Continued from (Part I)

t is quite obvious to any blind observer that no government in Nigeria is constituted and structured adequately to protect the life and property of its people. Opinions are bound to differ in this regard; it is possible to see those holding this view as contrarians, a bunch of pessimists. As it is said, we are all entitled to our opinions but certainly not all the facts. Attempts will be made in this discussion to provide basis for managing some of Nigeria's albeit self-inflicted wounds and inherent problems; those attempts would not necessarily be based on bus-stop common sense, but the reality of purpose consistent with the prevailing circumstances. Regardless of how much is said, it is clear the Nigerian government is drowning under its own weight; it is wearing a cement-padded pair of shoes and therefore the mechanics of possible floatation is hard to determine even by the best experts in the world. When a bridge or dam is built to fail, it would not necessarily take the strength of a hurricane to do so. Managing the problems before the storm could be the best the experts and non-experts could hope for; as Nigerians continue to challenge God and much less of themselves, they are also calling for divine intervention and the miracle of deliverance. Until then anybody with anything to say is advised to say it in the hope someone in leadership position might be listening.

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The Niger Delta is perhaps the one problem that seems to have gotten the attention of Nigeria's Unitary Government. With constant disruptions in oil-field operations and kidnapping of foreign nationals it finally dawned on Nigeria that the chicken dance was no longer a one-legged jump. The South-south and the entire delta region gradually and steadily became a war zone. Armed insurgency mushroomed from one gang after another until it merged into a mechanized infantry sponsored by interest groups, warlords and international fortune-seekers. It would be a waste of time to recount the history of how Nigeria found itself lost in this heath, the mangrove jungles of absurdity. What is important to know is that every attempt by any government in power (AGIP) to fool the people of the Delta seemed to have worked until it stopped working. The killing of the environmental activist Ken Saro-Wiwa by Abacha's military junta succeeded in delaying the day of reckoning; it did not completely silence the people of Ogoni; they could not lose any more than all they had lost following the fate of their illustrious son. The oil conglomerate Shell Company has yet to reclaim its holdings in the rolling plains of Ogoni.

But the Niger Delta crisis has evolved beyond Saro-Wiwa into a major conflict. Until the oil-fields were shut in and the operators began to declare force majeure in lieu of fulfilling contractual obligations, not many took the armed siege seriously. A few weeks to the end of his tenure in April 2007, the then president announced over a trillion Naira development plan for Niger Delta. He called for a 50-member commission to coordinate the plan. Chief Obasanjo knew he was starting what he could not finish. It was however another exercise in deceit. With the same frame of reference, he flagged off the new Niger Bridge contract supposed to be a joint-venture between the government and a consortium of banks. Knowing that Bridge is the gateway to the South-south and the Southeast, very essential to the flow of goods and services in the major oil producing region of the country, Obasanjo still insisted the construction cost would be repaid through toll collection.

The same people whose resources are used to finance similar projects in other parts of the country would be subjected to an indirect tax. Most observers knew the Obasanjo government was anything but open and sincere. It was surely a boondoggle, a fake bridge to the home of the forgotten. Earlier in the same administration, an administrative entity called the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) was inaugurated by legislation. It took several years to provide the enabling funding mechanism to support and fulfill the prescriptive mandate of the commission. When eventually established, the NDDC became the nurturing ground for political office aspirants. The individual mission was to skim off as much money as possible to feed the prospective campaign coffers for the next election. It was the same NDDC whose chairman lost billions of Naira to "Voodoo Evangelists" who promised to perpetuate him in office and tenure.

The history of Niger Delta and what government did or intended to do but never accomplished, never stopped with Obasanjo. The chosen one came into office promising to tackle the problem head on. After nearly 16 months and counting, Yar'Adua finally returned from the Lesser Hajj where he communed with the Holy Prophet; while there on his hospital bed he contrived a blue print and upon returning, announced the creation of the Ministry of Niger Delta. The unfortunate was that the little-minded choristers believed him, but the reality was that the man was reading from the same script just as his predecessors but on a different page; it was the unbound copy left behind by the last Houdini to occupy Aso Rock. The president followed that announcement to setup the Niger Delta Technical Committee (NDTC). As usual the familiar Nigerian vocabulary emerged in the public domain one more time; the NDTC was supposed to "harmonize" all reports of prior commissions on the Niger Delta over time and after gleaming through, come up with the "Real Recommendation(s)". How the work of the NDTC would relate to the process setting up this so-called new ministry has never been explained; it still remains a figment to be imagined.

As expected, the NDTC has completed its due diligence with a number of recommendations submitted to the president December 1, 2008. The highlights are summarized as follows: (a) "Open trial and bail for accused militant Henry Okah", (b) "Completion of the East-West Road with spurs to coastline", (c) "Payment of outstanding statutory funds owed to the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC)", (d) "Disarming process for youths involved in militancy through creating the enabling environment of a credible Decommissioning, Disarmament and Rehabilitation (DDR) process", (e) "Establishment of a Youth Employment Scheme (YES) that will employ at least 2,000 youths in each local government of the Niger Delta states".

