A careful assessment of man’s often predisposition to issues of public interest reveals that more often than not, things are taken for granted. This account to a greater degree, for the abysmal failure of public officers to respond as appropriate to the yearnings and aspirations of the people they purport to serve let alone make themselves accountable. Little wonder the seemingly endless pervasive attitude of possessive individualism some public officers manifest in their quest for self-actualization. This has been observed to be the case particularly in such climes as the third world. Not that traits such as self-actualization is abominable. No! However, when such is deployed for anything other than the good of the generality, especially in a position designed for the benefit of all, then God help the society for the consequences can only rather be imagined.

By all indications, man, as the highest socio-political animal, has been found to be the most dynamic. By implication, he is unpredictable and as such untrustworthy. Perhaps, I need say, man’s attitude that could be vouched for remains his natural inclination to chameleonic changes, sometimes in degrees quite unimaginable. Although this has been attributed to politicians more specifically but it is obviously noted as man’s attribute, with which he needs contend, and it often impugn on his integrity, I dare say!

Truthful as the foregoing submission may seem, its application is contestable, for it cannot be generalized. Only some category of man could score distinction in such spheres of abhorable traits; for there are men. Yes, real men; people of impeccable character, men of integrity, reputable for honesty, sincerity of purpose in whatever they do. Such are people commitment to causes of humanity, however the challenges. People with principles geared towards human capacity development for humanity as opposed to those who exploit human capacity unashamedly for the actualization of self only. Those are people who would not dwell conservatively in some morbid, parochially unpatriotic superiority complex in the guise of being principled. In civilized climes, people of such rare qualities of leadership are sought, encouraged and empowered through placement in lines of duties, irrespective of their creed or race, for the benefit of the society in particular and humanity in general.

Sadly, far removed from this is the Nigerian society. Not that we do not have such men but we chose to ignore them, however conspicuous they may appear. In their place, we foist never-do-wells by reasons of naught but sentiments. And this is common-place in practically every nook and cranny of our dear country. As a consequence, we witness daily, perhaps as routine, cases of leadership corruption and ineptitude in matters of state requiring urgent disposition. On issues of welfare, which is grossly in the doldrums, we are greeted with outright complacency, and, worst of all, exploitation of hapless citizens, through the denial of rights.

In the context of this discussion, considering the several criticisms of the legislators of the National Assembly, ranging from the outcry against the jumbo quarterly allowance vis-à-vis the neglect of their constituencies, to what has been witnessed of the investigative hearings conducted by them, and, of course, the scathing criticisms of the former President Obasanjo, in his famous observation while delivering a paper on the topic “Integrity is Necessary for Systems and Institutions to be Strong”, on Tuesday, 22nd May, 2012, it is expected that the law makers would seek, at least, to regain public confidence. However, a peep into the goings-on, particularly on the treatment of their aides, leaves much to be desired. This, to me, suggests that quite a lot needs be done by no less a force than a combination of the leadership and the commission to salvage the plight of the aides and the image of this hallmark of democracy called the legislature.

One cannot but recall the disclosures on the fact that legislative aides, in the early days of the enthronement of democratic governance, between 1999 and 2003, had crisis-prone issues with their principals through whom their pay-packs were issued to them. This precipitated tense situations given the susceptibility of the arrangement to manipulation by those ‘who pay the piper’, and this is Nigeria, where, as a keen public affairs analyst would say, ‘anything goes’ hence, the resolve to subject the legislative aides salaries to the pay system of government.

Laudable as this seems, the system itself makes the aides much more vulnerable. In my opinion, the practice is wrought with inconsistency of sort: according to the National Assembly Service Commission, the appointments are basically short service non-pensionable but the salaries are determined by public service conditions. This, to me is a combination of quasi-political cum civil service job. The implication of this and, indeed, the practice is that the aides are restricted to salary only but such other aspects bordering on the welfare of the aides are left ‘hanging’, at the discretion of the legislators. This is questionable, for it is counter-productive as gives much room for abuse. Nothing of an employee’s actual emoluments and salary should be left to the discretion of the employer, for obvious reasons, however the mode of acquisition of the job.

In confirmation of this fear, unfortunately, some members of the hallowed chambers, banking on the precarious socio-economic situation in the country, with the attendant debilitating effects, chose to exploit hapless Nigerians: to this category, nothing but ‘casualization’ of the legislative aides work is the answer to the challenges of the office: for instance while some employ and list their aides to benefit from the system (by receiving their salary as appropriate albeit without any other benefits, in terms of housing and transport) others, cashing in on the pervading joblessness, employ young Nigerian graduates for the same jobs on ridiculous stipends. Such legislators keep the names of people who, of course, are known only to them in the pay-roll of the Commission, to receive the actual salary of aides, while other hapless Nigerians, cut up in the web of unemployment, are put on stipends to do the jobs, whether as secretaries or aides. In some cases, these ‘ghost’ aides are the ones who attend the periodic workshops meant to train people on the job. How sad!

It is quite unfortunate that this category of legislators do not see the compelling need to make their aides comfortable if nothing but for the sake of humanity. Or is it that the scope of the legislative aides responsibilities, which cover such crucial areas as administration, communication, public relations and research and documentation, as well as other support services all geared towards the success of their principals, is too little to be so ignored? Why could they not have a rethink to emulate some of their colleagues who, in all ramifications, are quite exemplary in their attitude towards and treatment of their aides, and by extension, constituents?

As a critical arm of government saddled with the fundamental responsibility of appropriation and utilization of funds of government, besides law-making, it should have been able to live above board.

