For The Record
Nigerians Must Value Their Diversity – Ajumogobia
Being a text of the convocation lecture delivered by former Foreign Affairs Minister, Mr. Odein Ajumogobia (SAN) on the occasion of the 19th -23rd convocation ceremony of the Rivers State University of Science and Technology (RSUST), Port Harcourt on Thursday, October 13, 2011.
Excerpt.
The Pro Chancellor, the
Vice Chancellor, Members of the Governing Council, esteemed graduates of RSUST, distinguished ladies -and- gentlemen. I am grateful to RSUST for the honour to share this podium with so many past distinguished convocation speakers before me. It is also a special privilege for me to be a part of this most important moment in the lives of so many young men and women who are to be conferred with their hard earned and long anticipated diplomas and degrees – testimonials of “character and learning” by our nation’s premier technological University, RSIJST. An institution whose motto, “excellence and creativity”, defines the very ethos of success in our modern world.
Since 1980 when it was created, RSUST has been a leading light as a higher learning institution, providing unique and special programmes and courses such as marine engineering and pollution studies in furtherance of its mandate and goal to be relevant to their irnmediate environment.
I wish to especially acknowledge and thank the Governor and Visitor to the University, Rt. Honourable Rotirni Chibuike Amaechi, My Lord, Chief the Hon. Justice Adolphus Karibi-Whyte CON retired Justice of the Supreme Court and Pro chancellor, and Professor Barineme Fakae, the Vice Chancellor and Members of the Governing Council of the University for this unique honour and for the freedom to choose the subject of my address this afternoon.
I must confess that soon after I accepted the Vice Chancellor’s invitation, in large part out of the high esteem and regard in which I have held him, since the days of his exemplary leadership as the Provost of Bori Polytechnic when I served as Honourable Attorney General of this State, I felt a certain uneasiness as I began to think about what I would say to you all and to our graduates in particular, today.
No doubt, I have delivered numerous speeches in the course of a long, varied and most fulfilling career as a lawyer and public servant, but one always feels that convocation speeches are somehow different and special. This is despite the fact that with the understandable excitement that convocation ceremonies create, a number of years from now, I doubt that many would remember who presented this address, let alone what I said. But even for those few, I thought it important to try to deliver a meaningful message.
I found the task even more engaging because of the impact of the multiple crises currently confronting our country, and the enormous political and socio-economic challenges facing us all, and our young people especially. Unfortunately, many of these difficulties come as part of the process of building a nation, that will allow each of us to realise our collective dreams and individual aspirations – and will allow you, today’s graduates to be whatever you aspire to be and to exploit your talents to the full, to achieve your God-given potential.
After some reflection, I chose to speak about The Challenge of Nation Building: Empowerment, Expectation and Entitlement”, because I believe that the realisation of our full potential as citizens, both individually and collectively, is directly linked to the fortunes of this diverse nation to which we belong. And so, far from being another lecture on political economy for which I would simply refer to the works of that revered scholar, the late Professor Clause Ake, the title of my address today, simply provides a context for my message to you, concerning your own role as graduates and potential change agents; another set of privileged University students who have acquired “character and learning” and thereby gained the empowerment to build promising and successful futures for yourselves in diverse fields of endeavour.
A respected authority on development, Michael Frederiksen in making a distinction between ‘country’ I and ‘nation’, described the latter as “a living and evolving entity that reflects the ideals and dreams of its people and the reality of living together”. I rather like his simple, but insightful definition, because it centers on the peoples’ shared sense of purpose, “though tribe and tongue may differ”, to recall the words of our first national anthem, and without regard to religious affiliation or social status.
The term “evolving” in the definition suggests that a nation takes time to build, grow and mature. “Living together” implies both choice and harmony. I like Frederiksen’s definition too, because it highlights the people and not the space. The people are the nation and the nation is the people.
Let us remind ourselves of the reality that most modern states were once ethnically, diverse, and some still are. Did you know for example that Canada’s largest city, Toronto, is home to some 5 million people where 400 languages and 600 dialects are spoken? Just like Nigeria!
The boundaries of most modern nations generally emerged over centuries, not out of deep bonds, forged from primordial ethnic solidarity. They were a solution for the protection of the productive weak from the unproductive strong through the selection of a common authority to mediate contending human interests, and create and enforce acceptable rules and regimes of conduct; what my distinguished Harvard Professor and Dean, the late James Vorenberg profoundly referred to at my own graduation ceremony, as the “chains that make us free” in contrast to the “state of nature” described in Thomas Hobbes’ Leviathan in which life was “solitary, poor, brutish, nasty and short”, and where might was right.
