DELTA OBEDIENT ELDERS’ COUNCIL EVALUATES ONGOING #ENDBADGOVERNANCE PROTEST

The nation-wide hunger protest in Nigeria with the hashtag #EndBadGovernance, which started on August 1, 2024, has been described as a  demonstration of a commendable determination by Nigerian youths to overcome the intimidation and propaganda of the Tinubu-led Federal Government and their agencies to lure them into lukewarmness and inaction. 

The fact that the youth population ignored the hypocritical pleas by traditional rulers and religious elite to dissuade them from the protest is abundant evidence of the disconnect between these institutions and the younger generation of Nigerian citizens.

Delta Obedient Elders Council made the submissions in a statement signed by its Protem Chairman, Chief Chris. O. Biose and Protem Secretary, Chief Solomon Akani.

The Obedient elders noted that the demands of the youths were designed to bring about a better, more liveable and just Nigerian state, outlining the demands to include a drastic reduction in the pump price of fuel (PMS) and cost of governance, bridging the yawning gap between emoluments of political office holders and those of other public servants, elimination of grand corruption, bringing Nigerian petroleum refineries to working condition and universal access to basic education. 

The Council said It is regrettable that the civil protest degenerated to violence, looting of property and destruction of public facilities in some parts of the country, which the police reportedly responded to with live bullets, killing about 40 citizens, according to the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), wondering if there there was no other method of crowd control open to the Nigeria Police than shooting people to death.

According to the group, “The complaints by government functionaries and police about unruly behaviour of some protesters have their root cause in the political culture and social practices which the Federal Government refused to address and in most cases, actually encourage for its political gains. Nobody learns or forms a bad habit overnight”. 

“Some of the President’s men complained that the protest involved political demands, failing to understand that the political structure of a country is pivotal to its economy. Both are inseparable.

“After three days of the protest, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu made a nation-wide broadcast at 7am on Sunday, August 4, 2024. He condemned the violent turn of the protests in some parts of the country and reeled out some of the economic measures taken by his government, urging hungry citizens to suspend the protest.

“The President acknowledged the severe suffering of the masses but failed completely to present any fresh policy measure to respond to any of their demands of the protesters. 

“On a general note, we find it shocking that President Tinubu failed to address the issue of horrendous killings of crop farmers in many parts of the country by armed Fulani herdsmen. It is unreasonable to believe that he does not know that this phenomenon is at the root of inability of Nigerian farmers to produce sufficient food for local consumption in the past few years. 

“Nigerians accuse President Tinubu’s administration of lack of accountability, profligacy, expenditure on frivolous items while majority of Nigerians are suffering from intense hunger. He failed to address these issues and was silent about rampaging oil thieves that run down the economy. Worse still, he made no mention of investigating brutal killing of Nigerian citizens by his police men.

“The fact that the President could read such an insensitive speech to toiling Nigerians at such a moment of great expectations from him shows that he is out of touch with the reality in his country. It also shows that he has all the wrong people surrounding him.  

“The factors that consistently generate increasing poverty in Nigeria are systemic, requiring fundamental reforms. These are exactly what the President sought to avoid in his speech. His attitude in this regard emphasizes the need for continuous struggle of patriots to build a just and egalitarian society.

“With respect to the Niger Delta of which Delta State is a part, President Tinubu evinced a total lack of concern for the peculiar problems of the region. All the problems accentuated by his insensitive policies such as unbearable cost of transportation and food are infinitely multiplied in the Niger Delta due to difficulties of water transportation. Unlike land areas of the country, cost of fuel to power boats to move goods to markets in riverine areas of the Niger Delta range between N1,500 and N2,000 per litre. This in turn reflects on cost of food items. 

“In spite of sea water all around, riverine communities have no access to clean potable water due to heavy environmental pollution caused by mindless exploitation of crude oil by International Oil Companies (IOCs) who are protected against rural communities by the Federal Government.

“The case of Ogoni land in Gokana LGA of Rivers State serves as a stark illustration of the Niger Delta condition. Environmental Impact Assessment of Ogoni territory, a Report from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in August 2011, on the consequences of oil exploitation in Ogoni land, reveals that the operation of oil firms left the land in turmoil and an obvious environmental disaster. 

“According to the UNEP report, the Niger Delta region is plagued by administrative neglect, crumbling social infrastructure and services, high unemployment, social deprivation, abject poverty, filth and squalor, and endemic conflict. In spite of the Report of the UNEP, the Federal Government has done next to nothing in the past 13 years to ameliorate these harmful effects. 

“Permanent heat and lack of darkness at night have affected human, animal and plant life in the area incalculably. Thick sooth covers the affected areas, making rain water unfit for human consumption. Palm plants become scorched in the heat while rubber trees stop producing. This poses a serious threat to the local population’s subsistence farming, ecology, veggies, dwellings and metallic minerals.

“Gas flares cause acid rain, which damages crops and vegetation and acidifies rivers and streams. It reduces farm yields and harms human health by increasing the risk of respiratory and lung conditions such as asthma and chronic bronchitis. Other conditions like blindness, impotence, miscarriages, cancer and early deaths are also consequences of gas flares in the Niger Delta”.

The Delta Obedient Elders’ Council stated that In the past 4 days of the protest so far, only three State Governors out of 36, were reported to have come out of their cozy Government Houses to speak to the youths, adding that neither the Federal Government nor any State Government had laid out any policy measure to resolve the demands of the protesters.

