|
News Headlines
|
|
Written by RAZAQ BAMIDELE
|
The first civilian Governor of Kaduna State, Alhaji Balarabe Musa has said that, bringing about democratic change in Nigeria peacefully would be so difficult under the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) because of what he termed, “the resistance of the party to democratic change,” just as his former counterpart in Lagos State, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu was also of the strong conviction that democratic change was inevitable for the country to move forward.
Balarabe Musa made the assertion in Lagos, on Tuesday while delivering a paper: Reflection on a decade of civil rule in Nigeria (1999-2009), at a two-day workshop on a decade of democratization in the country organized by The Islamic Network For Development (IND) in collaboration with the Germany based Friedrich Ebert Foundation at the Ikeja Airport Hotel, Lagos.
According to him, Nigeria was yet to democratise in the past 10 years, pointing out that, “the eight major ingredients of democracy are still missing.”
The ingredients, Musa enumerated, were the supremacy of the will of the people, periodic conduct of free, fair and credible elections, clear separation of power, observance of rule of law and due process, vibrant civil society and socially responsible press, virile political parties and democratic institutions as well as minimum maintenance of social, political and economic justice for all citizens.
While asserting that democracy would be meaningless without the aforementioned fundamental ingredients, the leader of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) lamented that: “in fact, the 10 years of the civilian rule has been qualitatively no better than the 10 years of the military rule before 1999,” regretting that, till date, Nigerians were yet to taste the so called dividends of democracy.
Quoting relevants authorities with facts and figures to buttress his assertion, the concerned human right activist cum politician stated that, “of Nigeria’s population of 140 million, over 76 per cent live below poverty line ($1 a day or N150) which amounts to 54 per cent of the people,” adding rather sadly that, “life expectancy in the country still remains as low as 46 years.”
Musa, who was of the belief that thing should not continue in that line, however, regretted that the much needed peaceful change might not easy in spite of its imperativeness, stating emphatically that, “no matter what, something must be done to move this country because the country must develop.”
The sad aspect of the whole matter, Musa explained, was that the PDP controlled 95 per centof all aspects of the life of Nigerians, 9 per cent of all the legislature and executives of all the tiers of governments and also the judiciary, would serve as impediment to the much desired peaceful change.
The workshop guest lecturer therefore challenged Nigerians to take their destiny in their hands by teaming up with the media and civil society to effect the required change. “It is not done by wishful thinking.” “It is always struggled for,” he declared.
Speaking in the same vein, the Chairman on the occasion and former Lagos State Governor, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, said a coalition to ensure the required change should be formed stating that Nigeria has every right to fully democratise for the country to grow, move forward and develop saying that the country has all what it takes to enjoy dividends of democracy.
Tinubu, who was represented by the Chairman, Lagos State Electoral Reform Committee, Professor Adebayo Williams, lamented the grand disconnect between the people and the political elite and even within the political elite themselves, stated that, the masses should do something to liberate themselves from the rapacious usurpers for democracy to be deepened to ensure peace and stability that always led to progress and development.
Research Coordinator of the IND, Dr. Lai Olurode explained that the workshop was aimed at finding a way out of the mess the country has found herself, saying, “since we are all part of the pollution, we should collectively find a way to sustain the good ground already covered and also find a way to correct the defective aspect ouf the democratic project.”
The President of the group, Alhaja A. K. Oshodi, while welcoming the participants to the workshop implored them to always simplify political messages for easy reading, adding that, “some political messages w should be written in local languages as well as in pidgin English to carry the majority of the masses along.”
Sun News Lagos
|
|
|
E- Books for Downloads
|
