“He also condemned the Northern elites….” , blaming them for the low level of development and education in their part of the country.
Among other issues, he also berated former President Goodluck Jonathan for not implementing the recommendations of the national confab before leaving office. It is a no-holds-barred interview in the best tradition of The Next Edition.
TNE: What is your view about the clamour for restructuring of Nigeria?
Ukutt: I support fiscal federalism, which allows each region or zone to control their resources, generate their revenue and develop according to their ability. That is the restructuring I advocate for. Nigeria needs to go back to fiscal federalism as was the case in the 1960s whereby the regions functioned independently from the centre, harnessing their resources, controlling it and using the revenue accrued from their resources to develop their areas. The regions were financially independent of the centre such that you had Alhaji Ahmadu Bello declining appointment at the centre and preferring to remain Premier of the Northern Region.
It was an era you heard of the groundnut pyramid of the North, cocoa in the West and palm produce in the South East. There is no state in Nigeria or zone that is not endowed with mineral resources or cash crops that they could use to boost their revenue.
In the North, you can talk of copper, clay, kaolin and cash crops like cotton and rubber. In the West you have bitumen deposits, cocoa and there is coal deposit in the East; the clan deposit is there in many parts of the country. There is limestone for cement manufacturing and the palm produce in the South East and South South.
Virtually all the regions are blessed with enormous natural resources and revenue yielding crops and the regions were doing well before the discovery of oil which has turned out to be our albatross. Oil has made the states to be parasitic. The governors travel up and down to the detriment of governance and wait for month end to go cap in hand to Abuja for federal allocation.
No one talks about internally generated revenue or harnessing the resources to boost revenue, that is why you see most of the states cannot even pay salaries and crying for bail out. And oil contributes only 15 per cent to our GDP.
The North is kicking against the Niger Delta that is clamouring to be allowed to control their resources, in this case oil. They want 50 per cent oil derivation fund from the federal government but the North are against this. Don’t forget that in the First Republic, Sections 134 and 140 of the 1960 and 1963 constitutions respectively granted the regions 50 per cent derivation from their resources.
It would interest one to know that the North is the richest region in Nigeria. They are endowed with huge natural resources and have cash crops in abundance. Apart from that, they have a very fertile land for farming. Benue State alone can feed the whole of Nigeria. Everyday we see truck loads of fresh tomatoes, fresh pepper, onions, yams, potatoes, beans, wheat, corn, grains, millet and hides and skin arriving Lagos and other parts of the South from the North. But has this wealth reflected on the people of the North, the answer is a big no. In spite of these enormous resources, the level of poverty in the North is the highest in Nigeria. In spite of the fact that the Northern region has produced the highest number of presidents and military head of states the North is backward both in education and development. It was this disparity in education and development between the North and South that led to the issue of quota system and federal character enshrined in our Constitution to take care of that disparity which the South did not cause.
TNE: But why is this so? What would you say is responsible for the low level of education and development despite the resources?
Ukutt: The reason is that the rich Northern elite are very selfish. They do not empower their youth both in education and skill. They prefer having the youths hanging around them hailing ‘Ranka De De’ and they throw crumbs from their table to them. Is this not why we still have the Amajiris in the North? These kids go around with plates looking for waste foods to take and eat. No education, no shelter, no hope and the Northern elders and elites are not worried. They are not ashamed. All their clamour is power should come to the North, it is our turn to produce the next president, the North should rule for two terms. The Northern elders and elder statesmen that have been on seat of power from the North should be ashamed of themselves that it took Goodluck Jonathan presidency from Niger Delta to realise that Amajiris need education and built schools for them. Unfortunately, it is this set of youths the politicians and elders of the North incite and release as cannon fodders during political and religious crises to kill, maim and destroy properties while their own children are abroad enjoying good education and best comfort of life.