The body said it was shocking that an area producing over 80 per cent of the resources which the elite used to purchase luxury items for their private enjoyment received not even the slightest mention in a policy statement by the President of the country.

“This disdainful attitude of the Tinubu administration reinforces the imperative for citizens to intensify their demand for accountability from their political office holders. 

“We, the Delta Obedient Elders’ Council hereby respectfully urge President Tinubu to desist from his grandstanding and address realistic issues that affect the masses. We implore him to urgently address the concerns of Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) and other patriotic organisations in the Niger Delta. If he fails to do so, empty self-adulating television broadcasts may not assuage the righteous anger of long-suffering Niger Delta youths.

“Although the Federal Government takes a lion share of 52.69 per cent from the Federation Account every month, states and local governments receive a sizeable percentage of 26.72 and 20.60 respectively. In June 2024, the total distributable revenue was N2.32 trillion. Of this, the Federal Government received N365.81 billion, state governments received N388.42 billion while local governments collected N282.48 billion. In addition, the sum of N106.50 billion was shared among oil producing states from the 13 per cent Derivation Fund. States also keep 100 per cent of their Internally Generated Revenue. 

“The revenue generating agencies comprising Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), and Nigerian Up stream Development Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) received N20.85 billion, N36.33 billion and N19.46 billion respectively as cost of revenue collections.

“A total net amount of N232.82 billion was disbursed to the FGN consolidated revenue account; N5.58 billion was received as a share of derivation and ecology; N2.79 billion as stabilization fund; N9.38 billion for the development of natural resources; and N10.12 billion to the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.

“Nigeria is awash with Naira but nobody seems to know what the Federal Government and their agencies, states and local governments do with these monies. There is no state in the Federation that has a basic amenity such as functional public water works to supply potable water to households. To varying degrees, education and health facilities are in shambles, compelling citizens who have the means to do so to withdraw their children from public schools to private schools. Intra-city roads, as well as states and local roads are in sorry situation while refuse disposal constitutes a nightmare.

“The yawning gap between elite and mass in Nigeria that defines the Federal Government is replicated with damning enormity at state and local government levels. Workers in states and local governments can barely survive on their monthly salaries compelling them to resort to bribery and corrupt practices to make ends meet while political office holders live large.

“Under this condition, there is absolute need for citizens to demand accountability from their states and local governments. This should include full details of monthly receipt from the Federation Account, Internally Generated Revenue (IGR), 13 per cent derivation (where applicable), loans, Value Added Tax (VAT) and other sources of revenue as well as how these monies are spent. 

“This is particularly necessary in a situation where State Houses of Assembly that are constitutionally empowered to act as checks on State Governments, are mere rubber stamps and conspirators in mismanagement of public funds leading to lack of development at state and grassroots levels throughout the country

“Nigerian youths at state and local government levels need to beam their searchlight on public affairs in their areas with a view to ensuring that public funds are judiciously utilised for the benefit of citizens. They must show their anger in constitutionally or socially accepted means but must never cooperate with thieves and oppressors. 

“In African justice system, where there are no prisons, thieves and other malfeasors are subjected to social sanctions. Women and children boo them if they have the temerity to appear in public places and they hide their faces in shame. That is the minimum sanction. A situation where citizens sing and dance for reputed thieves is unheard of. 

“If bad governance must be brought to an end in Nigeria, citizens must ceaselessly and persistently repudiate it in any contact with their oppressors. It should not be left to civil society organisations (CSOs), or human rights and pro-democracy groups. Agitation for good governance should be a job for all patriotic citizens. Failure to do so, political hawks will continue to prey on the society and everyone suffers.

“The bad governance habit of the Nigerian ruling class may not be obliterated in one fell swoop of a few days of protest. In view of this fact, organisers of the #EndBadGovernance campaign may need to institutionalize it. They may need to make it a regular activity, say, once in a month, similar to the weekly Monday sit-at-home non-violent protest in the South-East. Each protest outing may be concentrated on a particular aspect of concern at each point in time.

“This line of action poses a major organisational challenge particularly when some well-meaning participants may interpret the concept of civil protest in varying ways. Since people do not form new habits overnight, they are most likely to conceptualise it in terms of their traditional ways of reacting to perceived injustice. 

“For this reason, organisers have to undertake a massive project of teaching citizens how to conduct civil protests, using social media, town halls and face to face contacts. This approach poses the problem that government does not want civilized ways of protest and prefer to keep people in the dark about its activities, hence indirectly facilitating anti-social avenues for expressing social grievances. 

“The protesters must also insist on the amendment of the Electoral Act to include as follows:

i. Compulsory use of BVAS for accreditation and transmission of results from the units. 

ii. Collation of transmitted election result from the units to the IREV should be done electronically which should be on display nationwide.

iii. Conducting both Federal and State elections in one day.

iv. Local Government elections should be conducted by INEC and not State Electoral Commision.

v. The appointment of INEC Chairman and Commissioners should be devoid of the Executive input for it to be purely independent.

“Sustainable development in a deeply corrupt country such as Nigeria necessitates relentless momentum of a permanent nature from patriots to mount pressure on government officials to change for good. It requires intelligent and vigilant involvement of all citizens in all ways at all times and at all levels of government in the country”, the Delta Obedient Elders’ body maintained.