As our contribution to the institutionalization of democracy in Nigeria, ex-partners of KPMG who are yet to be paid their gratuity and pension have taken to distributing free copies of the ‘Financial Times’ (of London) editorial on the Nigerian election.
It was published on April 1, 2015 and it was very good natured of members of the Metropolitan Club to join the ‘April fool’ fun by teasing the ‘destitute’ partners with the tantalizing offer of a free lunch in the elegant and hallowed dining room of the exclusive club. For those who are yet to receive their free copies, here is an extract:
‘Remarkable Outcome in Nigeria’s Election’
The peaceful transfer of power has created a great opportunity.Nigeria has defied all expectations. In the run-up to March and April elections, politicians and analysts at home and abroad sketched out a range of scenarios, most of which ended in some kind of crash. Barons of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party – in power since 1999 – were plotting to install an interim national government before the people even had a chance to vote. Some in their ranks preferred to hand over to the military rather than concede defeat in elections to General Muhammadu Buhari, the opposition challenger to incumbent Goodluck Jonathan.
In the event, millions of Nigerians queued up to vote patiently – and for the most part peacefully. By a healthy but relatively narrow margin of 2.3 million votes, they put their faith in an ascetic former military ruler who has pledged to stamp out corruption, spread wealth more evenly and restore law and order to a pivotal that was at risk of splitting at the seams.
The outcome, precisely because it was not inevitable, is all the more remarkable, when Jonathan conceded defeat before the final vote count was official. The sense of foreboding that had possessed Nigeria in the fraught build up to the polls, evaporated almost instantly.
The outgoing president deserves the highest praise for that single act of humility which has probably saved many lives. It has also provided a fillip to political reformers across the continent at a time when the path of many African countries towards more democratic rule is strewn with bumps.
There remain many risks ahead. But the significance of this unprecedented event in Nigeria’s history – the first time an incumbent president has been defeated at the ballot box and gracefully accepted to go – cannot be overestimated.
Jonathan may be regarded among some of the more cynical members of his own party, and those from his home region in the oil-producing Niger who have profited most from his rule, as the man who failed to secure their turn at the trough for a second four-year term.
Among Nigerians more broadly, he should be celebrated, in spite of all the governance failures during his five year tenure, as someone who resisted pressure to derail Nigeria’s fledgling democracy and sought to smooth the path to more accountable rule.
The role of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) was also critical. Despite initial glitches, new voter identification technology helped to curtail the extraordinary levels of electoral fraud that made Nigerians cynical about their ability to vote out politicians who disappoint. The country’s institutions remain worryingly weak but INEC is one that has shown it is strengthening in a way that benefits stability.
General Buhari’s election signals the rejection by Nigerians of the corruption, crony capitalism and criminality that have undermined the country’s potential. The mass of his supporters were the downtrodden, people who have had little or no opportunity to share in the past decade and a half of uneven economic growth. The choice they have made must bring with it a greater sense of inclusion and accountability among those they have newly brought to power.
Given the weaker oil price and Nigeria’s minimal fiscal savings, the incoming government faces a daunting task if it is to meet expectations. But with the winds of democratic change behind it, this is Nigeria’s great opportunity to reduce its dependency on oil, tackle predators within the political system and foster a broader based economy that delivers benefits to all.”
It was typical of the Cardinal (who in a previous life was a partner at KPMG) to insist that the editorial deserves wider circulation and, of course, the Nigerian government should pay for the copyright as part of the cost of our elections.
Anyway, it was Al Jazeera which on the same day (April 1, 2015) raised the ante on ‘Head to Head’ when the host Medhi Hasan in his inimitable but relentless probing manner delivered a hard-hitting verdict on the Nigerian election.
“Nigeria has a President-elect but what about the citizens-elect ?”
Neither Al Jazeera nor Mehdi Hasan has offered any apologies for meddling in other people’s business. Incidentally, the Oxford Union has been quick to adopt it as the subject for a very robust debate. We wait with keen interest how quickly the Oxford and Cambridge Club (under President Fela Akoni) will deliver a sequel to the debate it launched on ‘Oxford and Cambridge Club 2015 Debate’ on Nigeria Democracy and Economy at the Muson Centre Onikan Lagos on Friday, April 10, 2015.
In the meantime, almost on a daily basis, Al Jazeera has been giving prime time to ‘Nigeria Future: Failed State or African Superpower?’
•Former World Bank Vice President For Africa, Obiageli Ezekwesili on ‘Nigeria As Regional and Global World Power and Boko Haram’.
