The Power of the People Preponderates Over the People in Power

By Bala Ibrahim

From the narratives coming out of the anger of the nationwide protest, which is now in it’s 6th day, there is a general condemnation of bad governance. The protesters, the commentators, and even those protecting the protesters, are agreed on the fact that, bad governance is the major cause of Nigeria’s adversity, which is fast turning catastrophic (God forbid). Since governance is leveraging on the style of leadership, the leadership in Nigeria is burdened by the need for responsive and responsible leadership. And this is one task to which President Tinubu has sworn to uphold, endlessly.

In Nigeria, the leadership pyramid is easily stratified into three tiers-the President, the Governors and the local government chairmen. Each of the three tiers has been given a constitutional sphere of responsibility for the discharge of duties, particularly those duties that would give democratic dividends to the people. Now that the people are protesting, it would be imperative to interrogate the template for the discharge of those responsibilities, with special bias to seeing the extent, to how that discharge of responsibility is fulfilling the wishes of the people. That way, the people in power can be made to appreciate the fact that, the power of the people preponderates over the people in power.

In management pyramid, which provides the hierarchical structure of leadership in government or any organizational structure, provision is made for one leader at the top, which in today’s Nigeria, is occupied by His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Below him in the ladder of executive leadership are the state governors, who happen to be 36 in number, with an FCT minister, who is not an elected leader, but carries appurtenances with similarities to the powers of elected governors.Then come the local government chairmen at the lower level of the ladder. They are 774 in number.

Since coming to power last year, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has been an advocate of proper separation of power, with the ambition of strengthening development, in order for it to cascade to the people at the grassroots. To this end, the President championed, and is still championing, the struggle for empowering and emancipating the local governments in particular. And the reason is simple- give more powers to the people, by making the people in power know that the power of the people preponderates over the people in power.

Consequently, and pursuant to a suit brought before it by the Federal Government, few months ago, the Supreme Court affirmed the financial autonomy of Nigeria’s 774 local governments. Through a unanimous judgement, by it’s seven-member panel, the Supreme Court upheld the suit, with a view to strengthening the independence of the local governments in the country. By that judgement, the governors are deprived, the reckless powers to pocket at will, and disburse according to the instincts of their selfish agenda, monies meant for the people at the local governments.

Before now, in their corrupt efforts to keep spending other people’s monies, the governors either conduct sham elections, that would bring into office their lackeys, or simply form caretaker committees of stooges that would be doing their biddings of corruption. So if we want to know who are sponsoring corruption in Nigeria today, the question to ask is, who are those behind the appointment of the appointees?

While the Supreme court’s decision was receiving accolades and ovation from Nigerians, the President continued untiringly, with his advocacy for the legitimate disengagement of the people from the ruthless asphyxiation of the local governments, from the harmful hands of the governors. And the reason is simple- the President is bent on making the people in power, know that the power of the people preponderates over the people in power.

Not long ago, in a meeting with the leadership of the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, President Tinubu said, state governments must prioritize the needs of local communities, by ensuring accountability and effectiveness in the administration of their local governments. He said, State Governors were not doing enough to strengthen development at the grassroots and urged community leaders as well as the traditional rulers, to hold Governors accountable. The body language of the President is always geared in the direction of making people understand that the governors are the ones obstructing the country’s wheels of progress, and largely responsible for the bulk of corruption, which is the hallmark of bad governance in Nigeria.

However, despite the unanimous and landmark judgement of the Supreme Court, which was wildly celebrated as the springboard, or catalyst for the empowerment of the people, and in spite of the endless efforts of the President, to free the local governments from the shackles of the governors, some local governments are shamelessly saying they don’t want that financial autonomy. What a shame! The simple answer to this shenanigan is that, some governors are either blackmailing these gutless local government chairmen, to shy away from the responsibility of collecting the money that would bring direct development to the people, or some people are sponsoring a rebellion, against the ambition of democracy in Nigeria.

The hands of these anti-democratic forces are suspiciously seen visibly, in the devastation visited on Nigeria, through the ongoing protests in the country. Much as the President is saying that his government is not going to be silent, or insensitive to the yearnings and aspirations of the people that voted him into power, and even the cry of those that refused to vote for him, a proviso is provided- the country’s economy and the people’s security must not be shut down, or be trampled upon, directly or indirectly. And the warning goes to all, including the sponsors, who are masquerading as protesters, by attempting to put a bottleneck, to the characteristic idiom that says, the power of the people preponderates over the people in power.”