Last 7 years’ve been traumatizing –Bolaji Abdulahi

Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, a seasoned journalist is a former Special Adviser, who has served at various times as Commissioner in Kwara State and Minister of Sports. Currently, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate for Kwara Central Senatorial District in the forthcoming February 2023 election. He shares his ambition and agenda in this interview with BIYI ADEGOROYE

 

You have served as Commissioner and Minister, what is the attraction to the Senate, the Legislative arm?

I must confess that my original plan was to contest for governorship. But due to party arrangement, I was asked to go for the Senate. And I believe that this is not less important and I take the prospect of my role as a Senator very seriously because I believe that it is happening at a major defining moment of this country’s history.

I’ve said it repeatedly, whether Nigeria is going to make it or not will depend on what we’re able to do post-2023. The last seven and half years have been very traumatising for Nigerians. Nigerians have become very cynical today, perhaps more than they have ever been before. Nigerians are poorer today, perhaps more than they have ever been before. Nigerians are hopeless today, perhaps more than they have ever been before.

Therefore, what seems to be the emerging consensus, whether among the masses or the political elite, or even the corporate elite, is that Nigeria as it is structured today is not functioning at its utmost capacity. As a matter of fact, it is not functioning for anybody; apart from a few people who benefit from the way things are. So, I believe that whether we like it or not, Nigeria must survive. We must have a serious conversation about the future of Nigeria. We must have a serious conversation on how to reorganise it, how to restructure it, to make it better, to make it more efficient for all of us.

And that conversation is going to take place in the national assembly. So, I’m excited with the possibility that I will be part of that conversation, and I’ll be part of the people that must bring about ideas on how to reorganise Nigeria, how to reposition Nigeria, and how to make it function more effectively.

To me, it’s very important. The role I’m expected to play, I’m taking it very seriously. And I believe I’ll be going to the Senate to be part of the critical mass that will support the Executive, to build a very serious legislative agenda that will put Nigeria on a path of progress.

Are you saying you’re forward to a national assembly that will be a rubber stamp to the Executive?

A national assembly that is a rubber stamp is a contradiction in theory and in practice, because the fundamental philosophy of Separation of Power is based on the Principle of Checks and Balances, which means there must be this level of creative tension between the Executive and the Legislative arms.

So, the autonomy, what is called embedded autonomy, given that it is the same government, but the two arms of government must be autonomous enough to generate that positive tension that is required to provide for that checks and balances. Not so autonomous as to be unable to work together in the interest of the nation itself, because when they are autonomous to be manifestly antagonistic of each other, then the system breaks down, and they are not able to work together, it’s not good for the interest of the country. And that is why I use the term embedded autonomy.

So, they are autonomous in that they are joined in cooperation in the interest of the country. And that tension is important between the Executive and the Legislature because it is that tension that gives rise, that produces the intention of the framers of the constitution for Checks and Balances, between the two arms of government. Where there is no Checks and Balances between the two arms of government, that’s where tyranny and oppression come in.

So, the Rule of Law, which is the fundamental principle of democracy, can only be sustained where there is relatively autonomy between these two arms of government, because we are not used to the national assembly functioning the way it should, when you find a national assembly that can say No, we cannot go along with the Executive in this area because it is against the constitution and interest of the people.

One of the unfortunate disfunction of our democracy in the last couple of years is that we have created not only a president that is by the constitution powerful, that constitution confers with so much power already, but he’s also seen as the father of the nation. An Executive president that has so much power conferred on him by the constitution but politically has also assumed the role of the father of the nation. So, to say No, to such a president is seen as antagonism, even if saying No, it is what you need to do to move the country forward.

And that is why we need to understand, the people need to understand, that the tension between the Legislative and the Executive arms of government is not a bad thing. It’s actually necessary for democracy to progress.

You have never served at the Legislative arm, at any level before. What experience are you banking on to help you achieve your dream?

The reason we have the Senate as the Upper Legislative chamber is that we have these 109 people who represent 109 Senatorial Districts in Nigeria. And these people are presumably champions of their people in the national assembly, in the commonwealth. They are supposed to be the voice of the people that they represent.

