Wednesday, March 5, 2014 AWOLOWOS PRESCRIPTIONS AND THE SOUTHWEST COMMON AGENDA In 1964, the late popular actor/musician, Hubert Ogunde, in one of his plays titled: Yoruba Ronu, Otitokoro (meaning, Yoruba should think and Truth is bitter), urged the race to reflect on its position within the Nigerian federation. The title was a satirical account of the strife that plagued the Yoruba land in the 1960s, leading to the declaration of a state of emergency in the Western Nigeria 1963. Ogunde made the crucial call at a time most prominent Yoruba leaders now refer to as the golden era of the Western Region. In the First Republic, the regions making up Nigeria enjoyed autonomy under regional constitutions, which saw the Southwest developing at a pace second to none under the Chief Obafemi Awolowo-led Action Group (AG) government. Ogunde, in the particular title, sounded a note of caution to the Yoruba race on the implications of working at crossroads whenever it came to taking decision on crucial issues within the Nigerian federation. The 1966 military coup, however, quashed the regional arrangement and centralised power. This was followed by the adoption of the presidential system of government in 1979 - a complete departure from the parliamentary and regionalism system of the First Republic, which the Southwest has continued to clamour for. One of the agitations of the region, which Chief Awolowo, and his followers canvassed, is that the heterogeneous nature of Nigeria and its multi-ethnic diversity do not warrant the concentration of power at the centre; and that each of the geopolitical units should control its resources for self-development. Awolowo, before his death in 1987, relentlessly advocated for true federalism - a theory, which most of his ardent followers have held tenaciously to till today. The Yoruba have persistently argued that true federalism, resource control and devolution of power to the regions would enable them develop at a pace they did during the First Republic. In recent time, however, the Southwest, which once prided itself as first among equals in experiencing development within the Nigerian context, has not been able to speak with one voice or present a common agenda at any national forum for dialogue. Here is another opportunity offered by President Goodluck Jonathan through the planned 2014 National Conference. But the fear is: Will the Yoruba galvanise their agenda and thoughts together? Will they imbibe the thoughts of Awolowo? Will their delegates to the conference be able to think and reason as one, agree on a common agenda and/or follow the road not followed in the past? As Ogunde rightly warned, Yoruba race would have to ponder over their position? To address this daunting challenge of working at cross-purposes, prominent leaders of the race would converge in the NECA House, Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos on Tuesday at a symposium organised by the Obafemi Awolowo Foundation. With the theme: The Nigerian Constitution: The Awo Road Not Taken, deliberations at the meeting would be on critical issues that would certainly form the component parts of the national conference scheduled to commence from March 13, 2014 in Abuja. Disclosing why its necessary to organise such a symposium at this critical period, the Executive Secretary of the Foundation, Dr. Tokunbo Awolowo-Dosunmu, daughter of Awolowo, said the programme is part of the ongoing efforts to present before the Southwest delegates to the confab and Nigerians Chief Obafemi Awolowos prescriptions on the matter of Nigerian Constitution. Noting that one of the cardinal challenges confronting the nation and the Yoruba race is the issue of constitution, which her late father never ceased to ponder on, Awolowo-Dosunmu said the Foundation took the decision to avail intending delegates to the conference and, indeed, all Nigerians Awolowos prescriptions on matter of Nigerian constitution so that those prescriptions could be rigorously and rationally re-examined. According to her, the symposium could not have come at a better time than now when the long-awaited national conference would commence, adding that the Foundation had assembled an array of bright young stars who would no doubt do justice to the issue under review. She said that not only the delegates but Nigerians in general would be interested in the recommendations of the symposium, with the hope that those recommendations would form part of the new constitution that would be produced for the country at the end of the confab. For the record, some of Awolowos contributions in books and paper presentations include: Path to Nigerian Greatness, The Problems of Africa, the Need for Ideological Reappraisal, Strategy and Tactics of the Peoples Republic of Nigeria, Thoughts on Nigerian Constitution, and Path to Nigerian Freedom. Awolowo, in one of the books, Thoughts on the Nigerian Constitution, said: Firstly, I am not sure if I shall be in a position to participate in the deliberations of the proposed Constituent Assembly, or to address public gatherings with a view to educating our people on the issues involved, before a referendum is conducted on a new constitution. Having played a leading role in the work of constitution making in the country since 1949, I feel strongly that I owed it a duty to our people to avail them of the benefit of my views. Secondly, the rationale of the suspended constitution has been so overlaid with misconception and distortion that a comprehensive restatement of the case for and against federalism or unitarism, appears to me to be called for. I sincerely hope that those who read the views and proposals expressed and made in this book will consider and assess them with the same constructive objectivity as I have tried to adopt in presenting them. As far back as 1970, Chief Awolowo was able to predict the disintegration of the former Yugoslavia if it continued with its unitary system of government, which he said was not suited to her multi-ethnic configuration like Nigeria. By 1991, his prediction came to pass when the country broke up. Awolowo declined to participate in the 1976 Constituent Assembly set up by the late General Murtala Muhammed, his reason being that he foresaw the