Equitable Distribution of Resources is solution to political domination

The Comet Monday August 29, 2005 pp.22, 23

‘Equitable distribution of resources is solution to political domination’

Adesina Ademola Ogunlana, publisher of The Squib, a weekly judicial magazine, studied English at the Obafemi Awolowo University and Law at the Lagos State University. A former students’ union leader, Ogunlana, 41, was called to the Bar nine years ago. He spoke with FOLUSO OGUNMODEDE on his antecedents and other issues.

After about three months of work, the National Political Reform Conference (NPRC), has submitted its report to the government. Would you say the confab truly addressed the nation’s problems?

The main national questions since 40 years ago are partly political and partly economic. The first question is, should Nigeria remain in the same geographical expression created by the colonial masters?

Two, what are the best and acceptable ways of appropriating the wealth of the country among its component parts?

These two questions were not answered by that political confab. In fact, the confab ended in a fiasco without really addressing the core issues before it, when a whole region- South-south, staged a walk-out; that is, the region of Adara Boro, Ken Saro-Wiwa, self-styled Mujahedeen Asari Dokubo. That says a lot.

Resource control, vis-à-vis derivation, topped the confab’s agenda, yet, it ended in a stalemate. What would you see as a way out?

The issue of resource control is itself subsumed in the larger question of the compatibility of the various nations that make up Nigeria. The agitation for resource control came about because various people, particularly the minorities, feel cheated by the existing arrangement where it appears that what is derived from some parts of the country is appropriated by political leaders to develop other parts of the Nigerian state. This looks like an internal colonization. There are two types of political domination in Nigeria. The first is the general northern domination over the southern part of the country. Secondly, there is majority tribe domination over the minority tribes.

Honestly, the way out is a more equitable distribution of the national wealth. But I doubt whether the normal political arrangement we know in this country can achieve that.

People want to stay in the country if they feel catered for. But how can they be catered for when the government is solely located in Abuja and Abuja is the source of all political goodies and power.

Many have concluded that the controversial confab was initiated by the Federal Government to deceive Nigerians especially as problems confronting the masses were neglected. (To what extent would you say is the relevance of this belief?)

The belief is very sound as the composition of the confab is suspect. It is the usual faces that were re-cycled. Certainly from the South-west, the people that went there were not the very best materials. They were the usual crowd of the conservative old timers. The confab’s leadership was suspect. It was a poor choice. With due respect to Justice Niki Tobi, most of those at the confab were garrulous and too opinionated.

Justice Tobi, being a judicial officer, was grossly unsuitable to be the head of a political conference. And that was why the confab ended like that. It was purely a gathering of the elite who used the confab as a platform to strategically position themselves for future advantages. Certainly, the average Nigerian interest was neglected. It did not excite the feeling of the masses unlike the Oputa panel.

At any rate, the confab could not have been greater than the vision of its creator, who is a well known polical peacock who exclusively believes that he is the one that loves Nigeria the most and knows, if not all, the answers to our problems.

Recently, the Paris Club slashed the country’s $34 billion foreign debt by 60 per cent. This has generated a mixed feeling among Nigerians. As a lawyer, are you thrilled by the debt relief?

I am not only going to react as a lawyer but also as a citizen of the country. I want to say straight away that there has not been any slash and anybody peddling this false claim, knowing fully well that is it’s not true, is a political fraudster. There is no slash and what we have at best is an arrangement towards a slash. There are still several conditions to fulfil before attaining that slash.

But you will see Gen. Obasanjo, claiming that there has been a slash. The slash could also be likened to the case of the so-called engagement of Phillip Troussier as coach of Super Eagles, who NFA went to town shouting that they have engaged. Three days later, the man debunked the claim peddled by NFA as a false claim.

Apart from all these, there is nothing to rejoice about on the debt relief.