Nigeria, like most countries came into being by “the stroke of an imperial pen”, that needed only the recognition of other States to make it part of the comity of nations. It is however a painfully slow circuitous process that ultimately transforms countries into ions with which their people eventually wholly identify with pride and patriotism.
Nation building therefore connotes the creation or establishment of the conducive environment by the government and the people within a geographical space in which the dreams, hopes and aspirations of the people, who occupy that space, can be realised. It is the common pain and sacrifice, pleasure from individual action and effort, the shared experience that comes with equal access to power, resource and opportunity, that creates the identification and sense of belonging.
As Nigerians, we must value our diversity and respect the ways in which we are not alike in tradition, culture and religion even as we work hard towards the common purpose of building a strong economy and a just and vibrant nation that will be the envy of the world.
As fresh graduates and the emerging generation of leaders, you are therefore perhaps the most important stakeholders in this project, because the nation is the framework within which most of you will apply your talents and training, for entitlement and reward, and to meet society’s expectation of every generation to create opportunities for itself and for others. It is the nation that gives you your identity and is what should give you pride. So why should you not be to build it?
That task is not just for President Jonathan and his Ministers, our governors and all those in authority over us. It is a collective responsibility.
Statistics reveal that we are a nation with a young population. That more than 70% is under the age of 25 years.
Building our nation, is therefore as much about how your generation deals with the challenges that you face in the current tumultuous economic climate, as it is about how our Governments, Federal and States, are able to bring about transformational change in the polity with guarantees of life, liberty and the pursuit of individual fulfillment to paraphrase John Locke’s thesis of the social contract.
To be clear, it is well known that we face significant socio-economic political and civic challenges characterized by poor and crumbling infrastructure, weak institutions and a faulty moral compass of values: From roads and electricity; to education and health service of our courts and law enforcement apparatus – to cheating to pass exams. The list is endless.
Indeed, these challenges have seemed to grow and become almost grotesque as time has passed, and thus often have an effect on us that is demoralizing, and sometimes brings us to a point of despair and helplessness.
So how can you help Nigeria build its way out of this state of affairs and into true nationhood?
The truth, distinguished ladies and gentlemen, is that although our situation may be precarious today, it is our actions as citizens that will determine our destiny as a nation, and whether we will continue to be a nation in which our diversity threatens, rather than complements, our stability. Fortunately, recent history is replete with examples of nations that faced seemingly insurmountable challenges that were overcome by the combination of committed leadership that transcended the crises of national identity, and the collective sacrifice, determination and perseverance of the citizens, within a single generation.
We must therefore all join hands with our President, President Goodluck Jonathan and with our Governors by making our own contribution, small or significant, with “excellence and creativity” to transform whatever space that we occupy. Unless we do so, we cannot as a nation harness the potential and resources that we collectively possess, not in our oil, or in our soil, but in ourselves. We must cease to be a nation that promises much but delivers little to its people or to world.
Clearly, it begins with education at all levels, for education at this higher level is of no use if we haven’t learned politeness, remorse and gratitude, the basic courtesies of ‘please’, ‘sorry’ and ‘thank you’. If we have not learned sportsmanship and much else that should be ingrained in -the home and in the nursery~, primary and secondary school your Education still is mostly about learning and developing the ability to learn and discover and apply such learning to our environment. This is significantly enhanced by the process of obtaining a university education.
Through your university education, your degrees and diplomas, you are now all ~quipped with knowledge, know how, skills and power – the key to “developing the man to develop his environment” and the ability to convert human beings into human capital and change our surroundings by influencing those around us.
The application of learning gained from your education at this premier institution that has produced so many eminent citizens, is vital to developing effective solutions to problems, and for change, improvisation and innovation because you have been taught to think in the RSUST way! “excellence and creativity”. Education liberates the mind and exposes one to opportunities and possibilities that are likely to have been unimaginable or unimagined without it.
It facilitates the development of critical and creative thinking that is crucial for the transformation of the individual and by extension the space he or she occupies. If we each transform our space, our nation will be transform: But then is the education you have received to date (your degree and diploma alone) sufficient to guarantee you success. Are you truly empowered? What are your expectations and entitlements?
When I was a young boy, I learned to swim with much difficulty because I had always been scared of water. I and a number of other boys had indeed just successfully swum from the deep end of a 25 metre pool to the shallow end one particular day.
Our swimming coach then thought he would boost our self confidence in the pool by what he called “drown proofing” to demonstrate that you could not drown as long as you remained calm and did not panic. The process was as follows: My hands were tied behind my back and my feet were tied together. I was then thrown feet first, into the deep end of the swimming pool. This of course was not before I had indicated that I had taken a sufficiently deep breath. My instructions were simple. Relax. Allow your body to sink to the bottom and on its own without you moving a muscle, your body will float back up to the surface. When your head breaks the surface of the water, gently tilt your head back and take another deep breath. Your body will go down again to the bottom and then involuntarily come up again to the surface, and will keep doing this indefinitely as long as you don’t panic or struggle! I had to do this for five minutes which seemed like an eternity. But I did it successfully and it certainly gave me the incredible self confidence that I still have around water till this day.
