Pigheadedness is a worst thing that can afflict somebody or a group. In management theory and practice, over centralization breeds inefficiency, muddle and poor output and results.
Nigeria is a “Natural Federation” hence the recommendation for fiscal federalism by the founding fathers of Nigeria independence in 1960. The federal constitution was a product of series of brainstorming session which eventually led to a proper system of government which is Federal system of government with the underlining principles.
Nigeria with the three regional Governments and later four, were developing along their natural and mineral resources while paying the central government certain agreed percent for the running of few ministries like foreign affairs, immigration and defense, while the rest of the ministries , departments and agencies (MDAs) were comfortably ran by the regional Governments. It was the era of “competitive federalism” and the country was progressing.
Sadly, the vaulting and vaunting ambition of the northern Moslems in terms of rigging the census population and rigging the federal elections to have the upper hand in having their preferences in all aspects of governance, led to socioeconomic and political upheavals and the avoidable tragedy of the NIgeria-Biafra war of genocide of no mean magnitude.
Military men were not trained for public administration and knew next to nothing about the systems of government hence the 1966 coup d’etat led the military to throw away the principles of federal system of government and imposed a Federal-Unitary contraption backed up by the 1999 constitution supposedly under Amendments to favour the northern Moslems at the expense and detriment of other southerners.
The clarion calls and nationwide agitation for Restructuring the lopsided federation is simply to go back to where the country derailed, that is the dumping of the 1963 Republican Constitution. Without Restructuring the Federation, it is absolutely impossible for the federal government to manage the critical sectors like education, health, water resources, environment, road rehabilitation and construction, poverty alleviation, etc. These MDAs are naturally belong to the regional or state governments.
It is a well nigh impossibility for the federal government to properly fund the tertiary institutions and healthcare facilities throughout the country. Why behaving like the ostrich which while running away from hunter buried it’s head while the body is exposed in the sand dune foolishly believing that the hunter will not see it?
Year in year out, the federal government is on a loggerheads with the university, polytechnic and health staff over payment of salary, and sundry allowances. The common place stand of the federal government has always been “paucity of funds”.
Centralized government is for the advantage of the Northern Moslems to enable them to continue controlling the country directly and indirectly. They are not bothered about the tragic implications of over centralization of government. This is the same with the awkward centralized security architecture which is to their advantage of Islamisation agenda using the terrorists masquerading as herdsmen from the Sahel region of West Africa as foot soldiers, slaughtering indigenous people of southern Kaduna, middle belt states and down to the southern part of the country for ethnic cleansing and occupying their ancestral lands.
They know that centralized security architecture will stop the insanity. Baring covert agenda, the next leadership of the federal government must first and foremost convoke National Conference of ethnic nationalities for a brand new constitution which will spell out the terms for the continued existence of the ethnic nationalities where no ethno-religious group will be lording over the rest of the ethno-religious groups.
If the incoming administration fails to do that, then the country will be going fast to the Stony Golgotha.
By Polycarp Onwubiko, JP, Author and public policy analyst.
