Olawale Olaleye
Any 57-year-old will certainly have a story to tell – good or bad, positive or negative, of success and/or of failure. This, perhaps, is the reason a lucky few, who are privileged to hit the number 60 usually roll out the drums for a recap of their lives at diamond jubilee. Nigeria is definitely not an exception. That she has paid and continues to pay the price, although at a very high cost, for nationhood is trite.
From the amalgamation of the Southern and the northern protectorates in 1914 to the struggle for independence in 1960 and the post-independence tribulations of a rather promising black nation, the path to a desirable society had been quite undulating and paved with a degree of uncertainty, albeit with proportional if not higher promises.
But in spite of her unavoidably stuttering start, Nigeria’s forefathers appeared more futuristic in their approach and projection to nationhood. Their education and exposure bespoke their foresight. They were not oblivious of the fact that Nigeria was potentially a great nation and all that they pondered and did were conceived and designed to suit the future they had envisioned for many generations to come.
Unfortunately, however, while the reality of Nigeria’s contemporary challenges may differ from those of her formative years, over the years, deliberate efforts had been made through towards nationhood. A majority of these efforts were sculpted to foster unity and national integration.
NYSC
The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) is an organisation set up by government to involve the nation’s graduates in the development of their fatherland. Since 1973, when the idea birthed, graduates of universities and later polytechnics have been required to take part in the NYSC programme for a year, otherwise known as national service year.
By virtue of this programme, Corp members are posted to cities far from their city of origin and are expected to mix with people of other tribes, social and family backgrounds, to learn the culture of the indigenes in the place they are posted to. The motive here is to foster national unity and help the youths appreciate other ethnic groups. The NYSC objectives are clearly spelt out in Decree No.51 of 16th June 1993. But over the years, this scheme has come under threat following growing calls that it should be scrapped. The calls heightened after the 2011 presidential election when some corp members of southern origin posted to the North were killed during the crisis that trailed the election.
FEDERAL CHARACTER PRINCIPLE /
QUOTA SYSTEM
The federal character principle seeks to ensure that appointments to public service institutions reflect the linguistic, religious, tribal and geographical diversity of the country. The aim is to ensure that no section of the Nigerian society is left out in the scheme of things. To ensure that areas of the country which are labeled as disadvantaged are not left behind, a quota system also exist for filling appointive positions and educational slots, among others.
The Federal Character Commission was specifically instituted with the sole responsibility to promote, monitor and enforce compliance with the principles of the proportional sharing of all bureaucratic, economic, media and political posts at all levels of government. Though this policy’s objective is to promote unity in diversity and ensure no section is left out in the affairs of the country, criticisms have continued to trail its application on the ground that its sacrifices merit for mediocracy. There are complaints that the principle favours a part of the country considered disadvantaged at the expense of others. However, the fact that the initiative was originally conceived to address some of the challenges exposing the nation’s fault lines is not lost on all.
GOWON’S 3Rs
At the end of the civil war in 1970, General Yakubu Gowon, then Nigeria’s Head of State’s “No Victor, No Vanquished†declaration was acknowledged the world over. He also instituted the 3Rs—Rehabilitation, Reconstruction and Reintegration in order to keep the fragile peace of the nation. The aim was to rehabilitate those displaced by the 2 ½ year civil war, reintegrate them into the Nigerian society and embark on massive reconstruction of infrastructure destroyed by the war. This was done so that the wounds orchestrated by the war would heal faster and allow for the reintegration of the various tendencies at the time. Sadly, there have been debates on whether or not the initiative achieved results through objective and effective implementation? That is a question that would generate endless debate today if thrown open. That notwithstanding, there was a leader at the time who rose to the demands of nation-building.
NIREC
The Nigeria Inter-Religious Council (NIREC) is an independent union, voluntarily formed by the leaders of the nation’s two most recognised religious faiths – Christianity and Islam. It is composed of 50 members, made up of 25 Christian and 25 Muslim leaders and co-chaired by the Sultan of Sokoto, the leader of the Muslims in Nigeria, and his counterpart, the President of the Christian Association of Nigeria.
Formed in 1999, one of its cardinal mandates is to provide a platform for regular interaction and understanding between leaders of the two faiths with a view to reducing the religious conflicts that have bedeviled the nation for decades.
Not surprisingly, the Council was believed to have carried on well in the past sixteen years until recently. It had organised seminars on conflict management and resolution, international relations and terrorism and offering advice to government on ways of governing to impact positively on the lives of people.
In recent time, however, there seems to be a palpable wedge between the Christian and the Muslim leaders of the Council, especially during the 2014 national confab put together by former President Jonathan. While the Muslim Leaders, with Ishaq Oloyede as spokesman, complained that the Conference was skewed against the interest of Muslims, his Christian counterpart, Sunny Oibe, retorted that the Sultan, Sa’ad Abubakar (III), had frustrated attempts to convene meetings of the Council until the tenure of his co-chair, Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor ended.
The effects of Boko Haram terrorism also heightened suspicion between the two sides. While it may be correct that the Council has not been able to effectively stem religious conflicts, truth is that it has helped to arrest the possibility of reprisal attacks at other times. But mutual suspicion currently exist between the two religious bodies that constitute NIREC, over allegations by CAN of plot to Islamise the the country
INTERVENTION POLICIES/AGENCIES
There were also several other efforts by government over the years to reach out to people in remote areas of the country, meet their needs and inspire a sense of belong in them. For example, the Directorate of Food, Roads and Rural Infrastructure was believed to have represented a marked shift in focus from previous policies, because of its unprecedentedly wide scope. Encompassing the increased and improved production of agricultural inputs, the development of social and economic infrastructure, community participation in development, and technological improvement in the agricultural practice, DDFRI was designed to leave no stone unturned in the project of national, social and economic prosperity.
A rather ambitious programme during its time, the policy had eighteen objectives centered round poverty alleviation, nutrition, health, and the development of infrastructure (electricity, feeder roads, boreholes, waterways). Although past policies had emphasised rural development, what was unique about DFRRI was its emphasis on rural infrastructure as the key to forestalling future development challenges and the most expedient course of action Nigeria could take in its development history.
Its belief that rural development was “not a pipe dream†was drawn from the success stories of the Asian Tigers and with a fresh start as well as the best of intentions, it was believed that all that was required was the “individual, collective and national willpower and the opportunity to make a serious, honest, and well concerted beginning.
There was also the Oil Mineral Producing Areas Development Commission (OMPADEC) established by decree No, 23 of July, 1992, for the twin purpose of rehabilitating and developing the Oil Mineral Producing Areas of Nigeria, which had been subjected to the devastating effects of ecological destruction and environmental pollution. It was believed that part of the solution to the socio-economic problems of the oil producing communities was the development of human resources, which borders on the development of education.
Thus, OMPADEC, as part of its strategies for developing human resources, projected the provision of post-graduate professional scholarship scheme and establishment of Science Centres. While the latter was achieved, the scholarship scheme didn’t quite take off. But the educational sector gained tremendously as OMPADEC financed the completion of on-going projects in schools inherited from the Presidential Task Force, giving the oil producing region an appreciable sense of belonging. OMPADEC was believed to have inspired the creation of Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC). There are several other intervention programmes and policies aimed at promoting unity, changing national orientation and harnessing human and natural resource for the building of a strong and united nation.