But we all know that as frightening as it sounds, and I don’t recommend any of you to try it, it was a controlled experiment in a swimming pool, with my expert coach, his vigilant assistants and other members of the swim team around, watching to make sure that I didn’t simply settle at the bottom of the pool as some people apparently do!
In the open sea, this would obviously have been impossible to do and the result would certainly have been different if I went in head first! Strong and accomplished champion swimmers have been known to grown as I later learned, even in swimming pools. So there really is nothing like “drown proofing”.
The experiment however served its prime and only purpose: to prepare me to be fearless in the water in much the same way that your university degree has prepared you to face the world and all its challenges, without fear. But there is nothing like “life proofing”.
A university education is certainly a form of empowerment, and still is the most assured requirement, for those who have the intellectual capacity, to build a successful future regardless of your circumstances. It is indeed the most effective “proofing” that exists for life. Your university degree has created the mindset, to take advantage of or to create opportunities that will propel you towards realizing your individual ambitions and goals.
If we reject this notion, we foster the wrong and disabling belief that it is necessary to seek and obtain other forms of enablement to complement our education as a prerequisite for an individual to make something meaningful out of his or her circumstances. It is common for us to say that you need a ‘Godfather’ or you must ‘know someone’ to succeed. Such thinking perpetuates a base culture that encourages feelings of despondency rather than expectation enthusiasm and optimism, and erodes the sense of self confidence and self reliance that a university education ought to confer.
By the same token, a sense of entitlement to a job prevents you from even exploring your talents and potential because of a distorted orientation that looks everywhere else, but within.
Do not misunderstand me. Having a sense of expectation within the context of family or society is not wrong in itself. Expecting the Government to create jobs or an environment in which more jobs will be created is indeed our entitlement as citizens. What is self limiting however is creating a se expectation in our university graduates that compels an exclusive reliance on government or society at large to provide or create opportunities for their own self-sustenance.
The whole world is facing economic crises of perhaps unprecedented proportions. Unemployment globally is at an all time high. The Government of President Jonathan inherited problems that were created over several decades. The solutions, like the problems, are complex and take time to implement. Governments, at the Federal and State level are responding to these challenges by developing policies and executing programs that are aimed at stimulating the economy and attracting investments that will create jobs. Loans and incentives are being provided to manufacturers and farmers to encourage and increase production and employment; policies are being fashioned in the financial sector to increase access to credit by our creative artists as well. Steps are being taken by the Government to strengthen State institutions, restore confidence, and support private sector led growth. At the same time bold reforms are being driven to improve the state of infrastructure so that we can create favourable environment that encourages and supports both individual and business growth, and promotes the wellbeing of the citizen.
In the meantime, do we just fold our arms and lament and criticise? The truth is that even if the economy was booming, not everyone would be guaranteed employment or a job of their liking or even one that meets their expectation in terms of remuneration, growth or opportunity.
So what should your expectation or attitude be as you venture into this next phase of your lives as young graduates?
In our dynamic and technology driven world, there is almost as much learning out of our Universities and educational institutions as there is within them. So you must continue to learn, and improve yourself, even if you do not pursue a post graduate qualification as I am sure many of you will.
You have today achieved an important milestone in your lives and I congratulate you on the degrees and diplomas that you have earned that provide you with opportunities and alternatives, and the ability to make informed judgments and choices. Each of you have a better chance than tens of millions of equally talented young men and women who have not had the opportunity to obtain a university education.
I have no idea what each of you will become, or indeed what your individual aspirations might be.
Life is unpredictable. But it also holds tremendous promise and amazing rewards for those determined to succeed at it.
There is unfortunately no roadmap that I can share with you. Each of you travelled here by a different road and will leave this place to a different destination.
I had no idea that one day I would serve this State as its Attorney General and serve two Presidents in the Federal cabinet. If you were to ask me how I got to this point in my life, I would have to say it was entirely by the grace of God. But His grace is sufficient for all who look up to Him.
What I did set out to be, was the very best lawyer that I could be, and that is the advice that I will give you all today. Set out to be the very best that you can be at whatever you choose to do or wherever you find yourself.
Beyond that, I can perhaps offer a few common tips that helped me to succeed in my career.
Don’t expect the perfect job next week or next month or next year. But don’t rule it out. Keep an open mind.