The Niger Delta is one big elephant crap, in essence much more complex than the professor's theoretical review on the thermodynamics of the Bovine Gas. To get there from here, Nigerian's might have to listen to the former U.S. Vice President, Al Gore, Jr. According to the former V.P. "If you want to go quickly, go alone; if you want to go far, go together". It is not quite clear Al Gore agrees cow (Malu) burps and farts constitute an ample source of the greenhouse gas emission. The professor's theoretical view point is that "the typical cow belches forth about a third of a pound of methane gas per day". Given the conglomeration of cow burps and farts the entire world; there would be little doubt as to the contribution towards global warming. Question: how would one go about measuring bovine gas in the first place? What would be the quality control standard to ensure reliability and replication?

Any of our beloved Nigerworld readers, including the learned professor is welcome to offer an honest answer. Guesswork is ultimately allowed and to the extent it would also help figure out how the recommendations presented by the NDTC would take Nigeria far, both together and quickly.

The last recommendation talks about youth employment. It would have been easy to mistake it for a "Youth Empowerment" scheme. Not many people know the exact number local government areas (LGA) there are in the entire states that make up the Niger Delta oil producing areas. The honest guess is that the South-south, parts of the Southeast and Ondo states would be included in the count. Let the assumption be that 8 states qualify and each state has 10 LGA; an estimated total of 160,000 people would benefit from the projected youth employment. What type and kind of businesses would hire these youths? The assumption again is that these jobs are not currently open and available within any and each of the contending, contiguous states and their LGA. If those jobs were there, the youths would possibly be hired already. The corollary then is that Yar'Adua's government has the wherewithal and is considered the one to cause 160,000 youths to be hired wherever with "immediate effect and automatic alacrity".

These youths would not all be absorbed into the Ministry of Niger Delta, or would they? Here comes the next question: Are these youths employable? What type and kind of skills do they possess to make them eligible beneficiaries of a deliberate government program of this size? If they are not qualified because they are unskilled, uneducated, under-educated or both, what then is the plan B?

Out of the 160,000 youths, there are several others, millions either possessing the same requisite qualification or lacking, who would be eliminated from the selection process by the "as man know man" factor. What happens to these other youths who would never make it through this phantom job fair? Finding answers to these questions might bring everybody closer to devising the proper mechanism for trapping "Malu" bovine gas. Such a device would surely work well certainly for the Niger Delta with so much gas.

The ideal discussion would rather be focused on "Youth Empowerment" through skills development. There are all kinds of skills; some are talent driven, oftentimes cultural; others are assimilative by acquisition and adaptation; a good measure comes through formal learning and dedication to training. The hidden agenda in every case scenario would be to make everybody at least good enough to earn a living within a chosen endeavor. Empowerment in that regard would mean that the individual has the minimum skill to function usefully within a given environment. The choice would be for that individual to assume a profession or develop a career as needed. That choice also imposes some flexibility in terms of the opportunities available to exercise the privileges of being gainfully engaged with the ability to take care of oneself without being a burden, albeit a nuisance to family and society. What then is the role of government, any government in all this process? The key would be first to protect life and available property. Unfortunately, for count number one, the Nigerian government of any coloration has always failed this test. The most recent killings in Jos prove the point one more time. The irony is that those youths struggling on their own and not seeking government handout are also the ones being prevented from functioning within the society.

They run the risk of being punished and ultimately killed for being enterprising, hardworking and seemingly successful. Rather the enterprising youths are never encouraged. They are never rewarded for being successful and contributing meaningfully, playing by the rules and abiding by the laws including the obnoxious; they are faced everyday with making the choice as to which part of Nigeria is considered relatively safe to live in and work or otherwise die.

Recently and in fact on November 30, 2008, Dr. Reuben Abati had something to say in the Guardian Newspaper, what he described as "An Okada Economy". His mechanic was essentially complaining to a complainant. Abati has been among the many so often short of sounding like the "cracked "vinyl record, anything but his master's voice. The mechanic is as frustrated as his counterpart the bricklayer, the carpenter, even "Sura" the tailor. They all have something in common; none of them can find enough apprentices to train or the "journey men" (Nigeria's join men), qualified but lacking in internship exposure and experience. The problem in terms of perceived or real dint of scarcity of skill would be over-simplified by making the riders market, the "Okada" motor-bike transporters the alluring culprit. They are just seeking the avenue of perhaps the least resistance, to survive by every means possible. While learning to ride a motor-bike is surely easier than learning to drive a motor vehicle, the presumed and inherently low level proficiency involved does not necessarily minimize the risk of exposure to the extent of making operator's training irrelevant. The traffic and the declivities of the tracks of passage make that risk equal opportunity for the rider, his passenger(s) and other road users. The riders are more likely to lease a bike from a prospective owner than they would independently have the financial leverage to buy, own and operate one. The real picture is that the Nigerian economy is essentially consumer-driven; the consumption pattern relies on the efficiency or lack thereof in the network that controls movement of goods and services. In vernacular, Nigeria is all about buying and selling; even the politics is about retailing falsehood and deceit to facilitate the art of stealing, more stealing and less sharing.