They are to champion the interest of the people that they represent, within the overall interest of the nation itself. So, you will assume that the people that would be playing this role must be people who are experienced enough to understand how to balance the interest of their people within the larger interest of the country. People who understand the issues that are most important to the people of the country, who understand the mission and the direction the nation needs to be going, especially in difficult moments like this. And in terms of representation, after the Senate, there is no next level.

 

So, you will assume that the people who should be coming to the Senate should be people who have seen it all. People who understand the way government works, who understand the obstacles in government, people who understand the reasons things don’t work, and able to maneuver around political obstacles to deliver on objectives for the people and the nation.

 

And this is where experience comes in and this is why the longer people stay in the national assembly, the better they are. But unfortunately, that is not the case in our own situation. It’s a good thing that people leave office as two-term governors and come to the national assembly. People were ministers and they come to the national assembly. People were heads of powerful agencies and they come to the national assembly. There is nothing bad about that, if only they are able to bring their experience to bear on what is happening in the national assembly.

So, my experience over the last 20 years in the public sector is a big advantage for me in seeking to represent the people of Kwara Central Senatorial District in the national assembly.

 

I’m probably one of the few people in this country today who have had the kind of broad spectrum of experience that I’ve had. I’m very sure that what I have is unique in the sense that I started my career as a journalist and I got to the level of Deputy Editor of a national newspaper. I had a strong voice before I joined the government; writing on the back page of Thisday newspaper, analyzing politics, and analyzing issues. I worked in the civil society, African Leadership Forum, where I was Director of Programmes, and Director of Publications.

Then I started as Special Adviser to the then Governor of Kwara State in 2003. In 2005, I became Special Adviser on Policy and Strategy, and I became Commissioner for Education. Then I went on to become a minister for three years, and later spokesman of a political party. You can see that this is a unique portfolio of experience that cuts across almost every sector.

I think the Senate needs my kind of experience, and I intend to bring this to bear.

So, if people are looking at what they need in someone to be able to represent them efficiently in the Senate, I think, by the grace of God, I’ve got it with the benefits of the opportunities that I’ve had. And someone who does not possess this experience may not be able to represent them that effectively. And I like to say this, the Senate is not where you go to learn about how the government operates because you have 109 people, everyone coming to represent their people. So, when you stand up on the floor of the national assembly to speak, people must know who is speaking. They must respect you because they know what you have done before.

The Senate is not a place you go to get introduced to other people. The Senate is a place you go where you know everybody, where everybody knows you. It’s not a place you go and when you stand to speak people ask who is that? What has he done before? That is why I say the place is a Ferrari of politics. You don’t see an ‘L’ sign hung on a Ferrari. If you want to learn how to drive, you don’t use a Ferrari.
Despite this glowing profile, it is becoming a trend in the country that one needs the backing of his governor to win an election. As a member of the opposition party in Kwara, how do you hope to weather this storm?

In principle, you’re right. But in practice, especially, if you zoom into what is happening in Kwara today, you will find that the situation is different. We were in the ruling party in 2019 when we lost the election; don’t forget. We were in power, our leader was still the Senate President, we had a sitting governor but we still lost the election. That is to tell you that it is possible for a party that is not in power to win an election, especially if they are able to communicate hope to the people.

In our own case, we’re not just communicating hope; we’re also showing what we have done before. When they came in in 2019, the people didn’t know anything about them. Many of the people they voted for under the APC canopy, the people didn’t even know them. All they wanted was to vote against us.

They didn’t even know the people they were voting for. But they’ve had the benefit of at least three and a half years to know these people. And the verdict today is that nothing good can come out of these people.

If you like, give them another 10 years. And ask randomly in Kwara State today, about any project they have started and commissioned in the state in the last three and a half years, none. Not one. It’s not a question of over-promising the people in 2019.

No. It’s a question of promising, knowing quite well that you will not be able to deliver on these promises. It’s a question of deliberately playing on the emotion of the people to seize power. So, after seizing power, they don’t know what to do with it. And that is why the whole place is in a mess today.