By Chidiebere Onyemaizu
His Royal Highness, Oba Oladipo Olaitan is the Deputy Leader of the pan-Yoruba socio-cultural group, Afenifere. Oba Olaitan, like President Bola Tinubu, was a chieftain of the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO). In this interview, he laments that the democracy they fought for, is not the democracy Nigeria is currently practicing, accusing President Tinubu of entrenching unitary system of government, one party and a police state.
One of your comrades, someone with whom you fought for democracy back then is now the President of Nigeria. How do you feel?
Yes, we have been in the trenches for so long. It is sad. Sometimes you ask yourself how did we get here.
President Tinubu is known to you, looking at his conduct, actions, programmes and policies so far, would you say you are disappointed in the kind of government he is leading?
I will want to give him time. But one thing that is little bit disturbing is his attitude to restructuring. He spent a major chunk of his political life making sure that we have true federalism. That restructuring is not on the front burner of his government is a little bit disturbing. If anything, he is doing everything against it.
As a democrat if you are to present a charter of demand to the President, what will you be asking from him?
Nobody lives forever. I know him as a person. I think he should write his name on the sands of time by doing the right thing. I plead with him to do the right thing.
And what is the right thing?
The right thing is to look at the interest of the citizens and not selected friends. He should do the greatest good for the greatest number and not the greatest good for a few.
How would you rate the Tinubu administration in terms of performance, in terms of deliverables?
What have you seen? How do you rate him yourself? Your personal view, your rating of his government is likely to be mine too.
As one of those who fought for the return of participatory democracy, would you say that since 1999 when democracy returned till date, what has happened in the country met your expectations?
Certainly No!
Why?
We are driving towards one-party state, that’s what is going on. We are heading to one-party state and it is not going to work. We are doing everything to enshrine one party state, a police state, that’s what is going on. We can all see it, it is clear. He is not hiding it. You want INEC to conduct election at the federal level, at the state level and at the local government level; and you say you are doing federalism, you are not. It is obvious.
What is the way to go?
The way to go; is one, to democratise our institutions, strengthen our institutions. For Christ sake, we should re-examine this presidential system of government, it is too expensive. It is not good for us at all. We should go back to Parliamentary system. This winner-takes-it all of system is not good for us. We have so many nationalities, over 250 nationalities in place and you have one person wielding enormous powers. If you go round Aso Rock- I have been there countless times- you will realise that one person, one system can’t rule this country, it is not done. Our founding fathers saw it and they made sure we didn’t have unitary system of government and gave us a federal system of government but what do we have now? What we have now is unitary system of government, not federal system. And this man is entrenching unitary system every step he has taken.
You are talking about a President who proclaimed himself a democrat…
(Cuts in) I like your language, you said proclaimed, you are the one who said it , I’m not the one.
Do you think he is not a democrat?
You are the one who said it! (laughter)
What would you say is the score card of the President in the economic realm?
Some of us don’t like debts or will you like to be a debtor? If you won’t like to be a debtor, then, you are not likely to like this government just like myself.
But he said he is instituting some reforms…
That’s what we are saying. You are instituting reforms and digging yourself into indebtedness, do you like that one?
He is trying to reform taxation….
(Cuts in) That’s what I’m saying, instituting reforms but also sinking into indebtedness; do you like it? I don’t like it either.
What kind of advice would you give to the President?
I like him, I like him, let him like himself.