How the military rules Nigeria by proxy

This week everything that had been written about the old Nigeria and the junta came true and visibly manifest for the world to see. A sick President bundled back from Hospital to stop the acting President from taking far reaching decisions to reposition Nigeria. The ailing President was said to have been brought back in a stretcher and wired into life support ambulance and taken to the Presidential Villa where a miraculous press statement emanated from him thanking the “Vice President” for holding forth for him while he was away.

Considering that the acting President was not informed before an armed intrusion into the country in the early hours of the morning, considering that the Commander in Chief of the armed forces did not give any order for the Military to seize the primary Airport in the capital, chase away lawful workers and guests some of them foreign Nationals and sabotage the power supply and block roads in their bid to violate the constitution and its institutions, we can record that a coup de tat actually occurred on that day but for the strong intervention of America, the status quo would have vanished into thin air. Every other event including statements thereafter was just a patch work makeover by the both sides to sheath their swords for a later time.

But what do we learn from this incident? Firstly that Nigeria remains firmly under military rule. The fallacy of military disengagement in Nigeria has been proven clearly. It was only the fear of a higher fire power of America that brought the junta back in their senses. Painfully and unfortunately it means that for constitutional democracy to take root in Nigeria we need an armed intervention of a higher fire power a-la Iraq. Look at it -these people do not read anything, they are so arrogant that they don't bother about your Senate resolutions so long as they control the military. In Nigeria you have one law for us the other for them and the military. So the Acting President is for you but he remains the 'Vice President' for them and they can order him around at will. They don't have the patience of procedure and will always employ the wrong strategy to address an issue because they react so slowly that only when you have already left an issue that they slowly awaken to it. They are still at the stage of finding a way to counter the uproar raised by the 'offshore Presidency' not knowing that the World has moved beyond it and found a solution which their own blunders helped to activate. Special lectures are yet needed to drive home to them what 'acting President' means; what the role of the National Assembly is.

The other lesson to learn is the major cause of Nigerian industrial and economic decay-Power failure. Now we know that even if America helps us to hit the 10,000 Megawatts target as they just promised the Good luck dispensation, it will not stop power failure if there is a sudden need for another coup or to smuggle someone through the airport under the cover of darkness or similar reasons nationwide. Unfortunately in a military environment these needs arise hourly. Most power failure as I have said many times arise from such state sponsored terrorism against own citizens. So how do you industrialize and compete with other countries over scarce resources?

You can now understand our scientism about the hope that the Goodluck dispensation will be able to institute electoral or other reforms with the junta breathing down his neck and can refuse to recognize all your years of work because they are incapable of understanding them nor does it bind them in any way going by the two laws existing in Nigeria today. This is why a restructuring is demanded to reorganize completely the present political system to enable positive values take root first before you go for elections. If not it will still be garbage in garbage out. Let me illustrate to you what will happen in the new dispensation if you try to push through the electoral or other reforms through the National Assembly. With the uncertainty as to who is in charge ad both sides parading irreconcilable differences despite public relations niceties, a greater portion of Nigeria's income will be needed to out bribe the other side to secure a vote for only limited electoral reforms which will not be implemented without the support of the military. At crucial moments the military will intervene and neutralize any tendency towards genuine reforms because the military has an interest to protect, an interest to keep Nigeria going nowhere to enable it retain relevance. While all other bodies and institutions have decayed in Nigeria, while even civil service has witnessed flips and turns since 1967, it is only the military intelligence that remains intact and discreetly protected from the change of discontinuity. It determines what constitutional provisions that can pass through the National Assembly and those to be discarded and ironically America has supported and even partly funded it over the year thinking that it promoted peacekeeping in the sub region.

If America is in earnest about supporting the Acting President Goodluck dispensation it should match words with action by stationing an Amanda Aircraft Carrier just outside the coasts of Nigeria on Military exercises and within minutes all the progressive bills will pass through the National Assembly as if by magic and the military and police will cooperate to implement them. But then wouldn't there arise a conflict of interest?Clearly the Nigerian dilemma is as a result of constitutional confusion woven by the military to assure them relevance by perpetuating conflict in the Nigerian society thereby enabling them to intervene perpetually in the day to day governance of the country. There is nothing you can achieve today in Nigeria without a military escort with you. Even when police is needed, you need a joint Task force [JTF] ,another name for a military mix with mobile police specially given military training to act. And everyone including the oil companies uses their services; even expatriates in Nigeria need them to function. to act. And everyone including the oil companies use their services, even expatriates in Nigeria need them to function.et no one seems to question the legality or otherwise of such practices in a democracy. Is it then a surprise that even the Acting President has no powers over such garrisons taking over the airport at night and removing the public power supply? Would such conduct be probed? C'mon of it- by whom? Where? When? How? It takes a lot of courage to even point it out in a thoroughly deranged society.

The details has become necessary because many are still under the illusion that the Nigerian revolution has been realized with the assumption of power of acting President Goodluck Jonathan and I have received so much knocks by those who believe I was being overly pessimistic in my articles. No. I am as optimistic as everyone but I give you all the benefit of nearly 20 years experience of how things work at the highest spot of the Nigerian Political system and unlike others I am ready to share. The purpose is to enlighten you so that you can act aright to correct the wrongs and help Nigeria move towards the right direction unto her destiny. At the end of the day even today's opponents of change will have a cause to rejoice because inwardly every Nigerian wants positive changes to the present socio- economic and political impasse. To ask for reforms without dealing with structural deficiencies of the constitution which allows the military loophole for perpetual intervention or engagement is akin to a waste of precious time. This generation and the next cannot afford another wasted time and resources. This generation and the next , the new Nigeria will not allow any further waste of time, hence our decision to take our destiny into our own hands.

Mr. Nworisara aspired to be President of Nigeria under the Social Democratic Party [SDP] in 1992