Have clear objectives, and develop a passion for whatever you set your mind to do even if it is trying to find a job. Keep knocking on doors. One will open if you are tenacious enough. It always does. Passion, confidence and perseverance are infectious. But be flexible and adaptable. In a changing world you must embrace change. Your true calling may be what you consider to be a past time. Explore your talents. They are your unrealised fortune.
Have a core set of values that you won’t compromise, integrity, humility, respect for others, hard work and discipline. Above all, fear God and be thankful for everything you get; Focusing on yourself limits you. Focus rather on your environment and you will find opportunities around you that you will miss if you are obsessed with yourself. Never settle for less than you are capable of. Challenge yourself and you will often surprise yourself. Always do your best, be courageous and adventurous.
You can’t always do it all by yourself. Collaborate and consult. Two heads are usually better than one, and a younger and less experienced person’s idea may be better than your own. Believe in yourself and others will respect and believe in you. You have all the training and learning you need to succeed. Aim for the sky but also help others to succeed and always have compassion for those less fortunate than you are.
There will certainly be bumps along the way. There always are; roadblocks, setbacks and dead ends, which are part of the journey. But they help build your stamina and strengthen your character. That bump or pothole in the road may, in fact be your stepping stone to fame or fortune.
Life is a marathon not a sprint. The sprinter who stumbles and falls has lost the race. The marathon runner can pick himself up and still finish first. Never lose sight of your destination but enjoy the whole journey. That is the essence of a life well spent. Learn something from all your experiences.
I don’t not know what life has in store for each of you. What I do know is that what you have acquired from RSUST is sufficient to set you on your way to a successful future.
You have acquired knowledge and developed character and now have the opportunity to make a contribution and a difference to your nation no matter how small it may be. So just look up, have faith and don’t ever give up.
In conclusion, let me share with you Michael Frederiksen’s simple but eloquent charge to the graduating class of a technical University in Kenya just last year. He said, “Not all can lead but all can learn, Not all will be elected into office, but all can serve. Not all can build a bridge of understanding, but all can live a life of peace. Not all can inspire a nation, but can help built it.”
I hope you will all help build our nation and I wish you all the best as you go out into the world.
For The Record
BROADCAST BY HIS EXCELLENCY, SIR SIMINALAVI FUBARA, GSSRS ON TUESDAY, 18TH JUNE, 2024
For The Record
An Open Letter To President Bola Ahmed Tinubu On The Imperative Of Revisiting The Eight-Point Resolution Brokered As Truce For The Rivers Political Crisis
Your Excellency, as belated as it may come, please, do accept my congratulations on your victory in the last Presidential election, and the seamless swearing-in ceremony that ushered you in as the sixth democratically elected President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Of course, your victory did not come as a surprise to many, given your antecedents as a democrat, astute administrator and, a go-getter. Whereas your track record as a political activist, especially in the wake of the annulled June 12, 1993 presidential election is self-evident; your exceptional performance as Governor of Lagos State is a clincher any day.
It is my prayer therefore, that the good Lord, who has brought you this far, guide and direct your ways to steer the ship of state aright.
That being said, Your Excellency, please permit me to commence this correspondence with an allegory drawn from our recent past. A few years ago, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo was elected Nigeria’s President on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). You were equally elected Governor of Lagos State on the platform of the Alliance for Democracy (AD). This electoral upshot inevitably placed you in opposition to the government at the centre.
The dust raised in the wake of the elections was yet to settle before you disagreed with then President Obasanjo. The bone of contention transcended personal vendetta, or so it seemed. Again, it happened at a time when our democracy could rightly be described as nascent. You had approached the court to seek judicial interpretation on some grey areas of our constitution, as provided for, in the concurrent list.
Much as Obasanjo would have loved to have things go his own his way, he was apparently restrained by the grundnorm. And he recognized it was within your right to seek judicial interpretation as to whether he wasn’t exercising his powers as president ultra vires. That was the rule of law at play; a classic specimen of what we fondly refer to as the beauty of democracy in our political parlance.Above all, it underscored the centrality of the constitution in resolving state matter.
Nigerians gave you thumbs up for engaging Obasanjo and the federal government all the way up to the Supreme Court. Moreover, happening at a time when the fear of President Obasanjo and the unwritten federal might were considered the beginning of political wisdom in our polity. Of course, the constitution came handy as a leveler between your good self and former President Obasanjo.
In light of the above, Nigerians naturally expect a clear departure from what the Obasanjo era and the immediate past regime offered them as constitutional democracy. Whereas it is still early in the day to rate your performance in this regard, one cannot but acknowledge that you have so far shown that you have some listening ear. Your intervention in what could have degenerated into a total breakdown of law and order in Rivers State late last year comes as a reference point. For me, stepping in to halt the ship of state from completederailment is an eloquent attestation to the fact that you place the security of lives and property, peace and harmony, and national cohesion over and above partisan interest.
