Less than two weeks after
ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo advised President Muhammadu Buhari against
seeking re-election in 2019, former military President Ibrahim Babangida has
made known his own position.
In a statement on Sunday,
Babangida asked Nigerians to co-operate with Buhari until his tenure ends in
2019.
According to him, Nigeria needs a
new breed of leadership. He said the time had come to sacrifice “personal
ambition” for the “national interest”.
Here are five highlights of the
statement:
HERDSMEN NEED RE-ORIENTATION
The former military ruler spoke
of herdsmen killings. He listed a number of states where clashes have occurred
between farmers and herdsmen. IBB, as he is known by some of his allies, said
he is perplexed by “gory themes”. The elder statesman said the incident has
left him wondering if truly “this is the same country some of us fought to keep
together”. To reorient the minds of the herdsmen, IBB said they must be made to
embrace ranching as a new and modern way to herd cattle.
NIGERIA NEEDS DIGITAL LEADERSHIP
Babangida said since “recycling
leadership” experimentation has failed, it was about time a new breed of
leadership is ushered in. He said starting from 2019, there is the need to
enthrone younger blood into the mainstream of political leadership and that the
new breed will comprise youth with passion for leadership. Admitting that the
country has made some progress, IBB said the level of progress is not good
enough to place Nigeria on the pedestal it craves for. He spoke on the need to
“deliberately provoke” systems and models that will put paid to this recycling
leadership.
IT’S TIME FOR STATE POLICE
Citing the diverse nature of our
society, Babaginda recommended community policing. He said the current policing
method cannot yield a new result. “We need to catch up with modern
sophistication in crime detection and crime fighting. Due to the peculiarity of
our country, we must begin community policing to close the gaps that presently
exist in our policing system. We cannot continue to use old methods and expect
new results,” he said.
MODERN LEADERSHIP NOT JUST
‘FIGHTING’ CORRUPTION
In what seems to be a knock for
the anti-corruption campaign of the current administration, IBB said
accountability should flow from copious examples. He also recommended plugging
the leakages and building systems that will militate against corruption. The
ex-military ruler said it goes beyond mere sloganeering. The government of
Buhari has been accused of not doing enough in its fight against corruption.
“Modern leadership is not just about ‘fighting’ corruption,” he said.
APC HAS PERFORMED BELOW
EXPECTATION
He also said the ruling All
Progressives Congress (APC) has performed below expectation. IBB said when the
party campaigned with the change mantra, he thought they would device new
methods, provoke new initiatives and proffer new ways of addressing
developmental problems. Making reference to the party’s manifesto, Babaginda
said he thought the APC would have considered the idea of devolution of powers
and “tinker with processes that would strengthen and reform the various sectors
of the economy”. He said: “We need to begin the process of restructuring both
in the letter and spirit of it.”
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