The one thing manufactured in large measures is corruption and more corruption. The oil and gas industry is by and large controlled by multi-nationals; but then Nigerians own and operate gas stations whose refined products come from imports.

Given the foregoing and everything else said and yet to be said about unemployment, youth restiveness and violence of the idle across the country, any rating and grading of the NDTC's recommendation would be fair for a letter grade of D. The truth is also the fact that the Yar'Adua government possesses the leverage and capacity to establish at least one Skills Development Center (SDC) in every local government across the country than the same government would have hiring 160,000 youths only in the Niger Delta. Each SDC would be encouraged to choose from a list of many local arts and technical crafts for which tremendous peer support would be available and effective. There is already knowledge base for skills in weaving, fishing (including fish-pond and nursery), horticulture, snail-breeding, carpentry, tailoring, masonry, auto-mechanic, electrical and electronics technician, air-conditioning, fitting, welding and metal fabrication, painting, auto body-work, pavement and road construction work, heavy equipment operation and maintenance, basic computer electronics and relay application, water well drilling, development and maintenance, oil-field support services like fire-fighting and security control systems. Even the movie, music and the entertainment industry of "Nollywood" would benefit from training in script writing, acting and all other support services. The list is as large as the government would have the capacity to accommodate and implement. There is no reason why a young person graduating from Junior Secondary School should also not be proficient in key board application - just knowing how to type the basic 20 words per minute. To buttress this point, there are qualified Pharmacists originally trained in Nigeria who have found it very difficult to work in the United States simply because they are challenged on the key-board. Their counterparts learned that simple skill in primary school.

Earning literacy certification in "Computer Application for Beginners" ought to be a pre-requisite condition for promotion from Junior Secondary to the first year Senior Secondary School. Any graduate of the Senior Secondary should have earned credit and license to operate motor vehicle including Okada. The essence is that instilling the defensive driving and machine operating skill early would save the life of the Nigerian young person. To avoid duplication and unnecessary redundancy, the SDC installation, arrangement and planning would encourage flexibility and mobility. Thus, primary and secondary school students who are not full-time registrants in any SDC would also be free to enroll for after-hour classes at the discretion of parents. Credits and proficiency eligibilities obtained from such programs would be transferrable and recognized as part of the student's resume of training. Figuring out how to integrate the curriculum base for both the SDC and the grade school programs would help prepare Nigerian children especially the young people better to face the world ahead of them. For full-time enrolment, only graduates of Junior Secondary and over should be eligible. While all SDC training would be free for all who elect to participate, University education would not. Those who must eventually choose to pay to attend the University would therefore be equally more equipped, ready to advance their skill and knowledge base. They would be looking forward to the acquisition of those special tools that would eventually help build good and better entrepreneurial skills. Those who decide not to attend the University would have a better pool of choices as well at their disposal. They would become more marketable, more employable and ultimately more able to leverage their own employment opportunities including becoming Okada riders if they so choose. Doing all that would empower the youths, the key segment of this beleaguered consumer-oriented society currently held down to the mud. Winging through chaos and confusion by hook or crook would not be a reliable option either, certainly not for long.

In general, the overall recommendation of the NDTC clearly raises a number of constitutional questions not just about the Niger Delta but also the entire framework for the place called Nigeria. Should the executive authority of an "Imperial President" also override the constituent rights of the "federating" constituencies even under the provisions of the current imperfect arrangement? It is clear the NDTC members and the rest of those in leadership, who continue to exploit the imperfection in the system, would ever strive to understand the real meaning of a "Constitutional Democracy".

Recently on December 4, 2008 Ambassador Alan Keyes posted an article in the WorldNet Daily entitled "The end of the constitutional republic". Although he was talking about specific constitutional issues relevant to the November 4, 2008 presidential election in America, his remarks appear to provide a more concise definition of a "Constitutional Democracy" for which the Nigerian situation comes into question.

It is perhaps important to know Nigeria also conducted its own presidential election in April of 2007. The outcome of that election is still being challenged in the courts, 20 months and counting. One wonders whether the Nigerian constitution as currently applicable is "regarded by the judges as a fundamental law". Twenty months would normally be considered far too long a time to effect reasonable cures to towards protecting and preserving the rights of the aggrieved and ultimately restore legitimacy in the system. Despite a few successful challenges which have resulted in the overturn of elections, the contest of superiority between the judiciary and the legislative arm of government is not in question. Regardless of which one is more dominant, would the supremacy of any override the power of the governed? In theory, the answer would be no but the Nigerian situation presents a differing scenario in facts and in reality.