You could equally have looked the other way and allow the crisis fester, since Rivers State is a PDP state. But you hearkened to the voice of reason, and that of well-meaning Nigerians, particularly, Chief Edwin Kiagbodo Clark, the leader of the Ijaw nation, and, the Ijaw National Congress (INC) to halt the drift. Notwithstanding your tight schedule, you took out time to summon the governor of Rivers State, Sir Siminalayi Joseph Fubara, his predecessor, now FCT minister, Barr. Ezebunwo Nyesom Wike and Hon. Martins Amaewhule who were the principal actors in the crisis to the Villa, and have them subscribed to a peace deal.
Although I had my reservations over the eight-point resolution ab initio, I refrained myself from joining the bandwagon in pointing out some of the obvious limitations in the document at the time. My position was informed by the following reasons. First, I didn’t see it as the wisest thing to do at a time when the crisis was raging like a wildfire. For me, nothing could have been more paramount than bringing the situation under control, which the armistice effectively accomplished. Second, I trusted your judgment, and honestly believed that you brokered the deal in good faith. I was therefore willing to give the truce the deserved benefit of the doubt by putting it to test. Finally, and most importantly, the governor who was in the eye of the storm was unwavering in restating his commitment to the terms of the truce.
However, three months after the deal was struck, I dare say, Your Excellency; that it has failed in attaining the ultimate goal of reconciling the warring factions.Instead, it had become the template for the palpable tension the state has since been grappling with. This outcome is by no means surprising to any discerning mind. And the reasons are not far-fetched. First, as I mentioned earlier, it would appear that in a bid to halt to the looming anarchy, the constitution which is the grundnorm was not properly consulted in forging the eight-point resolution. Also, a reexamination of the document reveals a certain degree of political fiat in its construct.
That the eight-point resolution has since triggered a plethora of litigations is only natural. That it has induced a near state of anomie clearly points to the inherent flaws in the document. That it has thrown up desperadoesand warmongers like Chief Tony Okocha and Engr. Samuel Nwanosike who now disparage, distract and outrightly abuse a sitting governor with reckless abandon is equally expected. As for Wike, the man believes the governor is his lackey, therefore, tongue-lashing, and outrightly threatening to give the governor sleepless nights are privileges he believes are within his right. But most worrisome, is the fact that Wike doesn’t make empty threats. In other words, backtracking on getting the governor out of office, either by hook or crook isn’t just an option.
The truth is, some of the articles in the eight-point resolution stealthily stripped the governor of the powers and aura of his office;thus exposing him to the ridicule we see today. For instance, article three directed the governor to reinstate former members of the state executive council,who had earlier resigned their appointments from the state cabinet. Truth be told, such directive to a sitting governor, in the very least, leaves a sour taste in the mouth. Perhaps, it would have been a different kettle of fish had the governor whimsically sacked the commissioners because he suspected their allegiance lay with the FCT minister. But here, these supposed honourable men and women resigned their appointments on their own volition, citing “personal grounds”.
One would have expected Your Excellency toresolve the issue a little differently given your groundedness in public and private administration; knowing that trust and mutual respect took flight the moment those commissioners handed in their resignation letters. In other words, people with obvious reservations against each other cannot truly work as a team.
The constitution expressly confers the powers to appoint commissioners on the governor of a state. It follows therefore that commissioners owe their loyalty to the governor who appoints them. While in the saddle, Wike was unequivocal in demanding a hundred percent loyalty from his commissioners. And that was what he got during his eight-year reign. Granted that the commissioners in question were all nominated by the FCT minister as we now know; the question is, was it also within his right to direct their resignation at will, and then re-direct their reinstatement because the plot to remove the governor failed?
If you ask me, requesting Wike, the nominator, to nominate fresh persons in their stead would have created more semblance of statecraft, seriousness in governance and, more importantly, saved the governor’s face. It also would have gone a long way to demonstrate that some things are beyond trifles. Put differently, the notion that a crisis of that magnitude could be resolved absent collateral damage rest on a faulty premise.
Again, article six of the eight-point resolution apparently puts the governor in a catch 22 situation. Directing the governor to re-present the state Appropriation Bill that has already been passed and signed into law to Hon. Martins Amaewhule and his co-travelers, in my humble opinion, was another sore point in the document. I doubt it was a fitting consideration for a failed impeachment that shouldn’t have happened in the first place; not after the courts have already made pronouncements on the issues.
