By Tunde Abatan
…Says presidential aspirants should be subjected to health screening and educational background
He has been in the forefront of the fight for a just society since the period of the struggle for deannulment of the June 12 election.
As a trained attorney in the United States, he participated in various moves to enthrone democracy as a leading figure in the Diaspora.
Some years ago, he assumed leadership of the Egbe Omo Yoruba in the United States and Canada.
He also used this time too to rallying professionals in the Diaspora to fight for enthronement of democracy back at home.
In order to deepen his knowledge of Nigerian law, Dr Olu Otubusin, a doctorate degree holder in Law came home six years ago to study Nigerian law at the Nigerian Law School.
After the one year knowledge of the workings of the Nigeria law and legal system especially the 1999 constitution, Otubusin told Newdawnngr.com.
Editor, Tunde Abatan, that until there is a brand new constitution,the myriad of problems confronting the nation will continue to create unrest.
He believes that conducting subsequent elections under the 1999 constitution will continue to make the country move in circles as nothing could be done to amend a constitution which foundation is faulty.
For those in the Diaspora, he declared that the creation of the Diaspora Commission by the federal government is added problem as the simplest job of procuring passport in our foreign mission is riddled with graft while defending citizens abroad has made no impact .
Excerpts from the interview:
What do you consider to be the main issue in Nigeria today?
The fundamental problem we have is the 1999 constitution. When I was President of the Egbe Omo Oduduwa in America and Canada,our advocacy was that Nigerian constitution is an illegal document. And as far as I’m concerned,you can’t amend an illegal document.
Let us write our own constitution different from what the military left behind for us and follow due process in doing that.
Whatever we are doing now,we are just patching the issues. If we decide to write a new constitution,we will be able to sit down and negotiate the terms of our staying together.
Nobody wants to leave this country.
As far as I am concerned ,election is irrelevant to us now. Let us do the needful by writing another constitution.
What of the current amendment process being done by the National Assembly?
The National Assembly as presently constituted are a bunch of selfish legislators. What they are interested in is to be put in juicy committees to feather their nests.
We can’t expect something good from them. How long would we be moving in circles as a country?
What then do you make of the different candidates who have signified interest in contesting for presidency in forthcoming elections?
The election should be boycotted by all in this nation.
There should be no election now in order to move us forward. Any reasonable person will know that election cannot lead us anywhere. We have to do the needful.
Even the political parties that are in vogue,you can see how disjointed they are.
They don’t have the interest of the nation at heart. They spend so much money to be elected and get what they want. This time around the electorate have to be educated as we are going to 2023,the masses of this country should know better. My refrain is..take the money and vote your conscience. Now education is getting better now with the social media but the individuals and masses still have to be educated on the fact that they have to take the money and vote your conscience. It is a task that must be done.
Now it is now 23 years we have been in politics,where in your opinion has it taken us?
It has taken us nowhere as things are getting worst in the country.
For instance,the All Progressives Congress, APC,is a formation of unlike minds. If you want to form a party and you allow those in PDP to come to APC,then the party is compromised from the beginning. A house that is built on sand cannot stand. The 23 years is a waste.
What about emergence of a Third force in the country?
I am not calling for separation of the country but there must be a revolution like we have in Ghana because the people that have been leading us have no interest of the people at heart. The young people we have in politics now are even worst.
As fir Revolution,Its going to be difficult now than before but it is possible if there is a united front, a people’s revolution is possible. Enough us Enough. There has to be a revolution.
In those days,it is on record that when Nigerians trave out of the country for education,they want to come back but now they didn’t.
Nigerians all over the world excel in Medicine,Law,Engineering and a lot of them are in Medical Centres all over the world. Their names are known everywhere but they stay back and we are looking for them.
Still on People’s Revolution:
The EndSars protest is an indication that people’s revolution is possible in this country.
We are only unfortunate that Tiagmen Square has not taken place in Nigeria. But I believe the Western powers abort our revolution because they don’t want Africa to excel.
God bless this continent but it is unfortunate our leaders prefer to dance to the tune of White people.
How do we solve the fuel scarcity now prevalent in the country?
It is due to the failure of the elected citizens of this country. They are just greedy and that is what is killing us. How many cars can you drive at the same time? We need a reoriented brain because when you die,you are going to rot.
Our situation is compounded by the fact that present generation of Nigerians praise elected officials instead of taking them up on their failed promises.
In those days,we Stine them but today we hail them.
The various military regimes we have had change our values and orientation completely.
Do you agree that there should be age limit fir those seeking elective office?
All those aspiring have a right to run for office.Age should not be a barrier.
What of those aspirants with perceived health issues?
This should be taken into consideration. They should be made to go for medical check up and be certified medically fit. I recommend a medical check up for our leaders. A policy must be out in.place that for you to run for office,you must be certified fit in education, health.it is too minimal for our future office holders.
What type of President should Nigeria have in 2023?
We need a President with experience,good character, international exposure and highly capable of running the government.
He should be a president for the whole country not a sectional president and our constitution should be able to address that because that is the fundamental problem of this country.
Going to Law school in Abuja at an old age, I have discovered that we the Southern people have over the years accepted rubbish from the North. Do you know that the Land Use Act have been in operation in the North fir a very long time.
After the years of military rule, the politicians we have now are for their own ethnic group.Rhey are only there for their own purpose.
I have also come to realise that Northerners are smarter than us.
How do we solve the strike by the ASUU and our education system?
Do we really have an education system in this country? That is the issue.
In those days when you finish secondary school,you will excel anywhere you are.
If you look at the Ivy League schools,the excel list have Nigerians all over.
Unfortunately now,when I was teaching in Southern Texas University,the level of English spoken by some of our students was a shocker to me.
Now,Nigerians can’t speak good English unlike what we have then.
It was very competitive to go to those schools.
Today, in Nigeria we no longer have very strong student unions.
When I left secondary school,I didn’t want to go to the US,I wanted to go to Ife then because of the good standard but admission limitations forced me to travel to the US.
The standard of education in our country today is a shadow of itself.
They should put more money into education.
Education system is very important for any country to excel and we also need to lay much emphasis on teachers Salary.
Teachers salary should be restructured and with that they will be happy to transfer the knowledge they have acquired to their students and from there to the country and the country will grow.
How should the government handle the Sessionist agitation by various ethnic groups in the country?
I have to say that it is their right to agitate and while others are getting away with it like the Fulanis who are destroying people’s farm all over , others are bing harassed. Fulanis are getting away with a lot of things in this country and getting favours from the government.
It is incumbent on the federal government to make them feel comfortable about the issue of justice and equity in the country.
If everything is out right nobody wants to leave this country.
But I repeat that until we write a new constitution,we will keep in moving around in circles and things will keep on getting worse and that is bad.
Are you in support of rotation of Power?
Given the fact the way this country was amalgamated,it was a good idea. It ensures fair dealing to rotate power but we have to get the best of that section by the fact that you have to be the best from your zone.
To what extent have the Diaspora Commission help Nigerians in the Diaspora?
It is a joke.i dint see what they are doing. There are some issues they have to fight for the Diaspora like the issue of voting and to take care of Nigerians abroad. I don’t believe in having a commission like that. They do pay some money to bring people back to this country because it doesn’t have to be free it’s only because of the situation all over the world.
I believe Diaspora should work together to make life better for their citizens all over the world.
For instance to get passports outside is hell. You have to bribe people in the Embassy especially in places like Texas to get your passport renewed.
The Diaspora Commission has to make life easy for us abroad.
You have to do the needful for your citizens in your jurisdiction.
