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| Sen. Femi Okurounmu |
In this interview, a chieftain of the pan-Yoruba
group, Afenifere, Senator Femi Okurounmu,
talks about the current coup alert, Buhari’s
health, restructuring and the Igbo presidency
What do you think about President
Muhammadu Buhari’s letter informing the
National Assembly that Vice President Yemi
Osinbajo would coordinate government affairs
while he is away to the United Kingdom for
medical attention?
There is nothing like ‘coordinating vice
president’ in the constitution. In the event that
the President will not be around to govern, he
is expected to hand over to the vice president
who will then take over as acting president. I
believe that the people who constituted
themselves as a cabal in the presidency were
being mischievous with that expression. The
content of the letter might even not be known
to the President. They might want to upstage
Osinbajo, so that he would not be able to act
as president in the absence of President
Buhari. I am glad that the National Assembly
members discovered the anomaly, and did the
needful. I want to charge Osinbajo to act as
the President and he should not allow anyone
to debar him. It is one thing to give a man a
title, and it is another thing for him to perform
the roles expected of him. Notwithstanding the
contents of his letter of appointment, Osinbajo
should act as the President and let his people
know that they are not second-class citizens.
The Chief of Army Staff raised the alarm
recently that some individuals have begun
approaching some officers and soldiers for
undisclosed political reasons. What’s your
view about that?
The Chief of Army staff is only flying a kite to
see how people will react if there is a coup. It
is the Hausa-Fulani cabal – each time they
feel threatened that power might slip from
their hands, they think of a coup. All other
coups save for the (Kaduna) Nzeogwu and
(Gideon) Orkar coups, were all planned by the
northerners. They did not want a repeat of
what happened during the late President
Umaru Yar’Adua when (Goodluck) Jonathan
became president. So, they are already
preparing to retain the presidency in case
anything happens to President Buhari.
Some Nigerians want the President to declare
his health status. Do you think Buhari should
tell Nigerians what’s ailing him?
If Nigerians are the ones that elected him as
their president, then he owes Nigerians the
right to know. Nigerians should know the
condition of their president’s health. He is no
more a private person.
Anybody can fall sick. The President’s health
issue should be of public knowledge. By not
letting Nigerians know, the northerners are
riding roughshod over us – southerners. They
are exploiting our timidity. When it comes to
facing the excesses of the North, a lot of us in
the South can’t face them and assert our
right.
We behave like an already conquered people.
We always think northerners can do whatever
they like and there is nothing we can do –
that is the attitude of a conquered people. We
should exercise our rights as equal citizens
with equal rights and stop allowing the
northern cabal ride roughshod over us.
There is an alleged lopsidedness in the recent
recruitment exercise into the Department of
State Services in favour of the North which the
National Assembly is currently looking into…
The National Assembly is late in looking into
it. From day one that President Buhari took off
with his administration, it took off on this
same note, in which all security chiefs and
heads of government parastatals were all
northerners. It was only Afenifere and a few
others that spoke against that. Prominent
individuals and groups especially in the South
remained silent. A lot of the Yoruba behaved
as if it did not concern them. Again, when
President Buhari sacked officers from the
military, they were all southerners. When
herdsmen were marauding and killing people,
Buhari did nothing. But let the people being
killed rise to defend themselves, then there
would be another form of offensive against
them. So, the DSS recruitment is following the
same pattern. It is not a new development. It
has got to a crushing level. The government at
the centre can be described as the government
of the Hausa-Fulani for the Hausa-Fulani,
with other Nigerians as their subjects.
Reently there was a clash in Ile Ife between the
Yoruba and the Hausa, but only Yoruba
suspects were taken to Abuja and charged.
The northerners believe that we are a
conquered people, we are their subjects. All
the security chiefs are Hausa-Fulani. See what
is happening in Southern Kaduna and Benue,
where herdsmen were killing people. How
many people have they arrested? No arrest
has been made.
But let the people try to defend themselves
and anything happens to the Hausa-Fulani,
then they will rise and start killing them. That
is how conquered people are being treated.
What is your reaction to the decision by the
National Assembly to increase its allocation in
the 2017 budget?
Nigerians are suffering, they are crying,
salaries are not being paid, still the National
Assembly (lawmakers) behave as if they are
oases.
They feel unconcerned. The National Assembly
as it is today is a problem to Nigerians and
not until people march there and drive them
out there won’t be a solution. They budget for
themselves and not for the people. They have
refused to disclose what a lawmaker takes
home annually. One is not talking about the
salary, but other money they budget for
expenses to run their offices. They have
quarterly allocation. Ironically, Prof. Itse
Sagay, the presidential adviser against
corruption, used to be the one crying out
against the illegal funds to senators, but ever
since he got to that office, he has become
blinded. He no longer talks about it anymore,
even when it has become worse.
I agree with former President Olusegun
Obasanjo who referred to them (federal
lawmakers) as thieves. Budget padding is still
going on. Hon. (Abdulmumin) Jibrin once
raised the alarm on this, but instead of cross-
checking his claims, Jibrin was persecuted.
Since then, budget has continued to be
padded. Nigerians should stop expecting the
budget; it’s not for their welfare. It is for those
in government; the executive, legislature and
judiciary to have enough money to steal.