One, if Nigeria is going to pay $12 billion at a go to gain the so-called relief, I wonder where the relief is. I cannot forget the parable of my father which says: “Agbatan ni a gba ole…if you want to help, you help outright, why putting onerous condition?

Secondly, even if the entire debt of Nigeria has been forgiven by the creditors, the sadness is that the ordinary man on the street and that includes me, will never have their conditions of living changed, for the better. They will not even know because a political leader led by General Obasanjo will continue to appropriate the commonwealth of our people to only themselves, their children and family while paying lip service to good governance and communal responsibility.

Paris Club countries like Belgium, Germany and a few others developed cold feet about this xmas offer of debt relief, harping on its moral hazards. Sir, which perspective would you have seen it as a lawyer?

To me, it is a scam. The Paris Club is fooling Nigeria as a nation because they believe that Nigeria has money. Look at Ghana, the country got its own without any condition.

A veteran columnist and public analyst, Mohammed Haruna, described the debt relief as “counting chickens before they hatch.” Do you share this view?

I share his view 100 per cent. I liken it to a young man said ordinary hi to a beautiful lady who afterwards went to town telling people that he was marrying the beautiful girl when nothing actually transpired.

I am completely in agreement with Mohammed Haruna who described the debt relief as “counting chickens before they hatch.”

Would you again share Haruna’s view that it is the President’s desperation to prove that all these past six years of democracy under his leadership,have not been without any significant dividend, decided to count his chickens even before the eggs were laid?

Yes, debt relief purportedly granted, was an attempt to justify President Obasanjo’s numerous junketing abroad and millions of dollars on extacode all in the name of investors. Since he announced the scam, what has changed in your life?

Look at what Kwara State governor is doing in the state.
President Obasanjo never created this kind of environment. I want to be sure that by the time the President leaves the office, you find out that his hands are soiled. What has happened to Abacha’s loot? Of what significance has been been.

In other words, there are no significant democracy dividends since the President assumed office?

I will not say that, because even if it is the devil that is there since he assumed office six years ago, will not say that there are no democracy dividends.

First, since 1999, there has been improved freedom of expression, the print and electronic media have faced less danger of embarrassment from the government forces. From time, the Nigerian press has been robust and critical but under the military, such an attitude attracted harsh punishment and sensation. Unlike now, press freedom is taken for granted. Secondly, there is greater respect for the rights of the citizens generally unlike before when there were prisoners of conscience oppositions were being clamped into into jail. But today, these have drastically reduced. You feel an atmosphere of freedom.

Sir, there is a new revenue allocation law now, stipulating direct disbursement of councils’ allocation from the Federation Account. Would you see this, if strictly followed, as curbing excesses of some governors?

The law will not change anything even though it is meant to bring sanity, reduce bureaucratic bottlenecks and political overlordships by governors on counsel chairmen, this direct funding will only give chairmen greater opportunity to “chop and wipe mouth.” The political class in Nigeria can only be likened to a pool of sharks, when they see money, they smell blood. When they smell blood, they attack. What they attack and devour is money meant for the benefit of the people.

At the federal level, there is direct funding from the Federation Account, and what do you have, “direct chopping,” same goes for the state. How would it be any different at the local level. It is not the system that is bad, but the operators. It is the people that matters and not the system.

Former International Court of Justice, at the Hague, Netherlands, jurist, Prince Bola Ajibola (SAN), was the first to set a precedent. He was followed by Chief Clement Akpamgbo (SAN). Now, it is the turn of Chief Bayo Ojo (SAN), to pick up a ministerial appointment while serving as NBA president. What does this portend for the Bar?