As for the president-elect, General Muhammadu Buhari (Rtd), he received a resounding endorsement on BBC’s ‘Hard Talk’ from Tam David-West, a professor, who served as Minister of Petroleum and Energy when General Buhari was the Military Head of State of Nigeria from December 31, 1983 to August 27, 1985:
“I have worked with him and I know him. I worked very closely with him. As the oil Minister, I was closer to him than most ministers because we had hotlines, only a few ministers had hotlines to him. He has good qualities. He is a unique man. The former Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar, described him as an extraordinary Nigerian. Why do I love him? First, he is very honest. He is not corrupt at all. He is disciplined and he is focused.
Buhari can turn this country around. I have strong faith in this. If my father is contesting an election against General Buhari as president, I will vote for Buhari not my father. I will tell my father, I know you are a good man but you have no business with politics. You cannot do it. You are a banker, go and manage money. I cannot vote for you because Buhari will do better that you. Buhari is a fantastic man.”
Perhaps we should add what our former Ambassador to the United States of America, Ignatius C Olisemeka, said about General Buhari on NBC TV:
“I am now a retired pensioner, carefully minding my own business and tending my personal affairs. I do not belong to any political party and have never belonged to any. In the best tradition of the colonial public service of my days, I have remained strictly anonymous and aloof; occasionally, making my views and opinion privately known to the appropriate authorities of the day on any issue I feel strongly about. I seek no office and no financial or material favours. All I am doing is to put on public record my private opinion, views and experience, which may not be available and known to many Nigerians.
Major General Muhammadu Buhari not only gave me the opportunity to serve Nigeria as Ambassador in the United States, he did even more than that. He entrusted to me the care and welfare of his family; still without our knowing or meeting each other. He sent his wife and two children to me in Washington D.C. for medical treatment.
He took his chance and dealt with me strictly on a professional basis. His family were with me in Washington D.C. when the General was overthrown in a coup d’etat. We did the best we could and sent them back home safely under the trying and traumatic circumstances they found themselves – still, never a word from this unusual person. In 1988 after I returned as Ambassador from Washington D.C, I was assigned as a punitive measure as Directing Staff to the National Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru, for two years.
The subject of our research in that year led the Syndicate I headed to visit Buhari’s State of origin. With the approval of government, members of the Syndicate visited Buhari who was then under house arrest in his home town, Daura. This most extra-ordinary man received us with warmth and courtesy. We found him living in a modest, sparsely furnished three or four bed-room bungalow which was his house. He still did not know who I was; nor did I disclose my identity to him. It was unbelievable, even in those days, that a former General in the Nigerian Army and a former Head of State could live in such a modest, Spartan abode. What further struck me was a complete lack of bitterness; unless the Fulani in him, concealed and dissembled it”.
What do all these tell me about this man, Buhari? Others may have a different opinion of him. I absolutely concede to them the right to hold their views. As far as I am personally concerned, four short phrases summarise my overall impression and opinion of Buhari. An incorruptible man. A patriotic Nigerian devoid of any trace of ethnicism and parochialism. A deeply religious man. Above all, a stern disciplinarian.
We so often talk glibly of the giant strides Asian Tigers have taken to leap from the state of underdevelopment to develop nations. We refer tirelessly to the achievements of men like Lee Kuan Yew. I have, personally, met Lee Kuan Yew in Singapore. I did so in the company of General Yakubu Gowon when he returned from exile from the United Kingdom.
Little do we know or appreciate the agonizing hardship, pains and sufferings all Singaporeans, Chinese, Malays, Indians and other ethnic nationalities, had to endure for Singapore to attain its present height as a respected nation. Gold must be smelted in hot burning furnaces before unleashing its shine and purity. Lee Kuan Yew was a benevolent democratic autocrat. He subjected his people to a good dose of rigorous healthy discipline. No country makes that type of progress Singapore made without an unwavering sense of disciplined direction. Moreover, Lee Kuan Yew was an inspirational leader of his people. He governed by example.
It is not just the question of the number of kilometers of roads you build that elevates a nation. It is not a matter of the megawatts of power you generate nor the number of buildings you erect for the populace. Not even the refineries you build or the volume of agricultural products produced and exported. These are important. Any leader surrounded by brilliant experts, excellent technocrats and loyal advisers can achieve those basic and essential needs. Leadership calls for much greater attributes than the performance of those feats. A leader must have a strong, solid, moral and disciplined background, the inspirational ability to galvanize his people to higher, lofty and common purpose.
J.K Randle