Your Excellency, I honestly believe you didn’t intend the current stalemate between the executive and the legislative arms of government in Rivers State. Nevertheless, that is the reality on ground, as the governor, on one hand, governs the state with an infiltrated state civil service; and Martins Amaehule with his ‘Assembly’ members, working at cross-purposes with the governor, dish out all the anti-executive bills they can imagine. A case in point is the latest piece of legislation coming from the ‘Assembly’. Again, one wonders,what Assembly worth its salt, wouldseekto elongate the tenure of the current local government chairmen and councilors; knowing they were elected and sworn into office for a three-year term that expires in June? The question is, do we now enact our laws retroactively?
Now, to the crux of the matter, Wike is a man with a history of political violence. His politics thrives in an atmosphere of strife and rancour. It cannot be over emphasized that he presently seeks to overheat the Rivers polity, and possibly make the state ungovernable. He is hell bent on accomplishing the intendment of a failed impeachment. His penchant for violence explains why Rivers State under his reign wore the appalling badge of a conquered territory. The state hasn’t exploded yet, given its current tenuous peace of the graveyard,is because, Gov. Siminalaye Fubara has refused to swallow Wike’s bait. In fact, his refusal to join issues with the man he calls master, and probably heat up the polity explains why restive Wike wants 2027 switch place with 2024 in the Nigeria political calendar.
Already, his vicious supporters are on the prowl, momentarily rehearsing vandalism and arson of public and private properties, with no qualms, even in broad day light. Sadly, the license to take laws into their hands springs from standing on Wike’s mandate. This much is evident in a video that has gone viral on the cyberspace. One would have dismissedthe ongoing rampageas the man’s political trademark, except that wily Wike claims to be standing on your mandate, even though he has been most cautious in defecting to his supposedly ‘cancerous’ APC.
Your Excellency, is it not curious that Wike and his supporters are the only band daily chanting “On your mandate we shall stand, Jagaban”, one year after you had contested and won the February 25, 2023 presidential election?
Of utmost concern is the disturbing silence of the Police, the DSS and other security agencies in the face of Wike’s supporters running amok. Rather, than live up to their constitutional billing, they seem to unwittingly nudge the people to resort to self-help. And while they continue in their ostrichism, the fire is being steadily stoked by the man who thinks Rivers State is his sole enterprise, and to balm his bruised ego could unleash the unimaginable.
It is however reassuring that Your Excellency is no stranger to Rivers politics and its combustive nature. As Dr. Peter Odili’s contemporary as governors, you were well abreast of what transpired in the state from 1999-2007. You were also a major player in the Amaechi-Wike debacle while the former was the occupant of Brick House. In fact, you were purported to have saved Amaechi’s skin from the Jonathans, when, in cahoots with Wike, they unleashed the federal might.
You saw Rivers State went upin flame from 2013-2019, all for Wike to succeed his Ikwerre brother as governor in a multi-ethnic state. You were also witnessto how thepolitically induced inferno incredibly extinguished itself as soon as Wike’s vaulting ambition was achieved. But while the carnage last, Rivers people lost their lives in their hundreds.
As governor, and for eight years, Wike ruled like a demigod, and the state, his footstool. He literally vetoed the constitution on Citizens’ Rights, Freedom of Speech, Freedom of Association, Procurement, and Social Justice. In fact, one of the lion-hearted among us aptly tagged the Wike-era as the years of the Rivers of Blood.
Your Excellency, there is no better way to say Rivers State is presently sitting on a keg of gunpowder, while drifting daily towards the precipice. And if something is not done urgently to avert a repetition of its recent ugly past, tomorrow may be too late.
I have personally bemoaned the lot of the Rivers man since the dawn of the fourth republic in my book: The Rivers Season of Insanity. I would spare you the details therein. However, it may interest Your Excellency to know that as a Rivers man; I have tremendous respect for you, just as I envy what you have made of Lagos State. I’m therefore genuinely bothered that Rivers State may just be the odd state out as you are set to replicate the Lagos wonder across the federation. Rivers State can only andtruly share in the Renewed Hope, if Wike is restrained from plunging it into another round of bloodletting.
Much as it is the truth, I hate to reiterate, that in all her abundance, Rivers State can only boast of the loudest and most vaulting chief executives ever, since 1999. The allure to graduate from Brick House to Aso Villa has become an elixir, which those we elect to govern have not been able to extricate themselves from. And to make a bad situation worse, it remains the only state in Nigeria that flaunts an obnoxious injunction that insulates her past and serving governors from the ethics of good governance, such as transparency, accountability and probity.
I have no doubt in my mind that you already saw through Wike and his antics. And it is only a matter of time before you reined him in. My concern however, is that it shouldn’t happen only after he must have thrust the state into another round of massacre. Need I say, that going by his claim, what Wike delivered in last year’s election were Rivers votes, not his votes.
