Vanguard: Viewpoints
Institutionalising national interests
By Pieray Odor
IN my view, the situation in the country now demands the articulation and
institutionalisation of national interest and Nigeria's values on the one
hand, and effective regard by the people for the values or their enforcement
generally, consistently and steadfastly by the government on the other hand.
It is disappointing and unfortunate that those who are listened to by the
government and believed by them or who make the government and the people
listen to them are making demands and insinuations that will cause immediate
disintegration and subsequent splintering of Nigeria. If the U.S with its
enormous size and complex composition of people is one U.S.A, why not
Nigeria? Americans it is known, have different religious, cultural and
political backgrounds, interests, and aspirations. Overt and covert racial
bias, discriminations and injustices exist against African Americans
especially. There is also in America economic stratification, rich-poor
gulf, unequal development of state and worst rate of social insecurity in
the world because of America's stupendous murder rate. Yet that country
remains one.
Is the former U.S.S.R or Yugoslavia faring better since it was
disintegrated? His Nigeria fared better since we broke the provinces into
states? What observations or experiences suggest or founded disintegration
as a solution to our problems? It must be know that some agents of
disintegration began the process that is intended to lead to the
disintegration of Nigeria ultimately. We must resist them steadfastly.
What are national interests? National interests are value institutionalised
for the nation, which the people have effective regard for and comply with
religiously, usually spontaneously but sometimes by the force of law. These
would be divided into three classes, namely: sovereign values, essential
values and strategic values. Under sovereign values, the sovereignty of
Nigeria, empowers the government to control and regulate or manage the
people as well as administer its policies without any violent internal
dissent or any external interference or shackle - either by any foreign
government or foreign institution like the North Atlantic Treaty
Organisation (NATO) legitimately.
Sovereign values include national security, the right of those in government
and the indigenes to think by themselves on national matter and the right of
the government to act by itself in the interest of the nation. The
government also preserves the right under sovereign values to make its own
policies, conceive its own ideas, and execute these policies and ideas which
are in the interest of the nation without internal or external shackle,
interference or influences. Lastly, it includes the right of the government
to thwart or resist any internal or external attempt to force or impose any
ideas, ideologies, philosophies, lifestyles or policies on it. In other
words, sovereign values recognise the government as unique, distinct,
distinctive, authoritative and inviolable.
Essential values, the second classification of national interests, have to
do with life and happiness. Whatever secures life and happiness for the
people or promotes the lives and happiness of the people is an essential
value. The most important factor for securing and promoting life and
happiness is economics or the state of the economy. Under the foregoing
consideration, the eradication of corruption and the alleviation of poverty
of President Obasanjo is a wrong policy. This is because corruption can
never be eradicated while poverty can be eradicated. Another reason is that
poverty makes people compromise on moral values or abandon moral values
completely. This is at the root of the violence, and irrational agitations.
Poverty has created frustrations, loss of hope, prospects and value for
life. Loss of the meaning of life, purpose of living, something to live for
and disillusionment about morality because criminals are living best. In
order words, poverty is a cause of corruption while corruption is a
consequence of poverty and loss of moral values.
No one can eradicate a consequence if he does not eradicate the cause of the
consequence first. On the other hand, eradicate a cause and its consequence
is eradicated automatically.
What is offensive and disheartening about President Obasanjo's drive for the
eradication of corruption is that the grape vine revealed that his focus was
suggested by the U.S government, and the Secretary of the IMF reinforced it
by defining corruption. As it should be expected, the demands of the US
government and the definition of corruption given by the secretary of the
IMF do not cover the corruption practices, which the US government is guilty
of. It will appear that the president either wants to please these people or
wants to be seen as a civilian democrat and, not as a military man. He is
however a military man just as he is a Nigeria, and nothing is wrong about
it. Only Bill Clinton lacks military training and service in the history of
America's presidency. What Obasanjo appears to be lacking are
conceptualisation, creativity, national and patriotic spirit, and courage, I
mean well!
In order to eradicate poverty, the president must cease to pursue
privatisation, liberalisation deregulation and the supply of monster note
monies. He should reintroduce the smaller note and coin monies (50k and one
naira notes; 5k, and 10k coins) plentifully, and regulate the cost of
housing, food, social services and transportation as well as subsidise fuel
price and education costs.
In order words, the president should implement the traditions, philosophies
and ideologies whose purposes and aims are communal welfarism and
egalitarianism; and which secure and promote life and happiness for all
Nigerians. Democracy derived from res publica and sales populi supreme lax
(the people's republic and welfare of all people, not some people, as the
supreme law). The creed of the president and his men should be changed to
The Eradication of Poverty and Enforcement of Moral values. When these are
pursued, consistently, indiscriminately and perseveringly, corruption will
be brought to an insignificant and manageable level. Clearly what has been
said so far, provides logic for a conference on Nigeria's values.
The third class of national interest which should be articulated and
institutionalised come under Strategic Values. Strategic Values include a
well-trained and well-equipped army, a good population of the army, and
radical nationalism. Why would Nigeria depend on the US government to train
her soldiers? Why should we depend on the U.S, Britain or Russia to sell
weapons of war to us? We are competitors with these governments or their
enemies under political considerations. No one enhances his opponent or
enemy. Every effort must begin to be made along improved, distinct,
distinctive and equally effective military. A permanent seat at the UNSC,
with all the rights and authority attached to that status as well as a
strong economy, good and effective population also come under strategic
values.
Nationalism is a strategic value. Its death in Nigeria has given way to all
manner of ethnic spirits congresses and loyalties. Nationalism engenders
growth and development, unity and pride, "Ask not what your country can do
for you but what you can do for your country". Martin Luther King (Jnr) who
ought to have demanded a separate country for black Americans urged all
Americans. That is nationalism. To institutionalise nationalism, the Nigeria
concepts of rights, liberties and liberalisation as well as their practice,
limits and sanctions must be settled simultaneously. So far their practices
are irrational, subjective, extravagant and injurious to persons and
corporate existence and well being. This is because their concepts are
foreign and emotive. We find here another reason for the utmost necessity
and relevance of a conference on Nigeria's values now.
To summarise, national interests include the following values: One (united)
Nigeria, Nationalism, National Security, Sovereignty, Self-thinking and
Self-acting. The others are distinct and distinctive life style;
Co-habitation, peace, continental superiority and equality with governments
of super power status.
The National Orientation Agency (NOA), and the National Orientation and
Public Awareness (NOPA) should correct the flaw in their procedure by
killing the values which engender or promote poverty and immorality; or
affect the life and happiness of Nigerians badly, and simultaneously,
introduce new and sound values. It is wrong to concentrate, as the two
agencies are doing now, on the awakening of consciousness about some values
or the introduction of new values while the values which are responsible for
the situation, which they wish to change, are still in place. This
corroborates the necessity for a conference on Nigeria's Values identified
earlier which has as its purposes the abrogation of the corruption and
militating values and the institutionalisation of sound moral, economic,
political, family and social values as the norms and mores.
Prince Odor wrote in from Lagos.
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