body having a preconceived agenda. It was the Constituent Assembly that later produced the 1979 Constitution, which introduced the presidential system of government that not a few have complained about in terms of being too expensive to run, besides allowing concentration of powers at the centre. Going by the array of complaints against the 1999 Constitution, which some people described as a military imposed documents and edited copy of 1979 Constitution, Awolowo must have been proved too right when he refused to participate in the Murtala Constituent Assembly. Why the worry over the Southwest? INSTANCES have shown groupings and counter-groupings. For instance, there is the Ishara-Remo group led by the Chairman of Afenifere, Dr. Reuben Fasoranti and Chief Olanihu Ajayi; the group led by the OPC founder, Dr. Fredrick Fasehun; the Yoruba Council of Elders; the Southern Nigeria Peoples Assembly (SNPA); the Southwest zone of the All Progressives Congress (APC) (which was initially sceptical about the confab, but has embraced it); and the Yoruba Unity Forum (YUF). The various groups have been ruminating over a common position suitable not only for the region, but also for the entire country on the best way to restructure Nigeria. The leaders had also sent out different delegations to other zones to interact, listen to them on their views on how Nigeria should be run while also selling to them, the Yoruba Agenda on national development. So, there are fears that problem of ego may pose serious challenge to each of the groups. But the National Coordinator of Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC), Otunba Gani Adams, said the yearning of the average Yoruba is to witness again what our leaders told us about the old Western Region under the leadership of Chief Awolowo. He said Awolowos prescriptions are not different from what the Southwest is asking for within the federation now, noting that the day the Yoruba race would speak with one voice and present a common agenda laisi awon agbehin ba ebo je, (that is, without fifth columnists in their ranks), Nigerias problems would be resolved. Adams expressed confidence that the race has done elaborate consultations, part of which is the Obafemi Awolowo Foundations symposium to further galvanise and articulate our agenda, adding, I am certain and convinced that the Yoruba will present a common agenda this time. Governor Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State, at the meeting organised by Yoruba Assembly on National Conference (YANC) at Ishara-Remo, Ogun State, recently, corroborated Adams view. The governor wondered why it had been difficult for the Yoruba race to think alike and have a common front over the years. I wonder whether it is because of understanding and cooperation this time around, as we prepare for the Jonathan conference, that the Yoruba have no choice than to present a common front, he said. Chief Ayo Adebanjo said the Obafemi Awolowo Foundation initiative is a welcome development given the contributions Awolowo made to the socio-political emancipation of the country. He said Awolowo was known to play a leading role in the work of constitution making in the country since 1949. There (conference), his prescriptions would be a valuable document to the delegates, dismissing the fears that the Southwest would not speak with one voice. He said: I think we have overcome that (fears). I dont care who goes to the confab to represent us; all I am concerned is for the delegates to agree on what the Yoruba want. We clamour for true federalism, resource control, autonomy, among others, that would enable us to develop at our pace. Elder statesman and legal mind, Dr. Tunji Braithwaite also disagrees that the Yoruba nation would work along opposite line. That is not possible for now, he said. Now, Yoruba leaders have taken firm positions on issues of power devolution, possibility of secession, regional police and even immunity. I can say confidently that no Yoruba group will take any contrary position on these issues. If you note the way things are going, almost everybody wants a new constitution to emerge from this planned national conference. My position is that the Southwest should remain focused on these issues and I can tell you there wont be any disagreement. Braithwaite argued that it was not impossible to have divergent views on some issues, but it depends on the nature of these issues on which they are going to disagree. If they are merely administrative or procedural issues, I do not see any problem in arriving at harmonisation, he said. But if they are issues of fundamental structural implications, such as devolution, resource control, secession, then there will be the need to, not just for the Yoruba nation, but also any of the geo-political region, to harmonise on all these fundamental issues before they go to the conference. Meanwhile, former Minister of Transportation and member of the Board of Trustees (BoT) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Ebenezer Babatope, agrees that Awolowos prescriptions would be helpful to the delegates. But he was cautious on whether the Yoruba race would succeed in projecting a common agenda at the conference. According to him: We should not be confused. There are several groups within the Yoruba enclave; all of them have met over the conference and I doubt if their thoughts are the same. For instance, I still upheld the position of SNPA led by Chief Edwin Clark, Bishop Gbonigi and former Vice President Alex Ekwueme. I also want to doubt if the Fasehun-led group and those that assemble at Ishara-Remo would work together at the end of the day. One of the delegates to the conference and former Ogun State Governor, Chief Segun Osoba, told The Guardian Awolowos ideas on constitution would serve a great purpose. I dont, for whatever reason, nurse any fear that the Southwest will have a divided agenda at the conference, he said. We have successfully harmonised our position and we shall be going to the conference to project what is good and will translate into the development of the country and the Yoruba nation. CULLED FROM THE NIGERIAN GUARDIAN
Posted on: Thu, 06 Mar 2014 03:15:42 +0000
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