SINGLE TERM OF SIX YEARS: A SPUR OF CONTROVERSIES

There was a popular kiddies' song whose meaning goes deeper than the literal meaning ascribed to it by a typical kid. It goes thus:

When I was just a little girl

I asked my mother

What would I be?

Would I be rich?
Would I be poor?

Guess what she said to me:

Que Serah, Serah,

Whatever will be will be

The future's not ours to see

Que Serah, Serah

What will be will be...

This takes us to the fact that some things are inherently immutable, unchangeable and unalterable. They have been destined to be so and so must they be. Be that as it may, there is no gainsaying the fact that the human institution is the most complex institution to manage no matter how gifted such a manager is.

While watching "Khakaki: the African Voice" this morning on the AIT television, the reactions trailing the bill on a single term of six years for the President and Govenors of Nigeria recently signed into law by Mr. President was aired and Comrade Bola Alagbe, a pro-single term of six years, while adducing reasons for supporting a single elongated term stated that it will reduce distractions caused by focusing on politiking by our leaders which largely jettisoned their focus on governance. As much as I would love to agree to the fact that 90% percent of our national resources and time is expended on selfish and fruitless politicking by most of our leaders to cunningly seek re-election while still in office, I would not hesitate to disagree strongly to the profered antidote by the Comrade as being tenure elongation.

Give an elected rogue a spate of twenty years single term and expect nothing but crumbled systems, empty treasury and galloping inflation as "dividends of democracy". But give a sincere, forward-looking and productive leader a lean period of three years and you will lose count of positive, impactful and palbable dividends. What this implies is that the problem of Nigeria is not stemmed from the tenure system or the number of years spent in office by our political "cheaters", the problem of Nigeria is wholly premised on bad leadership which gives birth to wanton corruption and gross unaccountability that opens them up for activities that can only be perpetrated by barbarians and heartless animals. Their weapon is their ill-gotten or stolen wealth which they are never ashamed to flaunt like the conscience-less wolves that they are. Give such people a thousand years to move the country forward and be prepared for a two-thousand year retrogression! So, what are we saying? Have we even considered that the elongation of tenure may spell further political acrimony like never before? When such an elongation will now be construed as more space not to just swallow it all but sweep it clean and empty! When this now represents nothing but a signal of "this one term of six years must be mine, no matter what it takes! Ah! I can't imagine myself stepping down for another bloody counterpart for a WHOLE SIX YEARS! Ah! God forbid. Ah! Maa t'aku tii ni o! (I must be bloodily resolute and just clinch this one chance or else, heads will roll!)" 

The likes of Mr. Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN) are still out there who will not need even four years to make positive impacts and meaningful advancements for the citizenry but ALAS! the system we operate here in Nigeria hardly gives room for such calibre of people to come on board the platform of the country's governance. So we continue chasing the shadows while the owner of the shadow laughs with glee in utter amusement!

The Living Faith Church World-Wide (aka Winners) reputed to have the largest church auditorium captured by Guiness book of records did not need a year to complete such a feat! It was accomplished within a matter of months. The problem with most kind of people ascending the mantle of leadership is that they ascend the throne blindly like a vision-less tabular-razar. No bearing, no iota of blue-prints for long-term or short-term project. And as we all know, whoever fails to plan has already planned to fail. Our leaders do not have to wait until they get to the office before they start looking around for what to do like a limbless man groping for a brace in the dark. Such a leader only makes himself or herself a ready-made dumping ground for plethoria of ill-conceived pieces of advice coming from greedy politicians.

My fellow "countrymen", it is not how far, but how well. Our turn-arounds in this country is not located in numerical value but in the mentality of qualitative acts of governance as our immutable antidote. That to me is the only thing VALUABLE for meaningful advancement!

All hail NIGERIA!

'Wale Oladokun