in Kaduna in particular, to purchase 60 of it, which he gave 18 of it to the judiciary, and others he distributed to his commissioners, etc. It was the vehicles they used throughout their duration in office. That is a clear testimony and actionable plan of somebody who wants to save money for Nigeria. So, in any case I would have wished that our legislators do the same and change the narrative according to the interest and doctrine of the Labour Party. We took their explanations, but we also told them our own position on the issue.
What are your fears for Nigeria today?
I do have my fears and that is that many people will completely have lost trust in our electioneering system, they no longer believe in our democratic system. And even if they want to contest an election, they will prepare for thugs, they will prepare money to buy the electoral institution (INEC), buy the security agencies, they will prepare money so as to buy the electorate, they will also prepare money so as to buy up the press and any other persons in their way, so it’s going to be a jungle election in 2027 if we do not take very serious stringent position. For me as a democrat, I think this is what will disparage our democratic system in no distant time if we do not rise to the critical challenge.
It seems you do not have hope that President Tinubu-led APC government will provide the needed transformation in Nigeria?
They will continue to have illegitimate and illegality issues hanging on them though the judiciary has legalized illegality, this issue will continue to hunt them till they leave office. And they will be trying to impress the electorate which they cannot because already the pendulum has shown that they are only interested in going on in the old order, consumption, consumption, consumption, and no production, no production, and that of course is not good for us as a nation.
What is the way forward for Nigeria in your view?
The way forward is, firstly, we need to work on the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as a way of building trust. You see, we have a very crooked constitution which seems to be skewed along the office holder. INEC must be reconstituted along the line of Justice Mohammed Uwais report. The INEC chairman cannot be appointed by the sitting president just like that. See the recommendation of Uwais report and ensure those who apply for the office of the chairman must be published. People should apply for the job, screening should be recommended by another body like the NJC. Our police need to be rejigged. We should as a matter of urgency make sure that the Electoral Act is revisited, it must be actionable, and not the one the judiciary will come to interpret what is contained in the Electoral Act, it should be unambiguous. The judiciary is now helping INEC to interpret the law that suits them. The Electoral Act must be booby-trap free and must not be used in the interest of the office holder. It should be very clear laws, quite explanatory, no ambiguity, no room for manipulation.