AYO ADEBANJO, former national chairman of the Alliance for Democracy and leading member of the Yoruba socio-political association, Afenifere, is a delegate to the National Conference. In this interview with Assistant Editor, North, CHUKS EHIRIM, he, among other issues, blames “insider elements” for the Boko Haram insurgency, saying Nigerians want to live together.
What is your take on the views by some people, that the federal government should dissolve all democratic structures in the three states under state of emergency?
Ayo AdebanjoThat is uncalled for. It will not produce the solution to the current security problems in those parts of the country. I will like everybody to really look at the issue very well. This thing is beyond politics because the whole country is suffering as a result. We are suffering as a result of the unrest there. All hands must be on deck to sort this thing out.
If the thing is easy to solve, why have we been with this Boko Haram insurgency for almost four years now? It is not a creation of one government or another. The local people must be up and doing, in the interest of the people, particularly the governors. They should pull resources together. They are playing with the lives of ordinary citizens.
How do you see the altercation between the president and the state governors, especially the governor of Adamawa State, on the issue?
I don’t agree with the altercation. It is equally uncalled for. It is not in the interest of the country. We must be patriotic enough to look at this thing holistically and not on any partisan perspective.
What advice do you have for the military authorities in going against terrorism?
I think the military should gear up for the challenges because ordinary citizens can’t handle it. If they have not been doing enough, we can only encourage them to do better. If you ask them to back off, to cease doing the job, the situation will be worse. If we want to be realistic, if we believe they are not doing enough, we should ask them to buckle up.
With the experiences they are having now, they should have known what the problems are and how to rectify them. It is not a question of abandoning them or saying: well, you are not doing well; so back out. If the civilians or governors think they are not doing well enough, can they alone face the Boko Haram? One of the things that give me anxiety is that in the recent kidnap of some secondary school children in Borno, a delegate said he knows that area very well and that the area has tarred road. How did these Boko Haram people ply the road for that distance, without being detected? Were there no military checkpoints there? Honestly I am really confused.
That is why I believe there must be insider elements involved. They should stop attacking Jonathan. They should look inward and see what is happening.
Do you think that is not a failure on the part of the military?
That is why I am insisting that there must be something inside. I agree with you; there must be something inside. Those in charge of the military should work on that and see where the lapses are. That notwithstanding, I will still give the military some kudos because they have been consigning these people to an area, unlike before. I believe we should all put our heads together to resolve this common menace.
Let us come back to the conference. As a delegate and an elder statesman, throughout the plenary, it was observed that the delegates were not talking as nationalists; that people argued on the basis of where they come from, either the geo-political zone or the part of the country, North or South.
You were bound to have the argument you are talking about. That is why we have come together. If we had agreed on everything, there would have been no need for the conference. That is why I give kudos to the president for yielding to the quest for dialogue among the peoples of Nigeria to argue among themselves over the cause of disaffection and see how to solve it. That they are reacting here and there is to be expected. For instance, from the interactions we have been having for about three to four weeks, we are understanding one another the better. Some people misunderstand true federalism; some people misunderstand regionalism and all that. Now we explain to one another. We have been together in Nigeria. Nobody will want the country to break up. What we are emphasising is that we want to live in peace.
But there seem to be people who are rigid in their positions, especially when it comes to certain demands other people are making. For instance there are people who feel that if the fiscal federalism, which you are in support of, is allowed, they will lose out.
Yes, there are. They have discussed it with me and I told them if the people insist on their terms, I am one of those to be affected, but there is nothing anybody can do about it. What fiscal federalism or derivation, so to say, is all about is that the area that produces anything should have the benefit of majority of the thing. My belief is that it may not pay some parts of the country now; but eventually when everybody goes back to do his homework, there is no state that is not rich.
You don’t seem to be in active politics again. You were the national chairman of the Alliance for Democracy (AD)? Which of the parties are you in now?
I do not see any principled ideology in many of the parties you are talking of. I am sorry I am still in active politics, but I am not in any of them.
So which one are you in?
I am in the new Social Democratic Party (SDP) that is being formed by Olu Falae. That is where we are going.
What are the chances of the new SDP winning election?
We are not bent on winning elections. We are for what is right for the country. We haven’t got the money to waste. It is money that the other parties are spending. None of them would say: I am going to stand on any philosophy. They have thugs and money. We haven’t got these. We have philosophy and ideology that if you don’t vote for us, you and your children will suffer.