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The celebration of the 10th anniversary of the setting up of the Lagos State University Master of Business Administration School on June 6, 2005 presented another vital opportunity for the Akwa Ibom State governor, Obong Victor Attah, to speak on a subject very dear to his heart: True Federalism.
The celebration of the 10th anniversary of the setting up of the Lagos State University Master of Business Administration School on June 6, 2005 presented another vital opportunity for the Akwa Ibom State governor, Obong Victor Attah, to speak on a subject very dear to his heart: True Federalism. Attah, as guest lecturer at the occasion, spoke on the topic, 'The Practice of Full Tenets of True Federalism As Prerequisite For Lasting Democracy In Nigeria," at a lecture where he was also awarded an honourary doctoral degree by the university.
Attah, after appraising the practice of federalism in the country, stated that the only way to nurture the practice of democracy was for the nation to put in place a legal framework that would guarantee what he called true federalism. Attah said the concept of federalism was designed as the middle road arrangement to balance the contending agitations between unitary form of government and confederacy. He stated that in a true federalism, power is shared between the central government and the federating units under what he termed generally and mutually acceptable legal arrangement such as the constitution, adding that the practice of federalism in the country was below the acceptable standard.
He said, 'Indeed, somebody has observed that true federalism does not resemble our present system in which the central government holds the principal power over administrative instruments that are virtually agencies of the central government. This further presupposes that the present legislative lists in our constitution should be reviewed so that more powers are devolved to the units." While stating his firm belief in the continued existence of the country, he said, 'I refuse to be befuddled by any false notion of unity." He argued that while most Nigerians do not seem keen on the dismemberment of the country, he said the structure on which the nation was built was faulty. He said this was as a result of the force used in bringing together the component units.
In defining the term and concept of democracy, Attah said, 'Democracy is a political system in which there is majority rule or a political arrangement in which political power is rested in the dignity and wisdom of most citizens." According to him, this definition makes it (democracy) an anathema to arbitrary rule. He continued, 'True federalism will guarantee and sustain unity in diversity in a heterogeneous society like Nigeria; it provides the best hope for moulding together peoples of diverse cultures, languages, ethnic origins and levels of development and for accommodating the plural interests of cultural and ethnic majorities without jeopardising the interests of significant racial minorities."
In stating that the concept would facilitate the process of bringing government closer to the people as evident in the grassroot appeal it would engender, Attah reasoned that true federalism would eliminate the fear of domination which he said the current structure has foisted on ethnic minorities in the country. He reasoned, 'By providing restraints on the accumulation of central power through the creation of a complex set of external and pluralistic checks on power, or by making the fragmentation of power, federalism constitutes a psychological, political and legal restraints on power."
To Attah, the advantages of true federalism are that it 'unburdens the central government, freeing it from becoming over-loaded, over-bureaucratised and under-responsive. It thus reduces central congestion and decentralise discontent and ensures that there are no jamming at the centre and the anaemia in federating units." Another positive aspect of the true federalism, which Attah canvassed, was that it guarantees fairness and justice. He pointed out that the continued restiveness in the Niger-Delta was due to the perceived feeling of injustice in terms of the percentage of allocation given to the oil-producing states.
The first major step to be taken to achieve true federalism, Attah said, is for the component units to accept that the union in itself was defective from conception in 1914. He hinged the fact on the lack of consultation with the various ethnic nationalities by the then colonial power before amalgamation.
While saluting the delegates to the ongoing National Political Reform Conference for the quality of debates, Attah called for the strengthening of the police and the judiciary. He canvassed for a command structure in the police force that would make the respective states commands answerable to the state governors as against what obtains now where they are responsible to the Inspector-General of Police. He admonished the judiciary to lead the crusade for maintenance of justice and equity at all times, adding, 'Nigeria needs a self-accounting, courageous and incorruptible judiciary. The judiciary must be independent and must be seen to be so. Since the judiciary exists to curb arbitrary rule, it must be peopled by wise and fair minded people who are governed by reason and reason only."
Attah added, 'Nigeria must put in place an Independent National Electoral Commission to conduct free and fair election periodically. The sanctity of the electoral system is the only guarantee we have that the people will install the government they want and thus sustain democracy."
He said that an independent media was crucial to the survival of the country's democracy. To ensure that the media became independent, Attah admonished the National Assembly to consider the quick passage of the Freedom of Information Bill presently pending before it. The Bill, he envisaged, would make media professionals have greater access to official information.
The PUNCH, Thursday, June 23, 2005