Ask the Jonathans if their alliance with Wike was worth the trouble, given the benefit of hindsight, and your guess will be as good as mine.
In a nutshell,Your Excellency, Rivers State has had more than her fair share of bloodletting since 1999. It is against this backdrop that I most fervently pray that the blood of Dr. Marshall Harry, Chief A. K Dikkibo, Hon. Monday Ndor, Hon. Charles Nsiegbe, Amb. Ignatius Ajuru, Hon. Monday Eleanya, Barr. Ken Aswuete and several other victims of assassination be allowed to water the peace initiative and advocacy of the incumbent governor.
Finally, Your Excellency, in view of the above, it is my humble submission that the eight-point resolution be revisited with the hope that it guarantees sustainable peace and harmony in the Rivers polity.
“The time is always right to do what is right.”
-Martin Luther King Jr.
Thank you for time and consideration.
Yours Respectfully,
Caleb Emmanuel Fubara
Fubara hails from Opobo Town
Background
On Thursday, February 15, 2024 at its 109th Legislative sitting, the House passed into Law, the Rivers State House of Assembly Service Commission (Amendment) Bill, 2024. The Bill repealed the Rivers State House of Assembly Service Commission (Amendment) Law, No. 3 of 2006 and further amended the Rivers State House of Assembly Service Commission Law of 1999. The Bill was sent to the Governor for his assent and after the statutory 30 days, the House re-passed the Bill into Law on 22nd March, 2024.
The Rivers State House of Assembly Service Commission was established by the Rivers State House of Assembly Service Commission Law of 1999. Section 2 provides:
“The Commission shall comprise a Chairman and four other members who shall in the opinion of the Speaker be persons of unquestionable integrity.
“The Chairman and members of the Commission shall be appointed by the Rivers State House of Assembly acting on the advice and recommendation of the House Committee of Selection and shall in making the appointment be guided by the geographical spread and diversity of the people of Rivers State.”
The above section was repealed by the Rivers State House of Assembly Service Commission (Amendment) Law No 3, 2006. In Sections 2 and 3, the Amendment Law provides that:
S. 2 “Section 2 of the Principal Law is amended by repealing subsection (1) and substituting the following subsection:
“(1) The Commission shall comprise a Chairman and 4 (four) other members.
S. 3 “Section 2(2) of the Principal Law is amended by repealing subsection (2) and substituting the following subsection:
“(2) The Chairman and members of the Commission shall be appointed by the Governor subject to the confirmation by the House of Assembly and shall in making the appointment be guided by the geographical spread and diversity of the people of Rivers State.”
The import of the 2024 Amendment Bill passed into Law by the House is that the Governor will no longer have the power to appoint the Chairman and members of the Rivers State House of Assembly Service Commission and the power of appointment shall be vested in the House of Assembly.
Legal Issues
The first issue to consider is the Constitutional power of the Governor. Section 5(2) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 provides that the executive powers of the State shall be vested in the Governor of that State.” Further, Section 176(2) provides that: “The Governor of a State shall be the Chief Executive of that State.”
This follows that the Governor is the Chief Executive Officer of the State Government and by the powers vested on him, is responsible for making appointments into various executive bodies, subject to the provisions of the 1999 Constitution and other statutes. All Commissions and other parastatals are executive bodies under the control of the Governor. The House of Assembly Service Commission is an executive body and as such, the Chairman and members can only be appointed by the Governor. The House of Assembly has no powers to make any appointment into an executive body as no statutory body is under the control of the legislature. The Rivers State House of Assembly should not mistake the presence of the building of the Service Commission in its premises as conferring powers on the House to appoint the Chairman and members of the Commission.
The second issue to consider is the Constitutional alteration of 2023. In that alteration, the Third Schedule was amended to include State Houses of Assembly Service Commissions, which invariably follows that a State House of Assembly Commission is one of State bodies established by section 197 of the 1999 Constitution. Let’s be reminded that Section 198 of the 1999 Constitution gives the Governor the power of appointment into various executive bodies, subject to confirmation by a resolution of the House of Assembly of a State. The job of the Rivers State House of Assembly ends with the confirmation of the appointees.
The alteration to the Third Schedule, paragraph 1A provides that the composition, tenure, structure, finance, functions, powers, and other proceedings of the Commission shall be as prescribed by a law of the House of Assembly of the State. Notice that the appointment of the Chairman and members of the Commission is not listed. Therefore, it can be safely inferred that the power to appoint the Chairman and members of the House of Assembly Service Commission lies with the Governor, as is the case with the other bodies listed under Section 197 of the 1999 Constitution.