What projects have they executed with the
budget, year-in, year-out, for the benefit of the
masses?
But the Federal Government has just
introduced a free meal a day for pupils in
primary schools in some states in the country.
Is this not laudable?
They promised this and good enough they are
implementing it. But I must let you know that
there are some hitches as far as the
programme is concerned in Ogun State. I
relate with some of the primary school
teachers, and what I gathered from them was
that some of the food vendors might show up
for one month and they would vanish the next
month. So it (the programme) is not
consistent. They are fooling the people
because the pupils are not getting the
promised meals. I don’t know of a school
where it’s been consistent.
The Afenifere which you belong has always
rooted for restructuring but some people have
called for true federalism and good
governance. Which do you advocate for?
Without restructuring of the country, we can’t
have good governance. Without restructuring,
the kind of governance we will have is the type
where Hausa-Fulani will dominate.
Restructuring remains the only solution. It is
the only means of achieving true federalism,
as it was practised between 1960 and 1966.
That was when we reaped economic progress.
It was true federalism that aided the Western
Region economically; same with the North and
the East. The region based its priorities on the
needs of its people. Those were the golden
ages of Nigeria. But ever since the military
obliterated that constitution and gave us
unitary constitution, which was transferred to
the civilians, Nigeria’s progress has been
reversed. What could be referred to as fast-
moving stream of development is now a
polluted stream moving nowhere in which
people are defecating. Until we have true
federalism we can’t clean the stream and get
it moving again.
What do you think of clamour for Igbo
presidency?
If we have true federalism, Igbo presidency is
possible, because it won’t matter who
emerges as president. When I talked about the
golden age, the Western Region did not have
prime minister, but it developed faster. If there
is true federalism, the federating units will be
stronger, and they will only be sending certain
percentages of their income to the pool at the
centre. Policies at the centre will not hold any
region back. In order to have a sense of
belonging, people from any part of Nigeria
must have a chance to become a president of
the country. The presidency should not be
classified as the exclusive preserve of a
particular ethnic group.
That was why at the National Conference of
2014, we made a provision that it should
alternate between the North and the South
and rotate among the six geopolitical zones.
Each zone will have a shot at the presidency.
But the recommendations were not
implemented. President Buhari said he has
kept them in the archives. That means he was
not interested in implementing them.
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and
many others have been advocating for
restructuring. Isn’t that encouraging?
A northerner can promise anything if he wants
power. In 2007, Afenifere supported President
Buhari when he promised restructuring and
true federalism in his manifesto when he was
in All Nigeria’s People’s Party. We made
special dresses and campaigned for him in
Ibadan. The same President Buhari in 2015
had jettisoned what he promised in 2007.
So, that Atiku is supporting restructuring
means nothing to me. All they want is power
to control the rest of us.
Many Nigerians are being deported from
African and European countries almost on a
monthly basis, while 10,000 others reportedly
died trying to cross the Mediterranean Sea in
search of greener pastures. What do you think
is responsible for this?
It is the (poor) state of the economy that is
driving Nigerians abroad. Every day, we see on
social media how Nigerians are either being
killed or our girls are used as sex slaves
abroad. I wonder what our embassies in these
countries are doing. Or don’t we have
embassies there? We need a government that
is responsive; a government that will see all
Nigerians as one. If a citizen of the United
States of America is maltreated anywhere, all
Americans feel the pain, but here, our leaders
don’t feel the pain.
Do you see Nigeria getting out of this mess
one day?
The entire political class today no matter what
party they belong, are all the same. They are
all in politics for fame and fortune. Everyone
wants to be there and take their own share.
That is why you see them (politicians)
defecting from one party to the other. The
present crop of politicians cannot save us. We
need youths in their 30s and 40s to form new
political parties where they are driven by the
vision to make Nigeria be at par with fast-
developing and developed nations. They
should ignore the present crop of politicians
and form a new political party with a vision
and mission. Realignment of the existing
political parties cannot help. We need the
youth with new orientation and new sense of
values; this will help in creating a new
political party, with positive values. That is
the way forward.
Pastor Tunde Bakare recently noted that the
current attacks by herdsmen against some
communities if not checked could degenerate
into a civil war. Do you agree with that?
If the rampaging herdsmen, invading
communities and killing people are not
checked by the relevant security agencies,
those who are affected may resort to self-
defence. I just hope the security agencies will
rise to the occasion and do the needful before
it will degenerate to the level of a civil war.
They should not be seen to be helpless. They
should stop the needless waste of lives and
destruction of property. Unless they are saying
these are not mere herdsmen on rampage.
The signing of the budget is also generating
controversy. Some are saying the Acting
President, Yemi Osinbajo, should sign it, while
others disagree. What should be done?
Since the President has said the Vice
President should act in his absence, I think he
(Yemi Osinbajo) should sign the budget. While
I pray for the President to get well and return
home soon, we don’t know for how long we
still have to wait.
What’s your assessment of this
administration?
The administration has not performed to the
expectations of Nigerians. Everybody is
disillusioned. The Igbo are crying for Biafra.
There is disenchantment in the South-South. If
you ask people in the South-West – they may
not say it – it is the same thing.
Culled from Punch.
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