Nigeria is 51-years old. Can you critically analyse the Nigerian State, so far?

First of all, I want to congratulate Nigerians on their long march as a nation. We are 51 years. However, from the date of independence, as a country, we are much older than 51. Nigeria, as we all know, became amalgamated in 1914, and we have struggled with the building of a nation-state since that time. By 1952, many of the regions were already operating almost as independent countries and national leaders came together to ask for independence. They had hopes, and aspirations for the future. The independence was as a result of all the hopes and aspirations they had for the country. From the development programmes of the various regions and the country as a whole, I think we started very well, especially from the 1950s.

In spite of the various crises we went through, there was a lot of promise, with very little resources, because then the resource base was basically agricultural, yet very monumental projects were being undertaken, as well as roads, hotels, universities, railways and everything.

We were moving very well, but unfortunately, we got interrupted by an unfortunate civil war which lasted for 30 months. Under the leadership of Gen. Yakubu Gowon (the Head of State then), we survived it, and I think we should give credit to Nigeria . Not many countries survive civil wars at their early stages of emergence as a nation state. So, we have to give ourselves credit for that; we did well by surviving the civil war.

It is on record that we are the only country in the world that has remained unified after a civil war. No conquered, no vanquished, and we are all Nigerians. Since then, the social fabric of the country has integrated very rapidly. The military interrupted at various times and they set us back a lot, because by now, we would have been as far ahead as Malaysia. Singapore became independent of Malaysia in 1965 and all these countries have moved very fast, but series of military interventions and consistent changes in programmes and leadership has created instability, and that instability has not helped Nigeria.

Presently, Nigerians are lamenting the lack of progress as it should have been. So far, we have not done too badly, in spite of our own self-demolition. We have not done too badly. You can see that the number of highly educated people has increased tremendously. The number of tarred roads and basic infrastructure has increased, though most of them were poorly constructed and maintained, and the health services have considerably improved -the number of hospitals, doctors and all that, but the problem has remained the lack of proper management of these numerous improvements on what Nigeria should have been today. As a result, we are facing difficulties today. The quality of leadership, particularly, has been very poor since the 1980s. We have not had the kind of visionary leadership that will inspire Nigerians. On a psychological level today, you find that there is a lot of hopelessness. Nigerians do not believe that they have the kind of leadership that can move them forward. It is not as if we have performed poorly in a particular area, but I believe that we can do better.

How can we go about improving the leadership of this country?

Some of us believe, strongly, that in spite of the kind of democracy that we have practiced so far, a continuation of the democratic system will ultimately bring quality leadership, not only at the Federal level, but at the various states, as well. We have 36 states and 774 local governments. The quality of the leadership at the local government level has been very poor. That is one tier of government that has been very close to the people, but so far, it has performed poorly, as a result of the interference of the state governors.

At the level of state governors, you will find that not every state government has failed, and that is the character of federations. As a federation, you are bound to have uneven development.

For a state like Lagos, which has been acclaimed to be on the right track, thanks to two democratic governors, Bola Tinubu and Babatunde Fashola have done very well, by literally changing the landscape of Lagos, including the psychology of the people of Lagos. The current governor of Rivers State, Chibuike Amaechi, from what everybody have observed, is doing a very good job. You can mention a couple of governors in various states. Perhaps, of the 36 states governors, about 40 per cent or so are doing very good, but there are many who are completely disastrous.

However, if the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) were to sit up to be assisted by various civil societies and are able to conduct serious, credible elections, genuine leaders will emerge in the various states, and at the federal level. People will know that you will be rejected by your people, even if you are a sitting governor, and I believe that this is what we need to continue to fight for. Greater activities from various civil organisations, various political parties fighting for internal democracy and ultimately, the INEC organising itself better.

When my former university colleague, Prof. Attahiru Jega was appointed, many of us had a lot of hope that the INEC would improve. Unfortunately, one tree cannot make a forest, and so far, he has not shown the capacity to understand or control the various layers of the INEC.

So, we still have a serious problem with the INEC that needs quality people. We need to bring in better people to improve the quality of the INEC. We need to look at the problem of the security services and their role in the various elections. In some instances, they actually helped in rigging elections. They should be able to let Nigerians express themselves. and elect those who they believe can deliver the dividends of democracy. I believe that if some of these corrections are effected, Nigerians will begin to elect genuine leaders.

We want leaders with vision, those who will work as Babatunde Fashola is doing in Lagos. India had this problem of democracy, struggling here and there, but today, they have moved forward. Some states in India have moved very far ahead of others, thus the Indian nation-state is moving. The economy is moving faster than that of Pakistan (which has continually gone from one military rule to the other). So, I think what we need is a continuation on the path of genuine democracy. I want Nigerians to remain relentless, not to give up, in spite of the obvious disappointments which we have witnessed in the last decade. Nigerians must come together to fight for real democracy, because you don't get real democracy, until you fight for it.

Some people have argued that until the opposition came to power in India, she did not improve. You are a member of the opposition, so what are you people doing to strengthen that line of thinking?

First of all, those who read the history of India and the rise of the opposition sometimes don't get it right. I will explain: in every federation, some states move faster. In fact, a state like Kerala in India, moves faster, because their own system is different from that of the rest of India.

In a country like Nigeria you are also bound to have individual states that will set the pace of development, perhaps pull the others along. People are beginning to visit Lagos now to see how Lagos got it right. I lived in Lagos for one year and I did not believe that you could in any way transform Lagos, because it was almost impossible to get the 'Lagosian' to do the right thing. Presently, there are no 'area boys' in the streets, which before now had been terrible places. Now, you can pass through those places within two minutes. Slums are being cleared, roads are being improved. Hospitals being built, and Lagosians are beginning to value democracy.

Generally, I think that is what we need to do. As an opposition, it is a very positive thing that the star example happens to be one of the biggest states in the country, one controlled by the opposition. It shows what we can do if we take over power.