By Eberechi Obinagwam
Following the present naira redesign crisis and queues in buying fuel in the country, Director-General, Michael Imoudu National Institute for Labour Studies, MINILS, Ilorin, Kwara state, Issa Aremu addressed the issues as lack of enough democracy.
Aremu made this known on Tuesday during a one-day media engagement, organised by the Labour Writers Association of Nigeria (LAWAN), in collaboration with Friedrich Erbert Stiftung, FES, Foundation, to suggest lasting and enduring ways for free, fair and credible 2023 general elections, with the theme: ‘’Beyond Voting: Roles of Citizens in Ensuring Free, Fair, and Transparent 2023 Elections’’
According to him, he has seen dictatorship rather than democracy. He said Emefiele has done well but the naira policy has been undermined. It has been the less you look the more you see.
He noted the naira crisis would have been avoided, if there was more consultations, stressing that less participations, means less democracy.
“In this issue of naira crisis, we need to ask for more democracy control of the CBN. If it’s in other nation that up till now there is no answer to how much he spent in printing the new Naira notes he would have been impeached. If you cannot get the figure how confident do you have to say print another?” he queried.
With the issues facing the supreme court ruling and CBN taking orders, he canvassed that the next CBN governor should be an independent one not one that is part of the system for a flow of the CBN Act that says it is independent, ”we need to deepen the democratic oversight of it.”
He, however, called for the democratisation of corporate governance of public institutions, including the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, as well as Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC. “The issue of fuel crisis is lack of accountability to subsidies products.”
He commended the Nigeria media for it’s role in fighting for democracy especially during the military era. “democracy is the media and it is through this platform that Nigerians have tried to deliver credible elections from 1999 to this forthcoming elections which is going to be the 6th democratic election.”
Project Manager, Media and 2023 General Elections, FES Foundation, Mrs Remi Ihejirika, in her opening remark said, Nigeria could not be truly democratic without its citizens having the opportunity to choose their representatives through general elections, adjudged as free and fair.
She added that the essence of this project is to know how we can ensure that elections are free and fair and how people can continue to have confidence in the electoral process.
The president of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Joe Ajaero who was represented by Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, Lagos Chapter, Mrs Funmi Sessi, as the keynote speaker commended the federal government for the introduction of BVAS for the forthcoming general elections, saying that it is an improvement of what the country normally has in the past.
She urged Nigerians not to abuse the use of technology for the spread of fake information that is aimed at affecting credible elections.
Regarding the issues the nation is facing, she disclosed NLC have kept quiet because the union does not want to be held responsible to the peaceful and credible elections Nigerians are clamoring for. “We do not want to disturb the peaceful and credible elections with our actions,” she said.
Other stakeholders who spoke at the conference hinted on the naira saga and the need for Nigerians to ensure they make the right choice at the forthcoming general elections.
President of Association of Senior Staff of Banks, Insurance and Financial Institutions, ASSBIFI, comrade Oluwole Olusoji said the success of the forthcoming general elections lies in the hands of citizens, not on the basis of tribalism, religion etc. He urged Nigerians to ensure that they make this sacrifice of coming out to vote so that the right leaders with the nations heart will be emerged.
Director General, Nigeria Employers Consultative Association (NECA), Adewale Oyerinde, represented by head of corporate affairs, Adebola Akinwole, added that the theme of the conference, ”Free, Fair, Transperent, and Inclusive governance are critical in attaining a successful outcome at the 2023 polls because it will greatly impact the socio-economic wellbeing of our nation.
Delivering a talk on the topic, Enhancing Media and Political Parties Role in Promoting Good Participatory Process, Political and Media Analyst from Nigeria Institude of Journalist, (NIJ), Jide Johnson, represented by Fatioyibo Ibrahim urged the media to do more in telling the youths why they should vote.
According to him, “we have complacent youths who feeds more on online reports. Youths who are not willing to read or make research of reports seen online so the media should go and educate secondary school children about electoral process because the country needs participation of youths in the electoral process to strive.”