Olawale Olaleye from Oxford and Chuks Okocha in Abuja
Speaking at the same forum, Sokoto State Governor Aminu Tambuwal, who was also a special guest, identified lack of dependable institutions as the biggest flaw in the country’s 20 years’ democratic journey.
Tambuwal, while reflecting on his personal experience in the last 20 years of democratic rule, said only by building strong democratic institutions, rather than strong individuals, could democracy be sustained in Nigeria. He noted that despite two decades of sustained democracy in Nigeria, elections in which citizens could vote and be voted for had hardly been free and fair.
“I refer to institutions, I refer to the only base on which we, like any other truly democratic society, can build upon and the cover under which we, like any other truly democratic process, can get protection from the whims, madness or even cleverness of any single individual, who might have his or her own interests or flaws,” the governor stated.
He added, “Institutions, not individuals, protect collective interest and grow the commonwealth in a fair, legal and lasting way. The best individual can do is to help build institutions. The lack of institutions that one can truly trust and fully depend on, perhaps, is the biggest flaw of our 20 years of democracy.
“I can tell you that building systems that take all voices into consideration is hard work and it can be frustrating. Believing in democracy means taking time to persuade and build consensus rather than seeing those who disagree as enemies to be overpowered.
“It means agreeing to accept the will of the majority, when your side does not win. The temptation to circumvent the process through violence will always be with us and must be fought.
“I am, however, optimistic, because my experience first as a lawyer, later as a legislator, and then as a governor has given me the rare opportunity to mix with people from all areas and persuasions of Nigeria and part of what this experience has shown me is that we have people that can build institutions.”
According to the former Speaker, House of Representatives, “We have peoples that understand the importance of strong and legitimate institutions that can work for all. The other important thing that my experience has shown me is, thanks to my mental curiosity and physical travels to meet Nigerians across Nigeria and, indeed, outside Nigeria, is that our fears, our desires and aspirations as a people are more similar than some want us to believe.”
Tambuwal called for the exclusion of partisan politics from tertiary institutions, saying, “l am of the opinion that spaces of learning should be areas immune from partisan politics and I also feel that discussions in these places should never be based on or motivated by pure partisan affiliations.
“It is my view that a university or any other citadel or institution of learning should be dedicated to, and should accommodate only rigorous rational reflections that can illuminate the minds of all, to the betterment of the society.”
Supported by Professor Wale Adebanwi, the occupant of the Rhodes Chair in Race Relations at the African Studies Centre at the University of Oxford, the conference attracted diverse speakers, such as Professor Larry Diamond of the Stanford University, USA, who was the keynote speaker; former Vice Chancellor, Igbinedion University, Eghosa Osagie; director of the Centre for Democracy and Development, Abuja, Dr Jubrin Ibrahim; Professor Peter Lewis of John Hopkins University, USA; Adigun Agbaje of the University of Ibadan; and Okechukwu Ibeanu of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Also in attendance were a former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Aliyu Modibbo Umar, who is also a Visiting Fellow at Oxford University; Zainab Usman of the World Bank; former deputy governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Kingsley Moghalu; a former aide to President Olusegun Obasanjo, Professor Akin Osuntokun; Professor Ebenezer Obadare of the University of Kansas, USA; Publisher of the Ovation Magazine, Bashorun Dele Momodu; and Senator Tokunbo Afikuyomi, among others.