There are no industries in the North and this does not concern the northern elders and the elites from the region with all the rich mineral resources and cash crops at their disposal and a very fertile land for mechanized farming. None of them care. Why can’t the business and industrial prowess of Alhaji Dangote ginger them. I was in a place in Niger State called Ngeri Ngeri, you can smell poverty there among the people. I mean poverty in all ramifications. What of Taraba State, in Jalingo the capital you can’t even see a good eatery to eat. No state is poor per se or does not have mineral resources to harness or cash crops to harness to raise revenue and better the lots of its citizens but no foresight by the leaders. All their concern is oil money. Lagos is not an oil producing state, but it is richer than most oil producing states in Nigeria that collect oil derivation funds because of its huge internally generated revenue. The state of California in United States is richer than Texas that has oil. The rich financial status of Lagos was the reason why then Governor Bola Tinubu was able to bluff President Olusegun Obasanjo who seized the state’s local government allocations for the mere fact that Tinubu created new local government councils. But the seizure of the funds did not affect Lagos State from embarking on huge projects and paying salaries promptly.
Read also: The Situation Of Homeless Widows, Orphans Is Pathetic – Ikpeme
We are putting all our hope in oil revenue forgetting that the oil may eventually dry up. Oil revenue has fuelled corruption. Political appointees are just there to dip their hands into the national treasury.
The governors are always on the neck of the federal government to share revenue accrued from oil. Former President Obasanjo created a special account to save the huge windfall from oil revenue but the state governors took the federal government to court seeking the sharing of the money.
TNE: Are you in essence saying that all these could have been partly responsible for the poor economic state in general?
Ukutt: Oh, yes. Our economy has been wobbling for the past three years such that we went into recession, the first time in Nigerian history? It was due to the crash in global oil price which is our main source of revenue. We operate a monolithic economy.
TNE: So, what is the way out?
Ukutt: Nigerian leaders should begin to look inward towards sincere diversification of our economy, not just making empty policy statements not backed up with action. The fact that our major buyers like America are no more buying our crude oil, the fact that some advanced countries are developing technology that make cars drive without fuel should be a food for thought for our political leaders. Even some countries are adopting solar energy to power industries.
Look at Ajaokuta steel and other steel companies that should have made us exporter of steel and iron. Look at Aluminum Smelter Company and Newsprint Company. These companies would have been cash cow to complement oil revenue, but they were mismanaged and allowed to die after the trillions of naira pumped into them. I advocate for fiscal federalism in the context of restructuring that makes the regions to control their resources. I do not support separation.
TNE: There has been a growing agitation for separation, especially the clamour for Biafra. Why has it been so intense now?
Ukutt: I blamed the heightened agitations for separation especially that of Biafra on President Buhari’s style of governance and policy decisions. Take a look at his lopsided appointments since he came into office. From his kitchen cabinet, Chief of Staff, Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Service Chiefs, DSS, EFCC, Customs, Prison, Immigration, INEC and recently board of NNPC all in favour of the North.
If you look at those appointments you will realise that Ibos or South East have been highly marginalised by Buhari government. Can you imagine President Buhari saying that those who gave him five per cent votes cannot expect to benefit like those that voted for him overwhelmingly. That statement paints the picture of a myopic and vindictive person.
Yes, the South East and South South did not vote for him, and they are entitled to vote whoever they want to, you don’t use that to punish them.
In 1999, the South West did not vote for Obasanjo but he did not neglect them. In 2011, the North West where President Buhari comes from punished the South East in appointment for not supporting him.
He should be reminded that after winning election, he is President of Nigeria not President of Daura, his village or Katsina his state or North West, his geographical zone. It is unfortunate that we have a president that only thinks the North, his kinsmen, is age long friends, his political associates and his Muslim brothers and all others do not matter. In as much as I don’t support clamour for separation or breakaway as Biafra agitators are advocating, it is quite glaring that the intensity of the clamour for Biafra by Indigenous People of Biafra now than before is a product of the gross marginalisation of the South East in particular by President Buhari government and they are right to agitate if they feel that they are been marginalised. The agitation is a product of the style of governance by President Buhari who feels that it is only people from the North that are legible for appointments. That it is only opposition and people from certain parts of the country except North East and North West that are corrupt and should be hunted by EFCC.
We are in democratic rule not dictatorial rule that abhors opposition. When PDP, was in power there was no type of insult that APC members did not heap on President Jonathan and he did not call for their arrest.