Alan Keyes writes: "Though the results of any given election also represent the will of the people, the validity of those results rests on the substantive and procedural understanding arrived at by the people and expressed in the provisions of the constitutional compact. In it, the people have agreed that, first in its adoption and then in the adoption of any changes in its terms, a more comprehensive majority is required than that which decides the outcome of any other election prescribed by it. The need for this more comprehensive majority makes the Constitution a more permanent and durable expression of the will of the people than any subsequent action by a simple majority. In this context, those who compose the simple majority are, like the members of the legislature, subordinate agents of the constitutional majority. Almost all the great advances of the civil rights cause in the 20th century depended upon this argument as to the authority of the Constitution. The concept of constitutional review has also been crucial in the protection of individual rights, including the property rights of those who might otherwise be despoiled by intemperate majorities, roused to injustice by ambitious demagogues".

The problem is not necessarily the fact that Yar'Adua's legitimacy to be and continue as president is still being challenged and contested in the courts, until December 12, 2008. It is also the fact that the NDTC is pleading with the president to implement recommendations for which he has little or no expressed authority under the prevailing Constitution. The setting of the Ministry of Niger Delta should not and ought not to be an alternative to a constitutional review process, certainly not any as currently being canvassed by a select legislative committee. Doing so would amount to acting within the ambits of a "Democratic Dictatorship" akin to the same "Military Democracy" which Unitary Federalism portends for Nigeria. According to Alan Keyes, "The putative authority of a sitting president is plainly contradicted by the authority of the Constitution from which the whole government derives its legitimacy". Unfortunately, the Nigerian situation is different. It is the Constitution in this regard that would be considered "putative". The "Imperial Presidency" derives itself whether under the military junta or in a civilian cloak to the extent the rights of the people are subordinated at every turn. Thus, Yar'Adua retains the first option of refusal in deciding to grant the prayer of the NDTC, to implement its recommendations or not. If he opts to deny the request, what happens next?

If he accepts and implements them, does he also foreclose an executive order from an in-coming president in another time in no distant future from reverting to status quo ante? In other words, finding solution to the Niger Delta problems would be deemed to rest solely in the hands of one man and any whoever becomes president whenever.

The rest of Nigerians and in particular the Niger Delta people would continue to be exposed to the arduous threat and consequences of continuing failure and in furtherance to more chaos including any impending. Collectively, the people would have no recourse, certainly no place at the table to review and discuss vital issues that have become matter of life and death to them.

In a situation where the dictates and pronouncements of an Imperial President becomes constitutional, and by intent and purpose, the Constitution, Yar'Adua's sworn and open declaration to uphold the articles of the same document so trivialized and emasculated by fiat, becomes a mere exercise, essentially a ceremonial pledge in banality. Why then would the NDTC not see the Niger Delta problems as key to any real attempt to fix what is wrong with and about Nigeria by addressing and hopefully resolving the country's on-going constitutional crisis? Calling for a constitutional conference of all stakeholders and insisting on it would have the effect of convincing the Niger Delta people the NDTC is actually looking out for a lasting solution to the problems. It would also send notice to the National Assembly that the current in-house plan to proceed with the constitutional review process would not be acceptable. Just as Alan Keyes has argued correctly, for the Constitution to remain a permanent living document, and as such a durable expression of the will of the people, any subsequent changes including any amendments cannot be effectively carried out by members of the legislature considered subordinate agents of the constitutional majority.

In the case of Nigeria, many members of this legislature attempting to review the Constitution are also products of rigged elections whose affiliation is questionable at best; they have arrived at their destination through the political activism of the party in power. By intent and implication, they are not ideally representing the expressed will of the people as delegates. The announcement a few days ago that the select members of the National Assembly are scheduled to travel to the United Kingdom to talk about Nigeria's Constitution should leave nobody in doubt, including the NDTC, the extent of this expensive joke. Observers and watchers of Nigeria were just waiting for that announcement; one would have thought the United States would have been more relevant if any, knowing the U.K model is parliamentary. All said, should Nigerians not deserve a place at the table to discuss issues that affect everyone and all? It certainly should not be about Yar'Adua, what he can or cannot do but about what Nigerians can do to take their country back. That article of empowerment should be written and clearly stated in the Constitution; thus if Nigerians want "to go far, go together and quickly", the Constitution is the right place to begin from the beginning. It would simply be considered mildly silly and ignorant but in the main stupid to recommend otherwise just as the NDTC did.

To be continued-------

Continued from (Part I)