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By Henry umahi
Estate guru, Dr. Alex Obiechina, has x-rayed the content and character of Nigeria’s socio-political system. He gave a damning verdict, saying the system has been hijacked by a selfish, greedy and parasitic political class from local to state and federal levels.
According to Obiechina, these elements are not concerned about the wellbeing of the people nor concerned about the advancement of true democracy in the country.
He said: “The only thing they are thinking about is how to loot our common treasury and, therefore, subject the citizens to more misery. Worse still, the stolen funds are warehoused abroad.
“By so doing, they create and distribute poverty, instead of prosperity. By stashing looted funds abroad, they are destroying the economic potential and capabilities of the country. This has resulted in brain drain; many top brains are abandoning the country and seeking greener pastures elsewhere because the conduct of many people in public office does not inspire hope.
“For some of those in charge, to talk about the enthronement of good leadership is to talk gibberish. They are not interested in fashioning out or developing and promoting cutting-edge economic models that will turn the fortunes of the country around. They are not focused on creating a robust economy that will ultimately usher in real democratic dividends, creating a healthy environment that will throw up envelope-pushing youths to navigate the affairs of the country and offer real leadership that will engender patriotism, which is currently lacking in the Nigerian space.
“Another ugly spot about the system is that men and women of competence are frustrated out from participating in politics. If a level playing field is created, men and women of ideas, character and goodwill will be encouraged to participate, leading to the emergence or enthronement of our best hands. It’s not a secret that Nigerians are doing well outside our shores where they work without encumbrances.
“But, unfortunately, the main interest of the powers that be is the primitive acquisition of ill-gotten wealth. Mediocrity has been elevated to an art; dumbskulls are leading highly educated and intelligent people. It is a shame; it is not a song worth singing.”
Obiechina, a former governorship aspirant in Enugu State on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), said it was unfortunate and disheartening that some of today’s politicians conduc themselves in ways totally in contrast with the ideals of Nigeria’s founding fathers like Nnamdi Azikiwe, Obafemi Awolowo and Tafawa Balewa, among others, who preached peace, unity and selflessness.
“In those days, the atmosphere of dialogue and politics was cordial and devoid of intimidation. Today, the youths are pawns in the hands of some desperate politicians, who use them for dirty jobs,” he lamented.
On how to get the best out of the country, Obiechina, an architect, said Nigeria should be made to move on the wheels of equal rights and justice. He encouraged the political parties to zone their presidential tickets to the South to show that they are sensitive to the feelings of the people from the South and can respect agreements as gentlemen and women. He argued that any party that zones its presidential ticket to the North was insensitive to the realities on ground.
Maintaining that any party that takes votes from the South East for granted is making mistake, Obiechina added that such a party is not committed to fully healing the wounds of the civil war. For justice and equity, he urged the two major political parties to zone their presidential tickets to the South East.
He said: “Everyone should be given a sense of belonging. Everybody should be treated equally. In the Nigerian project, injustice is a major issue. Some people want to be seen as masters to other groups but that is certainly not right and it’s unacceptable. We are equal partners.”
According to Obiechina, since other zones have had their turn at the presidency, the presidential tickets of the APC and PDP should naturally go to the South East because equity and fairness dictate that.
“For a country in search of peace and national harmony, this is one sure way of bringing everybody together as one family. Anything short of that is marginalization and that is why there are agitations,” he said.
He urged the people of the South East to take their political future seriously, if they want to be reckoned with in the scheme of things.
He lamented that, if insecurity, political and economic uncertainties in the country are not promptly tackled, Nigeria may be grounded. He said politics has taken the front seat, to the detriment of governance.
Regretting that terrorism and suffering are all over a once-beautiful and peaceful country, he charged government to urgently address the issues of fuel scarcity, blackout and inflation.