I wonder whether Buhari in Jonathan’s shoes would have conceded defeat so cheaply and handover power without crises. At over 70 years, I think the president should be fulfilled and glorify God that he eventually actualised his ambition of becoming a democratically elected president and strive to leave behind an enduring legacy and not fan flame of disintegration through his actions and style of governance.
TNE: This restructuring and fiscal federalism is contained in the National Conference Report but President Buhari is not favourably disposed to implementing the report. What is your view?
President Jonathan was too naïve as a president, in fact, he was not fit to be president of a country like Nigeria. That is the bitter truth. With all the enormous powers a Nigerian President under presidential system of government he is bestowed with, he could not implement the confab report before leaving and expects another person who does not buy the idea of the confab in the first place or the issues contained therein. He wants another person to come and implement the report which contains issue of fiscal federalism which the North does not want to hear about. I think we must be kidding if we feel that President Buhari will do anything with the report, I think he said something like consigning it to the dust bin. That is sad after such a huge money was spent and Jonathan did not implement it.
The Nigerian president which is the largest black nation in the world is more powerful than American President because he can unilaterally do what American president cannot do. He is the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces. All the service Chiefs, Defence Chief, DG of DSS, Immigration, Prison, Customs, Civil Defence heads and Inspector-General of Police are answerable to the president. But here we had a president that was afraid of taking decisive decision; that was afraid of stepping on toes.
The measure of a president is when he takes a decisive decision. A leader should take decisive action when need arises. If it was somebody like Obasanjo, Buhari would not have stepped into that office with all the glaring irregularities of underage voters queuing to vote in the North which was beamed on AIT and other stations. Some sitting presidents could have annulled that election citing irregularities in the North especially the huge votes recorded in the North West and North East especially the Boko Haram prune areas like Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe where the votes did not in any way reflect the electorates on ground. These areas are where Boko Haram had driven so many people away, so where did such numbers as much 500 and 600 thousand votes come from? Where did they cast their votes? In the bush or IDP camps or in Cameroun, Niger and Chad. Let us not kid ourselves, the truth is that Professor Attahiru Jega executed a scientific rigging for Buhari long before the actual election through distribution of PVC.
Can you recall the percentage ratio of PVC collection in the six geo-political zones. The North East and North West recorded between 70 per cent and 80 per cent, South West 50 to 55 per cent, South East and South South 40 to 50 per cent. It is this ratio that Jega used to allocate votes in those areas. Can you imagine Kano alone recording over 2 million votes. That was unprecedented with very minimal voided votes in spite of the low literacy level of the people in these area. Even some sections of the media highlighted this lopsidedness in PVC distribution and purported collection and questioned the sincerity of Prof. Jega, but President Jonathan kept mute. Also recall that OPC staged peaceful protest in Lagos demanding for the removal of Jega before the election accusing him of planning to rig the election in favour of Buhari but President Jonathan still kept him there to execute his Northern agenda.
Even Buhari in Jonathan’s position would have cancelled that election when Orubebe protested during the counting accusing Jega of bias and the defeated sitting president was the first to send congratulatory message to Buhari before the final result was announced.
Would Buhari have done that? No. Funny enough, Jonathan had difficulty voting in his Otueke polling unit because the machine rejected his card. An election conducted by him and he would have been disfranchised by Jega’s INEC manipulation. Recall when Buhari lost election in 2003, 2007 and 2011 he was so embittered that he never attended council of state meetings throughout Obasanjo’s tenure and eight years of Yar’Adua / Jonathan. Anyway, I give it to Jonathan for being statesman-like in defeat which is rare for a sitting African president. I don’t want to dwell on that as it is now history.
TNE: Looking at the current revenue sharing formular do you think it is right for the federal government to get the lion share?
Ukutt: It is not right. That is why I was talking about fiscal federalism which would make the states to be financially independent, but going by the current practice, the states have to make do with whatever is thrown to them because the governors cannot do without allocation from federal purse and they believe that they cannot get revenue from other sources than federal allocation. That was why most states became broke instantly when revenue to the states and local government diminished because of dwindling revenue from oil sales.
