The Future Of Nigeria Depends On Devolution Of Powers – JTRC

The convener of Join The Restructuring Campaign (JTRC) in Nigeria, Mr. Izuoma Ibe speaks on the need for Nigerians to join in the Atiku campaign to restructure and devolve powers in Nigeria.

To an average Nigerian, how will you explain devolution of powers?

Thank you, devolution has to do with the decentralization of political powers to others levels of government other than concentrating powers on the federal government. In Nigeria today, the constitution concentrates so much powers on the executive list thereby making the state and local government to depend on the federal government such that they cannot function outside the detects of Abuja. This is inappropriate for a country which operates a federal system. That we run a federal system should allow powers to be driven locally, thereby allowing the governed to contribute to policy making. Therefore, devolution power is the decentralization of the excess powers vested on the federal government, and sharing this powers among the federating states.

Don’t you think Nigerians are seeing the devolution call as distasteful?

No! The future of Nigeria depends on the devolution of powers. If you think closely, you will realize that the reasons for chants of marginalization which later took a posture of calls for secession is as a result of poor distribution of powers and resources across the federating states. Questions abound; why would governors depend on monthly allocations from federal government opposed to the reality that the federal government should depend on the states in a federal arrangement? Why is a state governor a chief security officer of his state but cannot enforce security powers, cannot take firm security steps without the influence of the Inspector General of police who is on the federal cadre? Why are local contents, downstream, on the exclusive list? These are abnormalities in a federal system of government which Nigeria claims to run. Nigerians don’t consider devolution distasteful.

To effect devolution, the constitution has to be tampered with. Do you think that will be easy?

First, Nigeria operates a written constitution. A written constitution is amendable. That said, the constitution of the federal republic of Nigeria has at several times undergone amendments. It is not a new thing in our socio-political journey. Recall that in 2014, then president Jonathan convoked a national conference where the issue of restructuring/devolution was dealt with. That conference availed Nigerians the premise to lend their views. Their views were in favor of devolution. The current administration of president Buhari is also adding and removing from the constitution. Recently, power generation and distribution was removed from the exclusive list to the concurrent list. Had the APC worked hard to implement the 2014 confab report, you and I won’t be discussing this issue. But until Nigeria is returned to a true federal status as bequeathed to us by our founding fathers, the abnormalities which we experience today in Nigeria won’t abate. Devolution is possible.

The devolution agenda coming from Atiku Abubakar, Nigerians see it as another deceit like APC did in 2018.

Lucky enough, APC has a candidate in this election, Bola Tinubu. So, Tinubu has a manifesto which stems from APC. Atiku Abubakar is the candidate of the PDP. You can see the difference. Atiku did not promise and fail to keep to that promise. Buhari and APC did.

But Atiku was in the APC then…
Many Nigerians were there, possibly you too supported and voted for APC/Buhari in 2019 because they were believable. Only Atiku couldn’t have supported Buhari. That they left APC is because the party failed to keep to its promises. So, we can’t blame Atiku just because he is one of the popular faces who supported Buhari. Rather, Nigerians should consider the consistency and readiness of Atiku on the restructuring and devolution campaign.

Peter Obi of the Labour Party seems to appeal more to the electorates than Atiku, TInubu and others.

Every presidential candidate in the 2023 election have their supporters. These supporters cut across the 36 states of Nigeria including the FCT. If you look back to 2015, some Nigeria had this surge of opposition to status quo. The same is playing out in 2022/23. I can’t discredit Peter Obi. Even if I try, it will be a feather weight. It is not my style. I pay attention to substance. Atiku’s campaign is of substance. Atiku not only tells you what he wants to do but tells you in practical terms how he is going to do it. Atiku doesn’t hype a national problem, rather he reels out solutions to them. Atiku does not look at Nigeria from a tribal lens, he sees Nigeria as one hence his easy access to the length and breadth of Nigeria. Centrally, any candidate who is not talking about restructuring and devolution is only telling Nigerians that his government will maintain the same pattern of Buhari’s administration.

Why do you think so?
It is obvious because if you don’t devolve power such that we have State Police activated, policing can’t be localized in Nigeria. You know that policing is a local job. I can confidently tell that because the locals are not involved in the policing of our communities, crime, terrorism and the likes are abounding. Secondly, if you do not devolve power such that federating states control their local contents, state governors will continue to depend on the federal government. You will agree with me that such governing arrangement comes with lots of red tapes which slows down governance. How about eroding of the Local government? You and I need the return of local government administration. We need the primary healthcare to return.

So how far have you gone with mobilizing Nigerians on the campaign for restructuring/devolution?

We have done a lot since 2018. The campaign has been organic. We have been volunteering for Atiku Presidential Campaign since 2018. So far, through the coordination of our very activestate representatives, we have taken the campaign to five states, Kwara, Ogun, Oyo, Rivers and Kano. I can tell you that much is put in to this campaign.

Do you have words to send out to Nigerians, especially your supporters on this restructuring campaign?

Sure. It simple. We should keep on with the call for a restructured federal republic of Nigeria where powers are devolved to the federating states so we can have a federation that syncs with best practices of federalism. And to our state coordinators, Adelaja in Ogun, Mohammad in Kano, Mira in Rivers, Senator in Kwara and King in Oyo, keep on the great works. On restructuring, we stand!