The immunity clause in the 1999 constitution is actually the same notorious military Decree 4 of 1984 whose explicitly stated goal was to shield government officials from scrutiny or criticism. Awkward and inept from the get-go. Today it is no smarter: its present civilian outfit was, from the first, faded and tattered, and it is shocking that for 16 years our successive governments have had the boldness to operate this Constitution un-amended. The immunity clause should have been thrown out long ago—certainly after the Constitution Review Committee recommended that it be thrown out back in 2013.
Immunity of rulers (monarchs, presidents, governors, ministers, etc.) has not been part of democratic governance anywhere in the world for many years. Everywhere in the world, these public officials are closely monitored and check-mated by the political Opposition, by assorted institutions including the media, and by private citizens, so that they rarely stray from the straight and narrow path in their governance. Everywhere except in Nigeria.
In the history of the world, absolute power or “immunity” is rare. In traditional governance systems on the African continent, immunity was as rare as a two-headed elephant. In one exemplary society a delegation of king-makers, the ULTIMATE ENFORCERS OF THE LAW OF THE LAND, would go to a grossly erring king and command him to commit suicide. Everyone had a BOSS—even the king. The trouble with Nigeria is that Nigeria’s rulers (president, state governors, legislators, perm secs and assorted high public officials) have NO BOSS. Each is his own boss. Nigeria has no ULTIMATE ENFORCERS.
To put it another way: with the vast sums of money made accessible to them by the flawed Constitution with NO STRINGS ATTACHED, these public officials are able to corrupt (buy over) the JUDICIARY (the JUDGES who ought to be the ULTIMATE ENFORCERS), with the result that these public officials are able to do exactly as they please, without any fear whatsoever. That is the trouble with Nigeria.
The 1999 Constitution is at best a “when-able” Constitution. A president who means Nigeria any good will obey it only “when able.” For instance, this Constitution requires the president to appoint 36 Cabinet ministers, one from each state of the federation. Now, such a requirement is in total violation of commonsense. A president who means Nigeria any good cannot and should not obey it even in the “best of times”—as in the past decade or so when the nation’s main source of revenue, crude oil, sold for over $100 per barrel, let alone today when it sells for less than $50 per barrel.
And mind you, virtually every annual federal budget of those “best of times” was nevertheless a “deficit budget” which not only devoured all available revenue but took on an additional loan (debt) of over N1 trillion borrowed from both domestic and foreign lenders. The National Debt, growing at over N1 trillion a year through such borrowing, is presently said to be $63 billion (N12 trillion).
It might have made sense if the monies borrowed were ploughed into industrial development projects. Far from it: about 80% of each year’s budget was consumed in “recurrent expenditure” (salaries, extravagant allowances and luxurious living) instead of in “capital expenditure” (upkeep of schools, skills training, job creation, health care, clean water, roads & railways). The 1999 Constitution sanctioned the “cake-sharing” mindset which made such prodigal misdirection and waste possible.
The 1999 Constitution also stipulates that any oil revenue above the budgetary “oil benchmark” set for that year must be placed in an “Excess Crude Account” and shared to the 36 state governors AND with NO SRINGS ATTACHED, no requirement that they apply the funds to any specific projects in their state, nor that they explain to anyone what they did with money.
Such a constitutional stipulation is simply INSANE. Any wonder that the governors routinely pocket the “excess crude” money, and dare anyone to ask them what they did or will do with it? The Constitution demands NO ACCOUNTING, and none is ever given. Amazing! This is the un-amended Constitution which has been in operation for 16 years!
In 2012, President Jonathan got bold, disobeyed the Constitution, and put the excess crude funds into a Sovereign Wealth (Savings) Fund to be invested in national infrastructure development. Instead of applauding this belated dawn of wisdom and commonsense which the leaders of other nations exhibit in such abundance, our state governors actually went to court to force Jonathan to cough up the money and share it out to them as the Constitution requires!
Soon enough, President Buhari will discover that he cannot obey the 1999 Constitution and achieve the far-reaching changes his campaign platform envisioned. To start with, 36 Cabinet ministers is a monumental waste of resources (talk about reducing the cost of governance!). Their ministerial tasks can be accomplished quite efficiently by a crack team of 10 or 12. As it is, we can expect the same old story—millions squandered in salaries and extravagant allowances, fabulously furnished mansions, fleets of jeeps and armed escorts, and merry-go-round of speeches speeches speeches and travel travel travel, with no return to match the investment.
• To be continued
Onwuchekwa Jemie
