DESPITE the attempt by his spokesperson to subtly deny and re-present what he said as reply to former President Obasanjo on allegations of corruption in the National Assembly, Senate President Bukola Saraki’s well-reported statement last week, that no one person is to blame for the corruption malaise that has brought Nigeria on her knees, remains the most forthright confession by any leader in the ongoing fight against corruption.
Whereas the huge mess of national putrefaction requires that all men of good conscience declare truth, in order to instigate purgation for the individual and nation, leaders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) have carried on as if their party is insulated from all acts of corruption, including spending huge campaign funds without disclosures. But Saraki has come out to debunk that hypocrisy and to remind of the vulnerability that should be of concern to all in order to tackle the fundamentals of corruption.
Former president Obasanjo, despite being vulnerable himself, is gifted with the habit of regularly pricking the conscience of the nation. And in this instance, the man has not said anything different from what we already know. He merely asked members of the National Assembly to discipline the voracious taste they have cultivated since 1999. And the reason is that Nigeria is in a terrible economic shape; and should not be borrowing to fund excesses we can do without. Legislators, he said, receive allowances that they do not account for; they claim to run constituency offices that do not exist, for which they get paid. OBJ has merely asked them to have a change of heart and feel for Nigeria.
The pugilistic manner the message was delivered, as if it was an attack, required that it be dispelled, instead of being food for thought. While some in the NASS took umbrage and were quick to rain invective on OBJ, Saraki as the leader decided to be more thoughtful.
He said: “We have all been here since 1999, up to the recent past, when things were not done right. We are all part of it. I was there, you were there, other political office holders in different capacities were there as well. My own view from the Eight National Assembly is that the time for collective participation for the good of all Nigerians is here with us in line with the change mantra of the present administration. We are all on the same page that things should be done differently. I think what we need now from all stakeholders is more of cooperation, encouragement and participation, as opposed to trying to hold one person responsible for the mistake of the past that we are all part of…”
There is strong temptation to dismiss Saraki’s fair description of the malaise of corruption as acquiescence. Some would view it as admission of involvement and the ruing of his peculiar travails, as he gets set to return to the code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) to continue with his corruption trial. The Supreme Court on Friday affirmed the constitutionality of the CCT to try him on the 13-count charge bordering on false declaration of assets and money laundering, while he was the governor of Kwara State between 2003 and 2011.
But beyond Saraki is the fact that Nigeria has always been prone to corruption as a country. The first set of soldiers who came in 1966 located corruption as a major reason for their intervention. Successive military interventions have listed corruption as major reason for the sack of the previous regimes. There was never a time issues of fighting corruption did not get prominent attention at the policy level of governance, yet the records get more bizarre year after year and regime after regime.
We are all on the same page that things should be done differently. I think what we need now from all stakeholders is more of cooperation, encouragement and participation, as opposed to trying to hold one person responsible for the mistake of the past that we are all part of…
Between 1999 and now, the political class has done more than those of previous regimes to entrench corruption. It was in the template that was handed to politicians who inherited the Fourth Republic, willy-nilly.
From local government to the Presidency, a lot of discretion was permitted those who administer resources, apart from generous provisions in salaries and miscellaneous perks. It would be recalled that a councilor by 1999 statutorily earned more than a senior university teacher. Even though there have been reviews of salaries of teachers and other public workers, the taste politicians cultivated since then has refused to go.
And for you to remain relevant as a career politician, you need a lot of money. Some who were local government administrators in 1999 are now big players in the states and in the National Assembly. They have been drawing consistently from the national purse and when you accuse them of allocating too much to themselves, it sounds like you are talking nonsense. The national legislature is allocated just two percent of the national budget (N150bn and N120bn of recent) each budget year and they tell you it’s not even enough. But when you look at their individual lifestyles, the houses they own in Abuja and their country homes, the churches and mosques they donate, the private jets they own and the items and cash they distribute during electioneering campaigns, you will be tempted to accuse them of stealing, like OBJ has done.
To make matters worse, there are no disclosures in terms of the details of what legislators earn and how it is spent. Even when they make frantic effort to break down the salaries and allowances, what they spend out there leaves the impression that there is more than meets the eye. What the former president has advocated is for the National Assembly to surrender its expenditure and revenue for an independent audit. I think that makes sense and does not call for insults. OBJ even said the audit should begin from 1999 when he was in government. That will give opportunity for those who said he corrupted the legislature to bring forward their petitions.
Beyond the national legislature, some have tried to put forward a discourse on the possibility of review of the presidential system in order to reduce cost across board. State legislators also draw disproportionately from state budgets in collusion with governors. The system of government borrowed from the United States requires huge sums to run. While U.S politicians can raise funds outside appropriations, our politicians depend solely on the national budget to sustain their careers. Governors too are even more profligate and unquestionable. They are indeed emperors, like OBJ said; and it has been so since 1999. Even when they do not steal outright, they have an opaque procurement template to exploit. They own the construction firms that win the contracts.
Of course, the Presidency is the most vulnerable to acts of corruption. Even under an anti-corruption crusader like President Buhari, Budget 2016 has shown the limitation of a one-man or one-party approach to the battle against corruption. Budget 2016 appears different from previous ones only in size; the contents as the details now reveal look as old as ever. The promise by vice President Yemi Osinbajo that this government will adopt zero-based budgeting has not found anchor yet, because the old template is still embedded.
This is where I see some sense in Saraki’s admonition. There is an old model that enables corruption and renders everyone vulnerable. It’s in the bureaucracy that insists on an old template in a season of change. It’s in the injustices of an unfair revenue sharing formula that rewards a few and impoverishes majority. It’s in a political system that makes governors, legislators and presidents so powerful they must steal wantonly. It’s in a federation that is so unjust it kills citizens’ passion for service and patriotism.
In the fight to recover stolen funds and reconstruct Nigeria, let there be concomitant advocacy and good governance to win back the lost soul of Nigeria. Without a soul, there is no country. Without a country there is no passion, no patriotism. Let us not only kill yesterday’s corruption, let us kill the inequalities and loss of faith that will enable it next time. Let us restore confidence in our systems – hospitals, schools and public service, etc. Let us have one real Nigeria, strong and well loved by all. Let’s have a new slate!
GUARDIAN
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