Yes, thank you for your question. Bola Ajibola (SAN). Clement Akpamgbo (SAN), became Justice Ministers under the military and these appointments cumulatively were considered by the NBA as having destabilizing effects on the Bar. Hence, the creation of a new constitution which forbids serving members of the national executive committee from taking up appointment with government. Before Chief Bayo Ojo (SAN) broke this constitution, there had been three presidents of the NBA before him to wit: Okpoko (SAN), Okocha (SAN), Olanipekun (SAN). But when Chief Bayo Ojo (SAN), who ironically paraded himself during election as Barman to the core, came to power, he succumbed to the seduction of President Obasanjo to become the latest Attorney General and Minister of Justice in complete disregard of the constitution of the Bar.

Well, that constitution provides a punishment for such an errant officer of the Bar. And the punishment is that such an officer can never again address any gathering of the association. Of course, supporters of Chief Bayo Ojo, like Prince Bola Ajibola (SAN), have argued that Ojo was not a serving officer as at the time he picked up the appointment and according to him that, shows that “Ojo was a clever young man.” But to me and with due respect to the ‘Baba,’ Ojo was not clever but being merely a smart alec and that is not good enough. An AG worth his salt, must be a man of integrity and upright and not a man who will be courting political corners to achieve personal gains.

Well, mercifully, his exit that engineered a succession crisis in the Bar, has been contained and a new president found for the NBA. To me, and I was a staunch supporter of Ojo, his departure from the NBA presidency is a betrayal of trust, a display of shocking opportunism and a cynical use of men to ride to a hidden political goal. One can only hope now that the new president, will not abandon us in the manner of Chief Bayo Ojo.

How did you contain the succession crisis engineered by Chief Ojo’s exit?

When Chief Ojo left, two men wanted to become president Joseph Biodun Daodu (SAN) and Lanke Odogiyan, the 1st vice president. Some people felt that Odogiyan should not be president partly because he is from the western part of the country, while the presidency of the NBA for 2004-2006 has been zoned to the north. Interestingly enough, though Odogiyan who is from Ondo State, is a Kaduna-based lawyer, J.B. Daodu himself, from Kogi State, is also a Kaduna based lawyer. Then the issue of status was another factor. Some felt that it is only SAN that is eligible to occupy the office. Daodu is a SAN, Odogiyan is not.

At the end of the day, on July 29, majority of NEC members present at the recently concluded NEC meeting at Aba, voted for Odogiyan to replace Chief Bayo Ojo. But all these tensions would not have come up if the Chief had been true to the spirit of the constitution which he swore to come up when he became president in 2004.

How do you think your constituency, the Bar can checkmate this phenomenon?

I think we have to tinker with the constitution and make it tighter the more in such a way that no smart alec office holder can dump his NBA position at the drop of hat. For example, you may require such an ambitious fellow to give a three months notice to the association and resign a whole three months earlier before taking up any position. And another thing is that, at the political level, the Bar electorate may demand a written undertaking from such officers that they will not abandon the NBA for government appointment. Finally, the present man who has treated us shabbily should not be allowed to escape this sanction prescribed by the constitution.

Virtually all the branches of the NBA in the country applauded Chief Ojo’s appointment as the federation AG by congratulatory messages in the dailies. Why has this branch – Ikeja, refused to join the wagon?

That advertisement was fraudulent. Our colleagues said they were not aware of such a thing. I’ve just arrived from Aba and members said they were not aware. The adverts were sponsored by Chief Ojo’s loyalists.

If it is true, would the NBA so soon thereafter in Aba condemn the resignation and be sending letter, of query to the Attorney General?

What is your dream of the judiciary in the next decade?

My dream of the judiciary is one, it will be much more independent of the executive arm of government. Secondly, internal oppression and sheathing and discrimination of non-judicial staff will end.

And thirdly, great judges will increase tremendously in the judiciary while those corrupt, ignorant and lazy judges and magistrates will come to grief.

What advice do you have for aspiring lawyers?

Young lawyers coming into practice should approach the profession with courage and a winning attitude. They should not give in to despair and should learn good manners and professional practices from worthy seniors. They should resolve that they will not join the ranks of those who corrupt and pollute the judiciary and spoil the name of the legal profession.