There is nothing in the Alteration that, by any stretch of imagination, can be inferred to confer the power of appointing the Chairman and members of the Rivers State House of Assembly Service Commission on the Rivers State House of Assembly, notwithstanding the fact that the law creating the Commission was enacted by the Rivers State House of Assembly.
Thirdly, is the Rivers State House of Assembly Service Commission and its staff under the control of the State Government? To answer this question, we will take our voyage to Section 318 of the 1999 Constitution. That section gives the definition of a Public Service of a State to mean: “the service of the state in any capacity in respect of the government of the state and includes service as: clerk or other staff of the House of Assembly; member of staff of the High Court, the Sharia Court of Appeal, the Customary Court of Appeal or other courts established for a state by the Constitution or by a law of a House of Assembly; member or staff of any Commission or authority established for the state by this Constitution or by a law of a House of Assembly; staff of any Local Government Council; staff of any statutory corporation established by a law of a House of Assembly; staff of any educational institution established or financed principally by a government of a State; and staff of any company or enterprise in which the government of a State or its agency holds controlling shares or interest.
The purport of this section is that the Assembly Service Commission is not an appendage of the legislature but under the control of the State Government. Even at the national level, the members of the National Assembly Service Commission are appointed by the President in collaboration with the National Assembly.
Fourthly, what is the position of the Rivers State House of Assembly Service Commission Law vis-à-vis the National Assembly Service Commission Act? Section 4(5) of the 1999 Constitution provides: “If any Law enacted by the House of Assembly of a State is inconsistent with any law validly made by the National Assembly, the law made by the National Assembly shall prevail, and that other law shall, to the extent of inconsistency, be void.”
Further, in A.G Bendel v AG Federation & 22 Ors (1982) 3 NCLRI, the Supreme Court held per Fatayi Williams CJN (as he then was) “neither a State nor an individual can contract out of the provisions of the Constitution. The reason for this is that a contract to do a thing which cannot be done without a violation of the Law is void.”
The fifth issue is: “can a statute revive a repealed statute?” In the case of Idehen v University of Benin, Suit No FHC/B/CS/120/2001, delivered on 19th December, 2001, the court held that:
“Contrary to the contention of the University, the effect of a repealing statute is to erase the repealed statute from the statute book. When a statute is repealed, it ceases to exist and no longer forms part of the laws of the land. In other words, the effect of the repeal is to render the repealed statute dead and non-existent in law. Like a dead person, it cannot be revived.”
The court also held in Onagoruwa v IGP (1991) 75 N.W.L.R (pt. 193) 593 that in law, a non-existent statute is dead and cannot be saved or salvaged by the court.
In Madumere v Onuoha (1999) 8 NWLR (Pt. 615) Pg 422, the Court of Appeal held that:
“the effect of repealing a statute is to obliterate it completely from the records of the Parliament as if it had never been passed. Such a law is to be regarded legally as a law that never existed…This means in effect that when a statute is repealed, it ceases to be an existing law under the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
For the purpose of reviving your memory, the provision giving the Governor the power to appoint the Chairman and members of the Rivers State House of Assembly Service Commission under the repealed 2006 Law provides in its opening paragraph:
“3. Section 2(2) of the Principal Law is amended by repealing section 2 and substituting the following section…” (emphasis mine).
Further, Section 6(1)(a) of the Interpretation Act provides:
“(1) The repeal of an enactment shall not revive anything not in force or existing at the time when the repeal takes effect.”
Please note that Section 318(4) of the 1999 Constitution provides that “The Interpretation Act shall apply for the purposes of interpreting the provisions of this Constitution.”
It follows from the above that the House cannot repeal Sections 2 and 3 of the Rivers State House of Assembly Service Commission (Amendment) Law No 3, 2006 to revive the already repealed provisions of the 1999 Law.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the Rivers State House of Assembly lacks the powers, legal or otherwise, to remove the power of appointment of the Chairman and members of the Rivers State House of Assembly Service Commission from the Governor and vest that power on themselves. The provision in the Rivers State House of Assembly Service Commission (Amendment) Law, 2024 seeking to vest that power on the House is in clear contravention of the 1999 Constitution, and therefore, a nullity in the eyes of the Law. See the case of MacFoy v UAC (1961) 3 All ER 1169 where the court held that you cannot put something on nothing and expect it to stand.
In that case, Lord Denning stated: “If an act is void, then it is in law a nullity. It is not only bad, but incurably bad. There is no need for an order of court to set it aside. It is automatically null and void without more ado, though it is sometimes more convenient to have the court declare it to be so. And every proceeding which is founded on it is also bad and incurably bad. You cannot put something on nothing and expect it to stay there. It will collapse.”
Rt Hon Ehie is Chief of Staff, Government House, Port Harcourt.
By: Edison Ehie