A former Director of the National Orientation Agency in Enugu State, Dr Augustine Okolie, Thursday, said zoning arrangements in Nigeria had not yielded the anticipated results, hence it should be jettisoned for leaders to emerge on merit.
Dr Okolie, who spoke against the backdrop of the statement credited to former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar that the 2027 presidency be zoned to the North on the basis that the southern part had had a higher number of years than their northern counterpart, advised Nigerian
electorate to be wiser henceforth.
Okolie said the zoning arrangements as agreed, though not written, were for the sake of equity and justice among all nations of Nigeria.
He however said the arrangements had been abused by politicians because electoral institutions in the country and the judiciary are compromised.
According to him, “We agreed on a North-South zoning formula. But it has not worked for the Nigerian masses.
“Nigerians are organic, and not a pendulum that swings from North to South.
“We now need strong and viable democratic institutions, including political parties,
Independent National Electoral Commission and the judiciary to get our electoral system right.
“When these institutions are made strong, Nigerians will then make choices. Unfortunately, the president of Nigeria is the strongest in the world; he wields a lot of power.”
He advocated a return to regionalism, admitting that the federal system of government in practice in Nigeria has failed.
In his words, “We have states as the federating units. Most states borrow to pay salaries. What is wrong in structuring Nigeria into six regions or four as we had in the First Republic?”
He advised Nigerians to learn from their past mistakes in making electoral choices with emotions.
He stated, “Nigerians should be
wiser. The caveat is how leadership is procured in Nigeria.
“This is a country where courts determine who wins elections and not the electorate.
“That is why privileged ones tell those they rig out to go to court; because they have the courts in their pockets. Nigerians are not fools.
“See what happened in Ghana and the US! Elections were announced a day after they were conducted with the ruling party losing in the US.
“Nigerians should seek reputable leaders and not governors
who can’t even read their budgets. We don’t need leaders who learn on the job.
“There are many quality people in Nigeria who can take this country to the promised land.
“The problem is the process of the recruitment. Our system doesn’t allow a majority to choose their leaders. And if the electorate protests, they might be shot.
“Let candidates emerge on merit, and not as an entitlement.”