Barrister Monday Ubani needs little or no introduction in Nigeria. The Managing Partner and Head of Chamber, Ubani & Co, a firm of legal practitioners based in Ikeja, the Lagos State capital, Barrister Ubani is a human rights campaigner and social critic who has, for decades, consistently been on the side of the people.
In this interview with New Dawn, Barrister Ubani bared his mind on the problems bedevilling Nigeria, how to take the nation out of the woods and what Nigerians should be looking for in who leads the leading black country in 2019 elections. Excerpts:
Question: The issue of national question has been a recurring decimal in our national life, inspite of our long years of nationhood. What do you think is wrong with Nigeria?
The problem with Nigeria is that when we came together as a nation, there was no consensus; we were just joined together by the British. There was no time Nigerians of the various ethnic stuff came together and say we have all agreed to live together. And, economic reasons were part of the reasons why we were joined together for the sake of the British. They wanted an easy way of getting our resources to Britain. So, that understanding was never reached and so we are still battling with the issue of whether we want to agree to live together. So, that consensus has not been reached and it is affecting our unity, it is affecting our growth. We conceive different ideals, we pursue different ideas, we have not yet mature to the level of nationhood where they agree on one ideal, one purpose, one common objective; and so as long as we have not agreed to live together and there is no one common goal we are pursuing, Nigeria will not make much progress. That is why you see that even in the National Assembly, the North will be going right and the South will be going left. There is no ideal, no common understanding of what development is all about or even what nationhood is all about. What people are pursuing is different interest, what will favour them, even if the country will go to blazes and all that; not even favouring majority of their regions but favouring the elite that are in that region. You find out that when they argue in the House, or the President is trying to make a case for his region, it is not for the people living in that region, but the interest of the ruling class. That is one big problem.
The second problem is that despite the fact that we have bright minds, educated elite who know what they ought to do, but when they get into governance, it is a different ball game; a different kettle of fish. What they know that is right, they fail to do it. I do not know whether it is demonic or spiritual or whether it is physical or psychological, I do not know. We all know what is right, but the moment they get into power, some other interests take over and they do not remember why they are there and why they are campaigning for them to be given power in the first instance. What they are doing now is lining their pockets and that of their cronies with the resources of the state and not devoting their time to development of the country or state.
It is only few people in this country that meant well. If you look at Awo as a leader; if you look at Sam Mbakwe who was once the governor of old Imo State; if you look at Jakande, these are men, few men that understand what governance is all about and when they came in, within the short time they came into power, they transformed the environment. And now, what the evil ones (they are very few, but very powerful) that have taken over the reins of government do is that they will never allow the righteous ones, those who want to develop the state to come into power, rather power is given to those that have no capacity for the purpose of ensuring that people remain underdeveloped because they know that the moment they allow people who have capacity, they will be exposed, the people’s eyes will be open that so, we have people who can do these with little or no resources. So, they all gang up at every state; that is at the federal and state levels to always bring those that are incompetent, those who have no capacity whatsoever at all; so that they will not come in and outshine them and show that they can give good governance. If they do that, the eyes of the people will open and they will begin to grow, but the evil ones that are very few, but have so much resource make sure they put the wrong ones in position of power.
If you see what is going on in my state now (Abia); that’s actually what is going on. Even, the APC that knows that Abia is not moving forward, they are ganging up against a candidate that can make Abia move forward. At the federal level, it is the same thing. They do not want the bright minds to rule this country. Look at all the bright minds in the smaller parties, the bigger parties can never allow them, so what they do is to put the wrong people and those wrong people are the ones to continue to perpetuate underdevelopment, poverty, penury and then what they now do is that they use those people to keep on multiplying their own sort, both at the federal and state levels. When they come in, they acquire so much money and with the money they have acquired, they will remain in perpetuity, except God intervenes.
What I am trying to tell you is that Nigeria’s problem, when those wrong people come into power, they keep on replicating the same process to bring wrong people who keep on multiplying slavery, poverty, underdevelopment and brain drain; people, the bright minds, even go to other countries to shine; run their medicals, schools and their technology. They find it difficult to come here. So, except God intervenes, we will remain like this till Jesus comes and the people themselves are so blinded, so foolish. What they do is they impoverish the people; they make them so poor, so that they give them so little and the people’s minds will gravitate towards those wrong people and say this is the right man. This person, up to ten years’ time; this person, up to eight years’ time, they must remain in power. So, when these wrong persons remain in power, they replicate themselves again because at the end, they are so poor. So, when you are given so little, you regard them as gods and they give you so little, you retain them in power, but they are getting the bigger ones, they are eating fine, they have the best houses, their children are abroad attending the best schools, but they give you little to just go and feed because that is how your mind is conditioned; that getting the little they give to you is better than nothing, that getting development or getting infrastructure is not your business; it is just for you now to feed; future for your children is of no consequence. What matters to you is just to feed, to eat; so, that one is more important than building the future. You will see it; it is going to happen in 2019! That mindset will come up, and that is a big problem.
To be continued…