My own take is that the revenue sharing formula as it is now, which appropriates 52.68 per cent to the federal government as against 26.70 and 20.60 per cent to states and local governments respectively is anti-development and some state governors and local governments’ chairmen used that as an umbrella to cover their non-performance.
I also fault the power sharing system as it is now that lumped so many items into exclusive list, which is the prerogative of the federal government, concurrent list and residual list. The federal government is taking too much for itself, which makes the federal so powerful. People have been clamouring for state police and currently police is in the exclusive list which is in federal government control. It should be in the concurrent list. The state should have their own police and there will also be federal police like in America. The states have their own police. I think exclusive list should be majorly defense, currency, aviation control and control of international boundaries, land, sea and air.
TNE: Looking at the local government councils, many people are advocating for local government autonomy. Do you share this view?
Ukutt: I support autonomy for local government. I mean financial autonomy as against the current practice whereby local government allocations are sent through the state. The current practice is the state collects the money, the governor summons the chairmen of local governments, sets aside salary, sets aside a little money as contingency for administrative functions and gives the chairman some to close his mouth to sign for the bulk allocation and the governor holds the balance. I’m sure you are aware of the issue of joint account which the local government council frowned at in the past. That arrangement is still in practice in all the states. That explains the reason why the local governments are not functioning. They are supposed to bring development nearer to the people but because of the corrupt arrangement between state governors and the chairmen of local government, the local government councils are starved of funds and most of the council headquarters are glorified villages. No access roads, no pipe borne water and others. Some cannot even have money to fuel generator or vehicles, it is as bad as that.
TNE: How do you see the power play between the Senate and the president over confirmation of Ibrahim Magu as EFCC chairman?
Yes, the Senate turned down the confirmation of Ibrahim Magu twice and even mandated the president to re-submit another person as EFCC boss for confirmation and the president has refused insisting that it must be Magu. It is unfortunate that we have a president that does not obey the rule of law, that does not believe in the tenets of the principle of separation of powers as enshrined in the constitution which puts the legislature as an important arm of government like the executive. I am surprised that the senators have not deemed it fit to exercise their legislative and privilege act to deal with the situation. The Senate can invoke their powers from the legislative and privilege act and pass a resolution refusing to recognize Magu as EFCC chairman. It can refuse to honour anything from EFCC under Magu, freeze EFCC account, freeze Magu personal account.
The Senate through the legislative and privilege act can pass a resolution that Nigerians should not honour EFCC invitation or should not recognize Magu as EFCC chairman. Magu is not the only Nigerian fit to do the job, the Senate is only exercising its function.
I don’t agree with those who say the Senate’s action is to stop the EFCC’s investigation of the legislators. In fact, I am one of those who question the way Magu is carrying out his corruption war especially in the area of media trial of those accused of corruption. To me the way he is carrying out his corruption war amounts to playing to the gallery to impress his employers. He is just there as a willing tool to do the bidding of APC government which is hunting down opposition and dissenting voices.
Look at all those EFCC has been arresting and charging most of them opposition or family members and associates of former President Jonathan. What of Rotimi Amaechi whom Rivers State government indicted for using state funds to finance APC presidential campaign? What happened to the issue about the money recovered in a house in Ikoyi? What of corruption allegations against the suspended secretary of the federation Babachir Lawal. If it was the other way round he should be in EFCC custody now, but he is there free because he is in the government.
There was a petition against a serving service chief that owns a house in Dubai. It has been swept under the carpet due to Magu’s selective corruption fights. Even Magu himself according to the indicting DSS report is not clean and not fit to hold that position. Magu has shown with all intent and purposes that he is doing the bidding of the federal government in pursuance of the so called war on corruption, that does not obey fundamental human rights of people; that pronounces people guilty before they are charged to court; that goes after those in opposition or criticize government or come from sections other than the core North West and North East.
The constitution bestows on the Senate the powers to either confirm or turn down confirmation of nominees and appointees of the president. This implies that the president should respect the decision of the Senate and replace Magu whom the Senate has refused to confirm. But in his usual ways, the president has refused to honour the decision of the Senate and feels it should be Magu or let the heaven fall.