The National Assembly, in terms of its position in the structure of government vis-à-vis the strategic responsibilities constitutionally charged with it, has the capacity to address the enormity of the constantly emerging challenges and the rising need to stem such challenges, as well as the recurrent ones. Today, the extent of the realization of the feat remains to be seen. Without making any sweeping generalizations, I hasten to add that the doctrine of necessity propounded to bail Nigeria out of the political debacle/logjam prior to the disclosure of our late President’s death in 2010 shall, indeed, remain indelible in the annals of our nation.

It would not be preposterous to state that a search for the last category of legislators, discussed in the foregoing, would not but be a sine-qua-non to the realization of the laudable philosophy for the establishment of the hallmark of democracy, the legislature. This, to me, is a noble duty which need be accomplished. Irrespective of the relationship we may share, the onus lies on every Nigerian to remain steadfast in making dispassionate opinions about those that may strive to lead us. The commitment towards getting only the best need compel our search for and entrust leadership positions on competent, experienced, tested and trusted people, capacitated enough to stand the test of time.

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Nuhu Ogirima, a senior lecturer, unionist and former Senior Legislative Aide (SLA), writes from FCE Okene, Kogi State

One of the many things that that tireless nonconformist, Fela Anikulapo Kuti, did for Nigerian music was to change it from merely a medium for praising and ingratiating the rich and mouthing romantic platitudes to a medium for mass enlightenment and crusading against bad leadership and social injustice. With his raw and coarse vocals and poignant and defiant lyrics, laced with jazzy melody and heavy percussions, his songs expressed the pains and frustration, and sometimes, hopes and aspirations of the Nigerian masses.

Then, as Fela sang, Nigeria, for the most part, was under military despotism. Nigerians were dismayed by the military’s heavy-handedness, bungled governance, irresponsible policies, arbitrariness and brutality. His songs reflected the mood of the people, especially their exasperation with the pervading social injustice and the excesses of the military power elite. So, they were censorious, and sometimes, mournful. In one of his dirges, he sang: suffer dey African kpakparakpa, and we dey suffer kpakparakpa. In another, he sang about: everybody run, run, run; everybody scatter, scatter; police dey come, army dey come; somebody nearly died, somebody just died; ten minutes later, police don go away, army don disappear; They leave sorrow, tears and blood.

However, as Nigerians chafed under military dictators, they found consolation in that, by training and orientation, the soldiers were ill-equipped for political leadership. Secondly, military rule was an aberration expected to be short lived. So, Nigerians were hopeful. In their optimism, they imagined a post-military rule future. They expected that an end to the worst form of government, military dictatorship, and the advent of democracy, supposedly, the best form of government, will usher in a new era. An epoch marked by a curb on corruption (which had taken a disgusting, nauseating twist under military rule), more responsible and benign government policies, confinement of the military to the barracks and an end to police (and other government agents) brutality and an overall conspicuously palpable improvement in the quality of lives of the generality of Nigerians.

After all, history has furnished the incontrovertible evidence that democracy is a fount of political stability, social justice, rule of law, principled distribution of the national wealth and over all societal advancement. In addition, it had improved the standards of political morality, elevated societal ethics and refined the value system in many other countries of the world.

But in the vast scene of confusion and the intractable anomaly that is our beloved country, democracy disappointed the expectations of the people. Therefore, many years after Fela sang his mournful songs and fourteen years into Nigerian democracy, official corruption, mass poverty, police brutality, lawlessness, violence, electoral fraud, theft of public funds, etc remain the defining elements of the Nigerian society.

Suffer still dey Nigeria kpakparakpa, and we still dey suffer kpakparakpa. The level of poverty remains disturbing very high; some estimates have it that 70% of Nigerians live below the poverty level. A staggering proportion of Nigerians urban dwellers live in dirty, festering oozing slums in over crowded and decrepit houses. The social structure and the institutions of government remain skewed against the legitimate aspirations of the masses. The Nigerian system continues to pander to the inordinate wealth of an elite few at the economic detriment of the people.

We still dey run, run, run and still scatter, scatter because police dey come and army dey come. And they still leave sorrow, tears and blood in their wake. Although technically, confined to barracks, soldiers, still periodically, foray into civilian centers and harass and kill civilians. The Nigerian Police Force remains world renowned for its brutality and extra-judicial killings. The police power is an indispensible tool of governance. And the behavior of the police is a powerful indicator of the attitude of the governing towards the governed. The Nigerian police behave as though it is beholden to an occupation power because the Nigerian power elite behave like an occupation power. An occupation power has no emotional and sentimental attachment to the occupied country. Therefore, it is disposed, at the total disregard of the people and the future of the country, to remorselessly exploit the system and ruthlessly loot the public treasury.

Fela’s dirges continue to echo. Unfortunately, they echo, not as an anachronism which is only relevant as an index of how far Nigeria has progressed over the years (from oppression to freedom, social injustice to social justice, police brutality to police respect for the individual worth, etc), but as a true expression of the Nigerian reality. As such, his songs continue to strike a profound chord in the minds of their listeners not just because of the splendor of their melody, but also the pertinence of their message.

The problem of Nigerian democracy is that it was hijacked by an evil oligarchy. It is this evil oligarchy, unsurpassed its catalogue of lawlessness, contempt for the Nigerian masses, irresponsible and anti-people policies, misappropriation of public funds and extravagant lifestyle, that made life for the average Nigerian unsurpassed in its poverty, frustration and misery.

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Tochukwu Ezukanma writes from Lagos Nigeria

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