Governor El'Rufai and Decentralization of Power: When The Wrong One Loves You Right.

The long essay that you are about to read addresses Governor El'Rufai's speech at the recent Federal Government Townhall Meeting on National Security, held at the Main Lecture Theatre of the Kaduna State University (KASU) on Thursday, 8th April 2021.

I shared this story yesterday, April 09, 2021, on my Wall, unfortunately, Southern Bloggers and True Federalism and Restructuring Advocates whom the story targeted didn't have the time to read it. The speech garners no response or attention, even for the sake of curiosity. The reason for that is quite obvious. The story has the imprint of the wrong guy - the one you love to hate

That wholesale and collective absentmindedness is the reason a few of us are still in the game - writing and lecturing in our Plain English because the big names that attract the big audience in social and print media have no clue of what is at stake or what True Federalism is about or how to move this country forward.

There is no disputing the facts, all of us cannot retreat to the jungle to wage guerilla war or become Sunday Igboho or Nnamdi Kanu, we could at least be up to date in the debate on how to overcome the uncertainties of the moment and find ways to make the best out of the uncertainties.

If you really want to develop a good understanding of the basics of True Federalism or Decentralization of Power or Restructuring and how they are in real-time or reality, start by reading and committing to memory all the points that Governor El'Rufai articulated in his speech, which is coming up shortly below. He covers almost everything you want to know about the Decentralization of Power and True Federalism. His speech is on all fours with my 2014 essay on the same issue and that was what propelled my interest and enthusiasm.

The only contentious issue I anticipate in his essay is point number 7(4), which deals with onshore minerals. I am, nevertheless, confident that at the right time, Nigerian experts in Energy and Environmental Law will meet to iron out a reasonable demarcation between onshore and offshore reserves, with a view to making provisions and setting aside funds for pollution and unforeseen environmental catastrophe.

After all is said and done, the big question now is who is reading and debating El'Rufai? And that is the Southern tragedy, which is the Nigerian tragedy - not knowing when and how to join the debate and run with bold visions.

Analysis:

How can you understand your enemies or work with them, when you are oblivious to their strategies and tactics or when they extend an olive branch. This is not about El-Rufai. It is about you, the dream you hold, and propagates True Federalism and Restructuring over the years. What he is saying is what True Federalism or Decentralization of Power or Restructuring is all about. Unless, of course, you have no understanding of the doctrine you propagate.  

If I had, in my coverage of El'Rufai's speech, taken solace in acerbic language, calling him unprintable names, telling him to go back to the mountain of Fouta-Djallon to settle with his ancestors, the essay would no doubt, be celebrated. And it would have garnered numerous likes and shares. But when it is about solutions and moving forward, it is a no-go area. And that's how we perpetuate ignorance within the so-called Southern intelligentsia over the years. They don't know all and they won't give room to those who are less intellectually endowered or do not have a Ph.D. tag by their names. 

I realized long ago that the minority tribe and the Northern interest groups succeeded in consolidating their hold on our federal system, because they dominate the policy-framing narrative and implementation strategies, without alternative views from the celebrated Southern intellectuals. One example will suffice. 

When Dr. Jubril Amnin and his Northern mavericks authored the infamous memo on bridging the educational gaps between the Northern and the Southern regions of Nigeria and argued that free education at all is not in our national interest because it will widen the educational gaps between the two regions further, there was no commensurate or spirited rebuttal from the Southern intellectuals. Today, that southern absentmindedness is everyone's nightmare. 

In hindsight, Dr Aminu and his fellow Northern authors were wrong then and wrong today on free education at all levels nationwide. The ills that the miseducation of Nigerian youths that the momo incubated are responsible for the insecurity that has turned Nigeria upside down.

Today, the Northern political leaders and the behind the scene mavericks doing all their thinking over since the amalgamation, do not know what to do with the almajiri population, the mass-illiteracy all over the Northern axis, and the hopelessness that turned a supposed law-abiding people into bandits and kidnappers for ransom. Sadly, regional sophistry is now a national tragedy. And that's the reason you must stand up and speak up. 

Get involved, guys. Join the debate when it is fresh, especially when your opinion will help to make a change. And that's why I write and that's why I seek your indulgence to get involved. Join hands, buddy, let's debate El-Rufai's paper. Don't say no one is reading your opinion; they are reading your opinion. You can trust me on that. This is where the action is, not at the National Assembly.